Chair’s Blog: The Countdown to Outdoor Champs 2026!
With the Outdoor Champs 2026 just around the corner, I want to take this opportunity to say a massive thank you to everyone involved in the lead-up to the event.
Long before the first dogs enter the lanes, it is the unseen hard work behind the scenes that transforms empty fields at Uttoxeter Racecourse into the biggest Flyball event in Europe.
The Marathon Planners
Firstly, a huge thank you to the Champs Working Party and the Committee Members leading this year's event. The planning and admin marathon started months ago. They took on the massive job of procurement and logistics—locating suppliers for vital services, chasing quotes to get the best prices, and coordinating deliveries. All of this while organizing the essential BFA equipment required for multiple racing rings and managing the necessary administration.
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Thank you: Kelly Murdoch, Meghan Quinlan and members of Relentless, Avril Wilson, Shelley Andrew, and Chris Gosling.
Creating the Flyball Village
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Thank you to Nicola Anderton-Cole (from Mutleys) and her family: For securing a fabulous selection of stallholders, caterers, and refreshment stalls this year. We will have plenty to enjoy throughout the entire event, and the shopping and food village is going to be amazing!
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Thank you to Rob Stroud: For mapping out the site, the rings, the stalls, the camping areas, and the vital services running to them. Your work on measuring and marking out turns a sprawling outdoor area into a functional flyball village. This includes a campsite that will house hundreds of campers from our flyballing community.
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Thank you to Kerena Marchant: For reviewing the site from an accessibility perspective and working closely with members to meet their camping and access needs. This has been no small challenge, with over 52 teams making accessible camping and day parking requests.
Building the Buzz
Thank you to our Media Team (Katie Smith, Maggie McNamara, Honor Hussain-Barker, Nadiyah Storey, Rebecca Norledge, Sarah Gelson): For building the pre-event hype! Over the last few weeks, you have been brilliant at getting the whole Flyball community talking. You have set the perfect tone, crafting a sense of excitement, sportsmanship, and community pride across our digital platforms, all while keeping everyone informed and keeping our sponsors happy.
Finally thank you to our Admin Duo (Karen Marks and Claire Hardy): The masterminds whose work now truly begins. They are coordinating hundreds of teams to create the running orders and racing schedules that will keep the racing running seamlessly.
A New Venue, A Bigger Challenge
I know exactly how much time and effort has gone into getting us to this stage. None of this has been easy, particularly as we are navigating a brand-new venue with more teams and attendees than the last two years. Once again, thank you for everything you have done to date.
More Thanks to Come...
The committee cannot put on the Champs without additional volunteers. These are the people who will join us at Uttoxeter to set up the racing rings, mark out the campsite, welcome members, oversee facilities, run the admin desk and presentation evenings, provide on-site veterinary advice, and host extra activities (like our trainers, regional reps, and young member teams).
Before the gates open, I will share another blog post to introduce and thank these wonderful volunteers.
It's getting close now. We hope you are ready, ready, ready!
Hilary