MachSpeed Whippets on the Beach in MuiNe

Astro, Rocket, and Lajka on the beach at Surfpoint Kitesurfing School. Feb 2012. Made by Adam Borys of HamTien Productions

Whippet Frisbee-Coursing on a Tropical Beach

Here are some shots of Rocket doing some Dog-Disc Coursing on the beach in Mui Ne, Vietnam.  We went out a few days ago in the morning.  My friend Adam, from SurfPoint Kite-Surfing school and Ham Tien Productions, took these shots.  As you can see, he did a real good job considering this was the first time he photographed Whippets in action — no small task!

We weren’t able to perfom for long becuase it was hot and sunny.  Rocket got tired.  If I were to go home for another dog, the beach would have been full of kites by the time I got back.  There is a chance we will try to take a few more shots before i need to head off to SaiGon to prepare for our move to California.

If when you are in Mui Ne, you need a photographer or a cameraman for a project, or want to learn how to Kite-Surf, you might try to get a hold of Adam.  Contact to him is on the Surfpoint internet site.  You can find the link on one of my other blogs:  www.muinet.wordpress.com

Click on the thumbs to enlarge the photos.

Handling Fences

a View from Behind

Stretching Out

the Tropics

When will he finally come back down to Earth?

I think he ended up catching this one.

Rocket on Lauchpad

Rocket Flies Away

Attention! Whippets Overhead

Rocket Launch 3

Rocket Launch 2

Rocket Launch 1

I am going to miss Mui Ne, but I am sure that a lot of exciting times are up ahead of us in California :  my new work,  the music scene,  the whippet scene, the Frisbee and Aerobie scene, etc.  I will miss the weather, but it doesn’t get very cold in California and the climate will be just about ideal for the dogs.

Introducing Karadhras TinkerBell @Mach9 (Laika)

Many of you already know Laika, but I thought it was high time to officially introduce her to everyone now.  After all, I think only just recently is she truely in her adult form.

I am so lucky to have her here at Mach-Speed.  After all, I haven’t been deep into the show aspect of Whippets for very long.  People associate us more with the frisbee/disc, sport and pet aspects more than with pure-bred showing.

When I look back at Laika’s past year (to year and a half), as far as shows are concerned, its been so much more than I ever expected.

Here’s a quick look at the successes:

• In Laika’s last 6  shows, she has taken Best of Breed or Junior Best of Breed in ALL 6 of them!   …and in all 6 shows she was up against competiton.
• In her last 2 shows, she took Best of Breed, Best of Group and 3rd Best in Show both times — from a field of approximately 400. (collecting a CAC and a CACIB in the process)
• In her only show as a puppy, she took Best of Breed Puppy.
• She completed her Junior Polish Champion title in, if I remember correctly, the minimum number of shows.
• She accomplished all this with a less than exception handler (me), and she missed quite a few chances at Best of Group and other awards because I didn’t know what was going on.

She is my 50cm tall sweetie (that I sometimes call “Tweetie”) that seems to have something magic.  She seems to use the magic the most when judges are watching…  Not to say that she is the easiest to handle in the ring, cuz she is not.  But she seems to be getting better.

Here are some pics I took of her today in Mui Ne, VietNam.  Click on thumbnails to see them in full-size.

Lajka with a Local Boy

Lajka on Stage

Lajka Pumpin’ Gas

Lajka Guarding Antiques

Lajka the LifeGuard

Lajka is an Adult Now

Vietnam Whippet-Beach-Frisbee

Here are some shots that Christophe Guegan took of the Whippets and I playing frisbee on the beach in Mui Ne, Vietnam.  He was there on vacation and happened to be there with his camera.

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Whippets on Pedestals — Rocket and Lajka on Display

Here are some preliminary shots in a slideshow format.  I have some ideas on some photos based on this concept for the future.

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Whippets in the Red Dunes of Mui Ne, VietNam – part1

A slide-show from the red dunes near Mui Ne, VietNam:

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Rocket the Whippet in a Coconut Tree

Rocket has always been a decent tree climber.  He climbs me adnd stands like a parrot on my shoulder, he chaced a squirrel up a tree in a park in Warsaw in one swift movement and then was surprised when he reached a high perch and looked down.  I had to help and coach him down.

Now, here in Mũi Né, VietNam , Rocket has a new tree to climb — the leaning coconut trees (and the dunes and cliffs and hills too).  Below are some shots of him goofing around on one of the coconut trees on the beach near my house.  I didn’t really coax Rocket to go higher.  I think it is best that he decides how high he goes and not me.   It will be safer and, in the end, Rocket will be more sure of himself and perhaps go higher. Anyhow, I was taking the pics, therefore I couldn’t take part in the stunts.

Is this Why He Climbed the Tree?

Senor Coconut Perro

Camera Facing West at Sunset

A View from Below

Rocket Looks Around from Low on Tree

“Hey, let me get by!”

“Is she gonna take my coconuts?”

Rocket’s “Predicament” from a Distance

Camera Looking Straight East

Rocket in a Coconut Tree

By the way,  this Machspeed blog gets considerably more traffic than the actual MachSpeed website.  If you haven’t seen the main website, please check it out!  Maybe you would sign the guestbook on the main page as well and leave a pic of your Whippet or kennel in the signature?

www.machspeedwhippets.com