The Seven Secrets of Show Success
Be Lucky BY MICHAEL AND CATHY DUGAN
Several lucky events coincided with our campaign for Ladybug. The breed became better known by virtue of the Obama family addition of a Portuguese Water Dog, “Bo”. Ladybug was featured on the Madison Square Garden mar- quee throughout the weekend promoting the event the year she won the Group. And last but not least, several high-profile all-rounder’s and breed specialists put her up early on to help establish her as a credible contender. We’ve all heard the old sayings about “luck” such as “ I’d rather be lucky than smart” and there’s a lot of truth to all of them. The best we ever heard describes how luck really works in the real world: “Luck is the intersection of endless preparation with that moment where life demands your very best”. Luck begins when you know in your gut and heart that you are prepared and ready. Ever have one of those moments at work or at play where everything around you seemed clear- er and a little voice in your head said “I can do this!” About the power of preparation: Mario Andretti is regard- ed as one of the best all-around race drivers in history; win- ning everything from the Indianapolis 500 to Formula One Championships. In person, Mario is unimposing but carries a persona that suggests he could do anything he set his mind to do. He took me around the 500 track for a couple of laps as a favor and scared the crap out of me. We never got over 150 miles per hour, but on the turns the car would be mere inches from an unforgiving concrete wall, focusing my atten- tion like nothing else. I asked Mario what separated the great drivers from the every good ones; much less mere mortals like me. He told me that the great drivers saw everything in slow motion. He might be hurtling down the track at 230 mph, inches from the wall, debris and other cars swirling around him, but to him he was coasting along at 50 mph. No big deal. Because he practiced so much, planned every move and visualized every turn and pit stop, by the time race day came, he had already finished the race. Mario also laughed about how in some races all of the great planning blew up on the first lap and he knew it was going to be a very long day. “Some days you are lucky and some days you’re not”
W e’ve now talked about the many moving pieces needed to make the complex process of showing a competition dog at a high level even possible. Still, after all of the long-term hard work of finding the right dog and handler, organizing the program and advertising, developing backers and com- mitting most of you own time, you still might not win. Why? Ultimately, it still comes down to “luck”. When we heard an old pro talk about how the stars, the moon and the planets all needed to be in alignment to win a Best in Show, we thought it was just another urban myth; we were wrong. After twenty best in show wins we were sur- prised every time without fail. Some weekend lineups looked so good we were sure we couldn’t miss; then we couldn’t get out of breed. At some shows where we almost withdrew our entry to reduce the pain and bleeding we knew that was com- ing, we won the whole damn thing! Go figure. We’re of Irish descent and a little superstitious about some things. When Ladybug was born on St. Patrick’s Day we raised an eyebrow at our good fortune and quickly named the litter the “Irish Litter” with names such as “Luck Be A Lady”, “Lucky Charm”, and “Luck of the Irish” we figured we would at least have fun. In fact the whole litter was a powerhouse, led by the indomitable Ladybug.
“THE BEST WE EVER HEARD DESCRIBES HOW LUCK REALLY WORKS IN THE REAL WORLD: “LUCK IS THE INTERSECTION OF ENDLESS PREPARATION WITH THAT MOMENT WHERE LIFE DEMANDS YOUR VERY BEST”. LUCK BEGINS WHEN YOU KNOW IN YOUR GUT AND HEART THAT YOU ARE PREPARED AND READY.”
38 • S how S ight M agazine , D ecember 2018
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