when doing a double (say, in a WC test) - when I walk up to the line, what order should I show Stormy the gunners (1, 2 or 2,1) and which gunner do I have her sit and face? 1 or 2?In the US, the rules vary with type of event. The ones I know about (or think I do) are the AKC Hunt Test and Field Trials, and the GRCA WC/WCX. You might want to check the rules for your particular event. Rule books are available online.
You are not permitted to show the gunners to the dog in a Hunt Test. Of course, in a Junior test, it's not much of an issue because you're running singles, but it's an issue for Senior and Master tests.
For Field Trials and the WC/X, you can take as long as you need to show the dog the gunners. If I may throw in an anecdote, when Lumi got her WCX, she had trouble spotting the center Gun on the land triple when we got to the start line, and I took a fairly long time helping her find it, eventually having her switch sides, then switch back. I still remember her sweet body language when she spotted it, "Hey, there's another Gun out there!" Then I positioned her facing the first Gun, cued "Sit, mark," and called for the throw. She got a good look at each throw, did well on her retrieves, and when we were finished and leaving the start line, one of the judges said quietly, "Nice handling." I think it was giving Lumi the chance to find that middle Gun that elicited the friendly remark.
The sequence I follow is to show the dog the Guns in the reverse order of throwing: I show go-bird first, first-bird-down last. In that way, you move smoothly from one Gun to the next and end where you want to be when you call for the first bird. It sounds simple, but it's surprisingly easy to get to the start line and do it backwards, so I practice it mentally beforehand once I see the set-up.
I might mention that even when we're practicing for a Hunt Test, where you're not allowed to show the dog the Guns, I still carefully point them out to my dogs in practice sessions.
While you can't point out the Guns before the birds are thrown in a Hunt Test, you CAN line your dog up after the judge has called your dog's number. She probably won't need help lining up on the first bird, assuming you're sending her to the last bird down, but she might get some benefit out of you taking your time lining her up after she gets back with each bird before sending her out for the next one. I've seen people just take the bird while the dog was standing or sitting in the right general direction and then call the dog's name to send dog back out, only to have the dog leave the line without knowing where she's supposed to be going.
One other point, for when you get to the WCX. In a WCX, they throw the birds in the order left to right or right to left, but you can pick them up in any order you like. The Pro I used to train with before he retired gave me this advice, and it's worked for me: Pick up the go-bird first, the other outer bird second, then the middle bird. That seems to give the dog the best chance.
I have a little article on line mechanics on the sidebar of my blog.
Lindsay, with Lumi & Laddie (Goldens)
Laytonsville, Maryland
Field training blog: http://lumi-laddie-test-series.blogspot.com (see "Archive of Video Blog Entries" in right margin)
YouTube playlists:
-- Lumi: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=BC338082E0B890DB
-- Laddie: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=9A44913FB240932A
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