News

July 18, 2004 -- Richard's border Collie, Digger, receives his plaque for 30,000 points! Digger is the Time Bandits' first Flyball Grand Champion.

June 25, 2004 -- Newest member, Rob, sires a baby! Rob Sparling announced today that his wife gave birth at 8:06 a.m. to a 7 lb., 16 oz. baby girl, Kate Louise Sparling.

June 19, 2004 -- Founding members of the Time Bandits announce the death of Sable. Chad and Nancy Metcalf notified team member, Teresa Castonguay, that their beloved pet passed away after a three-week struggle with declining health. Says Nancy, Sable is "the greatest dog we've been blessed to know".

May & June, 2004 -- The irrepressible Shelties, Galla and Shaunessey, have kept up a busy appearance schedule, performing on Breakfast Television, and at Woofstock in Toronto's Distillery District, at the Aurora Horse Show (Shaunessey) and the Caledonia flyball tournament (Galla), and with the rest of the team at the 4th-annual Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial.

March 1, 2004 -- Time Bandits welcomes its newest member, Rob Sparling! Rob joins the team with his Staffordshire Bull Terrier, a nifty new height dog, named Taco.

February 8, 2004 -- Viki gets a new border collie! Called Deena -- after singer Deena Carter -- the young black-and-white pup was born January 1.

January 24-25, 2004 -- The Time Bandits tournament at Country Heritage Park proves a popular success! As part of a wonderful weekend for all concerned, team member Evan Gross received Thunder's well-deserved Onyx Award.

October 23, 2003 -- Galla and Shaunessey, handled by Greg, perform for top brass at Proctor and Gamble! Today the two Shelties worked in unison, jumping, spinning, and rolling over in synchronization, before a large crowd at the P & G headquarters on Yonge Street as part of a Superdogs demo for the United Way.

October 10, 2003 -- Time Bandits receives official sanction from NAFA to host its first tournament! To be held at Country Heritage Park in Milton, Ontario, the tournament will take place on January 24 and 25, 2004. For more information, visit the website, http://www.flyball.com/bandits/tournament.htm.

September 27-28, 2003 - Digger joins the 30,000-point club! At the Rockton tournament (held this weekend in Ancaster, Ontario), Richard's Border Collie became the first of our team's dogs to reach this plateau -- yet another great accomplishment in Digger's distinguished career as a flyball dog.
The tournament also marked the debut of Luke as a member of the Time Bandits Flyball Club. Luke, owned by Ian and Laura Vanderluit, formerly members of The Posse, ran with distinction on our Regular team.

September 1, 2003 - The new canine-themed board game, Doggone Crazy, includes a card with Galla's picture on it! The picture -- not very flattering according to those who have seen it -- is actually a photo of Greg running Galla (misspelled "Gala") at the Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial in June.

August 10, 2003 - Galla delivers a kick-ass performance at Superdogs Show! Handled by Greg, Galla participated in the frisbee-throwing segment of two shows at the Scugog Historical Museum in Port Perry, Ontario. Galla's keen eye and Greg's long, steady throws combined to produce spectacular results.

June 21-22, 2003 - Four of Viki's dogs -- Ella, Mabel, Brae, and Cash -- participate in the herding competitions at the 3rd Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial, an annual event in Milton, Ontario, that Viki herself manages. Cash also proved a capable frisbee dog in a separate competition on the Saturday, placing fourth in the "Longest Throw" category with a catch at the 94-foot mark. Galla and Bungee, handled by Greg (who also handled Cash), also entered the competition. Shaunessey and Galla, meanwhile, helped entertain the crowds with tricks, frisbee catches, and games, at the Time Bandits demos on the Sunday afternoon.

June 1, 2003 - At long last, Thunder, Evan's Jack Russell Terrier, captures the Onyx award for reaching the 20,000-point plateau. He is the second of our dogs -- Digger was the first -- to achieve this level of accomplishment as a member solely of the Time Bandits and its predecessor, The Away Team. During the course of this weekend's tournament, Bill also earned his Onyx award.

January 13, 2003 - Time Bandits proudly welcomes its new members, Morgan Jarvis, Dawn Dorazio, and Yuka Amano (resigned October 20, 2003).

January 6, 2003 - A new year, a new dog! Viki acquires a new border collie, Billie (b. May 5, 2002), which she will use for sheep-herding and possibly flyball.

December 2, 2002 - Team members Laurie Paquin and Sheri Sabourin announce their retirement from flyball and, consequently, their withdrawal from the team. Several members of The Posse, recently inactive, are to join the Time Bandits in the new year.

November 11, 2002 - With sadness all around, the team learns of the death of Evan's young Jack Russell Terrier, Catcher. We wish to extend to Evan our heartfelt sympathies for this tragic loss.

October 31, 2002 - Out in the rural setting of Companion Dog Training, Galla, Digger, Pyper, and Whisper, accompanied by Greg and Richard, enjoy a morning in the country playing flyball for the cameras for a TV show! Details of broadcast to follow . . .

September 21, 2002 - In conjunction with The Posse, Greg and Richard, with Galla, Digger, and Whisper, participate in a flyball demo at the Skydome! The occasion was the 120th annual Toronto Police Games.

September 16, 2002 - Carole informs the team of her decision to withdraw as an active member of the Time Bandits. Leaving with her are Sailor, Matty, and Frankie, who will no doubt enjoy their new digs in Kingston, Ontario.

August 16-September 2, 2002 - Not to be outdone, young Cash, Viki's new Border Collie, makes his public debut at the Canadian National Exhibition, where he demonstrates his amazing frisbee skills as one of the warm-up dogs who entertain the crowds before each Superdogs show. Shaunessey, Brae, and Galla all make triumphant returns performing the same duties, as they have now for three years in a row. I each case, Greg serves as the handler.

June 22-23, 2002 - Congratulations to Viki for her superb management of the Second Annual Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial. Not only did Viki run her Border Collies, Ella and Brae, in the two-day herding competition, but she also coordinated all aspects of the weekend extravaganza and even appeared in pre-trial segments on CTV and City-TV.
Greg, with Galla and Shaunessey, and Victoria, with Rosie and Whisper, participated in Saturday's Frisbee competition, and the Time Bandits Flyball Club, with the help of Turning Point and Ballderdashers, put together two canine shows on Sunday.
The Third Annual Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial is scheduled for June 21-22, 2003.

June 4, 2002 - Victoria brings Whisper out of retirement! Joining us at the Caledonia tournament, Whisper proved not only that he still has what it takes to be a great contributor to the team but also that he has the right stuff to merit the nickname, "the Gordie Howe of the Flyball World". (Note: Victoria retired Whisper for good at the end of 2002.)

April 2, 2002 - At long last, Evan brings home a companion for Thunder! An adorable JRT named Catcher -- one of the team's two new future height-dogs (the other being Carole's new JRT, Frankie) -- he is reportedly extremely quiet and a somewhat "shell-shocked" after meeting Thunder for the first time.

March 25, 2002 - Victoria decides to retire her veteran Border Collie, Whisper, oldest of the three Bess/Kyle dogs on the team (the others are Brae and Digger). Whisper finishes his flyball career with 12,614 points.

March 24, 2002 - Time Bandits finishes first at Brampton's House League, hosted by Turning Point. Dogs competing this year include: Pyper, Matty, Sailor, Thunder, Lucy, Keita, , and Rosie.

March 18, 2002 - Gord informs the team that he has decided to resign as an active member and, with his dogs, Ceilidh and Orien, join a new team -- Crash Test Doggies -- based in the Hamilton area.

February 5, 2002 - Viki announces that she has acquired another dog! Just over a year old, Viki's new Border Collie, a female named Brit, can look forward to some intensive training as a sheepdog in the coming months.

November 17-18, 2001 - Pyper makes his tournament debut at Rockton! Although restricted to warm-ups, Richard's young border collie, Pyper -- the team's new star-in-waiting-- had the chance to experience a bit of the excitement of flyball racing under formal conditions, and from all indications wants more! Next up: House League!

October 23, 2001 - The new World Rankings has just been released, and the team's position now stands at #62. Our best performance to date took place at the Binbrook tournament on August 19, 2001, when the Tic team ran 17.74 seconds.

September 28, 2001 - Once again, football season is upon us, and the dogs are busy entertaining at half-time shows! On Friday night, Viki's Galla, joined a group of other Toronto-area dogs in a Superdogs relay race at an Argonauts game.

September 10, 2001 - With Nell and pups doing fine (see below), Viki's other female Border Collie, Ella, has a puppy of her own, a male. Viki reports that the pup -- to be kept by Viki and called Cash (after Johnny Cash) -- is huge and embodies all the classic features and markings of its breed.

August 19, 2001 - Viki's Border Collie, Nell, has a litter of eight puppies, four males and four females. Teresa, who whelped the puppies, has decided to keep one, a female, named Pearl (after Minnie Pearl).

August 18-19 - Congratulations to Chad and his Border Collie, Echo, for reaching the 10,000-point plateau at the Binbrook tournament! For Chad it was particularly exciting, especially, as he says, "since I got it on my new team".

August 17-September 3, 2001 - Galla, Shaunessey, and Brae, take turns entertaining the crowds at Toronto's Canadian National Exhibition as part of the Info Woof breed display area and the Superdogs show. With respect to the latter, they perform tricks and demonstrate their frisbee expertise for the many kids and adults waiting in line to see the famous canine show.

August 13, 2001 - Viki announces that Merle, now retired from flyball, has moved to Connecticut to start a new life as a goose dog. Initial reports indicate that he is happy in his work, and that he creates quite a scene when swimming around in his lifejacket.

August 7, 2001 - Viki's shelties, Galla and Shaunessey, appear with Greg on Breakfast TV in Toronto to help promote canine activities at this year's Canadian National Exhibition. Galla demonstrated her newest trick (spinning) while Shaunessey, completely oblivious to his surroundings and far more interested in the show's smelly carpet, looked like he had partied too intensely at the team's annual mid-summer long-weekend pool party.

July 28, 2001 - With sadness, the team wishes to express condolences to Teresa Castonguay over the loss of her young Border Collie, Ry.

July 21, 2001 - Time Bandits, in conjunction with Double Impact, appear at the 119th annual Toronto Police Games on July 21 at the Skydome. The teams demonstrate the sport of flyball before a large, enthusiastic crowd of spectators.

July 7, 2001 - New member, Chad Marquis, runs his Border Collie, Echo, for the first time at a tournament with the team. Echo proved to be a steady, reliable anchor dog for the Tic team in Brampton, earning a second-place rosette.

June 22, 2001 - Viki appears on Breakfast Television (on Toronto's City TV) with famed UK sheep-herding judge Katy Cropper to promote the trial at Country Heritage Park in Milton.

June 16, 2001 - Viki and Victoria appear in The Record, the Kitchener-based newspaper, as part of a report on the 1st Annual Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial and 1st Annual CBCA Working Obedience Trial.

April 7, 2001 - Greg serves as Timer for world-record run! At this weekend's tournament in Davisburg, Michigan, Rude Dogs set a new world record -- 16.51 seconds -- for a multibreed team. Greg acted as the Head Table's coordinator all weekend, but timing this particular race undoubtedly proved the highlight.

April 1, 2001 - Viki reports that Ivy has found a wonderful new home in North Carolina, where she is excelling as a goose dog. As of November 5, 2001, according to Viki, Ivy has also found a place on a local flyball team, making a good first impression as a fast and driven dog.

March 14-16, 2001 - Shaunessey and Galla, Viki Kidd's shelties, perform in the Superdogs production at the Detroit Kennel Club Dog Show. Veteran Shaunessey, also appearing with Greg on Fox Television (WJBK Fox 2) to help promote the show, excels at Mats, Barrels, and Windows, while Galla demonstrates her talents in Relays and Courses.

Galla and Shaunessey back in Toronto after their trip to the Detroit Kennel Club Show

February 25, 2001 - While neither team wins a ribbon at the Richmond Hill tournament, several of our dogs earn pins for career achievements: Whisper and Orien both reach 10000 points for their FMX pins and Sailor reaches 20000 points for his ONYX award.

January 30, 2001 - The Time Bandits Flyball Club agrees to entertain at the 1st Annual Country Heritage Park Sheepdog Trial on June 23 & 24, 2001, in Milton. Those interested in competing at the trial should contact team member Viki Kidd at vkidd@sprynet.com. Team member Victoria Lamont is coordinating the 1st Annual CBCA Working Obedience Trial, to be held at Country Heritage Park in conjunction with the sheepdog trial.

January 3, 2001 - Greg begins the long process of organizing the second-annual Info Woof display for the Canadian National Exhibition (August 17-September 3). This breed exhibit is to be held in conjunction with daily appearances of the Superdogs at the fair. Last year, Rosie, Galla, and Shaunessey participated in the event as representatives of their breeds.

November 27, 2000 - Viki announces that Ivy will be retiring from flyball and moving to Virginia to start a new career in goose control. Meanwhile, Viki has acquired two new Border Collies, Nell (b. May 15) and Ella (b. Feb. 24) -- not to be confused with Galla, her sheltie -- for sheep-herding. (As of April 25, 2001, Nell has taken up residence at Teresa's farm in Roseneath.)

September 30-October 1, 2000 - Time Bandits, in an agility and flyball demo, are a smash hit at the CBCA National Sheepdog Trial in Morton, Ontario! With Viki as moderator, the team -- consisting of Greg, Victoria, Teresa, Evan, Richard, Carole, Sheri, and Laurie, ably assisted by friends, Rose Reid, Carol Guy, and Mary Lou Campbell -- entertained crowds at the trial with demonstrations of agility, flyball, and musical mats. They spent an enjoyable, relaxing weekend together at the trial site and in historic Kingston on the St. Lawrence River.

September 15-16, 2000 - Football season is upon us, and the dogs are busy entertaining at half-time shows! On Friday night, Viki's Galla, accompanied by her father Shaunessey, a veteran of sports appearances, joined a group of other Toronto-area dogs in a Superdogs relay race at an Argonauts game. On Saturday, both Galla (handled by Laurie) and Shaunessey (handled by Greg), along with Thunder (handled by Evan), participated in a half-time flyball demo at McMaster University in Hamilton.

September 9-10, 2000 - At the Richmond Hill tournament, Richard's Border Collie, Digger, earns his Onyx award. He is the first dog on the team to earn this distinction. At the same tournament, the Time Bandits welcomes Laurie Paquin -- Carole's daughter -- as the newest member of the team.

August 21-23, 2000 - Victoria's Aussie, Rosie, creates a stir at the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, where she appears as a representative of the Australian Shepherd breed in the Info Woof exhibit. Her stunning blue eyes, soft coat, and gentle disposition, make her the most popular dog on display.

August 19, 2000 - After a distinguished nine-year career in flyball, Viki's sheltie, Shaunessey, retires from active racing. His final races occur at the Binbrook tournament. Teresa's border collie, Briar, also retires.

August 11, 2000 - Richard's Border Collie, Pyper, along with a host of other puppies, appears in a TV infomercial for Proctor & Gamble, producer of several pet-related products.

August 10, 2000 - Viki's shelties, Galla and Shaunessey, appear on Breakfast TV in Toronto to help promote canine activities at this year's Canadian National Exhibition. Galla -- a very young puppy the last time she appeared on the show -- is described on camera as "a great flyball dog".

August 1, 2000 - Viki Kidd's Border Collie, Brae, appears on national television in a news segment profiling goose-herding. Meanwhile, Teresa Castonguay has found a new home for Symon, the Border Collie she rescued back in April.

July 30, 2000 - The 'Tic' team does it again! With a line-up consisting of Ivy, Galla, Ceilidh, and Matty, it logged a 17.78-second time in a Regular Division 2 race against Maximum Overdrive. Our World Rankings position now stands at #46.

July 8, 2000 - Our 'Tic' team, competing in Regular Division 2, runs the fastest time ever in our club's history . . . 17.954 seconds. The line-up, running against Fastrack A, consists of Dodger, Galla, Ceilidh, and Matty. According to World Rankings, the team now stands at #50.

June 18, 2000 -Viki Kidd's sheltie, Galla, is awarded the Most Valuable Dog prize at the Tailspinners' tournament in Mississauga. Galla ran a personal best this weekend -- 4.65 seconds -- and played an instrumental part in the team's exciting races against Border Patrol, Smokin' Paws, and Double Impact.

June 17, 2000 - Carole Paquin's Australian Shepherd, Matty, earns her Flyball Master pin at the Mississauga tournament.

June 10, 2000 - The 'Tic' team has a remarkably successful weekend at the tournament in Caledonia, Ontario, placing 1st in Division II, its highest standing to date. Gord Travis assumed the Captain's responsibilities, and Galla, Ceilidh, Whisper, and Matty, represented the team in the racing.

May 28, 2000 - Richard Kelly retires Myst from flyball, leaving open the possibility that he will try sheep-herding with her in future.

May 5-8, 2000 - Viki's border collie, Ivy, demonstrates her versatility by winning the overall championship at the Seclusival Joy Sheep Dog Trial in Shipman, Virginia.

April 24, 2000 - Wendy Simpson announces to the team that her Border Collie, Ricki, is now retired after a distinguished, Onyx-level career in flyball.

April 15-16, 2000 - Victoria's Australian Shepherd, Rosie, makes her tournament debut at Port Huron, earning more than 500 points for her FDCH title.

April 8, 2000 - Richard and Viki take possession of their puppies, Merle and Pyper. Greg appoints himself their official photographer, with his first pictures of the seven-week-old puppies and their littermates posted here. Meanwhile, Teresa has acquired yet another Border Collie, Symon, a rescue with an agreeable personality and a keen interest in sheep.

April 3, 2000 - Gord Travis announces that his Flat-Coated Retriever, Disney, will be retiring from the team and going back to her original owners in Pennsylvania.

March 26, 2000 - Time Bandits finishes first in Group 1 at Brampton's House League, hosted by Fastrack Flyball Club. Dogs competing in the playoffs: Thunder, Galla, Keita, Matty, Rosie, and Sailor.

March 1, 2000 - Team member Teresa Castonguay has acquired a new dog, a Border Collie, named Ry. Viki Kidd and Richard Kelly have announced that they will be getting their own new Border Collie puppies (born February 19) in April. Their names will be Merle and Pyper.

February 27, 2000 - According to World Rankings, a list of fastest-recorded times at sanctioned tournaments, Time Bandits established a new team record in Collingwood on October 2, 1999. The "Tic" team ran 18.00 seconds, a breakout, placing it at #46 on the list. [Note: As of April 17, 2000, the team stands at #48; as of June 13, 2000, it stands at #50].

February 21, 2000 - According to NAFA's Multibreed Seeding List, two Time Bandits teams rank among the top 100 in North America: "Tic" at #60, with a time of 20.84 seconds, and "Toc" at #85, with a time of 21.64 seconds, as of September 30, 1999.[Note: As of May 31, 2000, "Tic" ranks at #88, with a time of 20.84 seconds, and "Toc" at #24, with a time of 18.64 seconds].

February 21, 2000 - According to NAFA's Regular Seeding List, two Time Bandits teams rank among the top 100 in North America: "Tic" at #49, with a time of 18.45 seconds, and "Toc" at #84, with a time of 19.14 seconds, as of September 30, 1999.[Note: As of May 31, 2000, "Tic" ranks at #42, with a time of 18.15 seconds, and "Toc" at #115, with a time of 19.14 seconds].

January 1, 2000 - Time Bandits Flyball Club welcomes four new team members -- Cathy Melnike, Carole Paquin, Sheri Sabourin, and Wendy Simpson -- all formerly members of the disbanded Motor Mutts team.

June, 1999 - Time Bandits Flyball Club welcomes two new team members -- Gord Travis and Victoria Lamont. Victoria helped found The Away Team but left to work on her doctorate at the University of Alberta.

March, 1999 - Time Bandits Flyball Club welcomes Patricia Harper to the team.

September, 1998 - Chad & Nancy Metcalf retire as active team members of the Time Bandits Flyball Club.

May, 1998 -Viki Kidd's sheltie, Galla, appears on Techni-Cal's Puppy brand of dog food. Several other of the team's dogs, including Bungee, auditioned to appear on other labels.

September 7, 1997 - Shaunessey becomes a father for the first time. Galla proves to be pick of the litter.

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