The AKC National Championship Offers More Than Ever!
By Amy Fernandez
Seventeen years…it’s still hard to believe. Many of us didn’t quite know what to expect from that very first AKC National Championship that made its debut back in 2001. The big money, game show atmosphere – and especially AKC’s direct involvement – were just a few reasons why the whole thing rumbled with controversy.
True, those early years lacked some cohesive structure. On the other hand, it was like a test lab for innovations and ideas that would never fly within the usual AKC corporate context. Yea, it was risky and impossible to pigeonhole, but you can’t argue with success.
This eclectic purebred showcase still defies description, but there are some elements of predictability. Let’s see…Royal Canin is back. Well, maybe that’s not the best example. Now that everyone has finally stopped calling it ‘Eukanuba’, Royal Canin is back sponsoring the all breed competitions while Eukanuba sponsors the companion events. Royal Canin’s colors are red and white as opposed to the pink and black of Eukanuba. Things change, but the corporate colors always assure us that it’s always festive and colorful.
And it’s big, really big! There is Agility, Rally, Juniors, the Diving Dog Championship, the NOHS Finals, 30 specialties, a couple of group shows. This year’s total combined entry tops 8600. The actual National Championship accounts for 4803 of them. Exhibitors from every state, and 44 countries, and all 190 recognized breeds are represented. Topping the list are 138 Goldens, 125 Dachshunds, 108 Australian Shepherds, 98 Frenchies, 98 Labs, 72 Ridgebacks, 71 Manchesters, 63 Chihuahuas, 62 Cavaliers, and 60 Rotties. Add some nice FSS and Miscellaneous entries to that and guess what? Some judges overdrew!
For judge changes and other preshow updates visit:
www.akc.org/events/national-championship
What else? No more bicoastal venue displacement. It’s destined to stay in Orlando at the million square foot Orange County Convention Center, which probably explains another reliable factor of why it just keeps expanding.
If that sounds more exhausting than exciting, don’t panic. Courtney Suthoff, part of the Royal Canin communications team, and your official tour guide, has good news. She tells us, “We are back to the original space. Last year’s circumstances were unavoidable. It was kind of a hike, especially coming from the hotel.” (Let’s not revisit that) “But the show is back on the other side of the building this year. The layout is somewhat different. It’s actually a really new look and feel.”
More good news is the setup has been tweaked for the exhibitor, which should make everyone happy. Unloading, parking, grooming space, ring access (the things that can make or break your day) will be easier this year. Even the vendor space has been revamped for exhibitor convenience. There’s plenty of Christmas shopping but all the important stuff like scissors, chalk, liver, etc. are, according to Courtney, “A more reasonable walking distance.”
But just to make sure nobody gets lazy. “There’s going to be an onsite scavenger hunt for people attending,” Suthoff says. What, Where, When…? We’ll let the suspense build, but she’ll tell you this much “they can be redeemed for prizes!”
Courtney continues saying there are, “Lots of new things for this year. We will be back on Animal Planet. So we have a new broadcast partner and a new date. We are going to air on New Years Day at 7:00 pm ET.”
However, there is no need to wait till New Year’s Day to view the show. Live stream coverage of groups and finals can be accessed at akc.org and live.royalcanin.com. That kicks off at 5:00 each night starting with the biggest new addition to lineup, the inaugural AKC Royal Canin National All-Breed Puppy and the Junior Stakes. “That’s going to take place on Friday, December 15, and tons of will be competing.” Courtney’s not exaggerating. An entry of 1228 definitely qualifies as a ton of puppies.
She says, “The rest of the daytime events are kind of business as usual. All the normal stuff.” In other words, the regular wild mix of events, activities, awards, demos, parties, shopping, canine celebrities, human celebrities, and much more. The festivities kick off this Tuesday with the Orlando Cluster of dog shows. Take some vitamins and stay open-minded. It’s gonna be a fun week!
Short URL: https://caninechronicle.com/?p=136724
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on Dec 11 2017. Filed under Current Articles, Featured.
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