of the country for the eastern regionals in st. petersburg, florida. the top dogs from the east compete for the remaining spots for the national championships in st. louis. you're watching the "purina proplan incredible dog challenge" next.

temperatures in the mid 80s on a beautiful day here in saint pieceersberg, florida. we're ready for the "purina proplan incredible dog challenge". >> hey, everyone. welcome to spa beach park and i'm trace joined and the eastern regional championships. you see the dedication and the passion and the entertainment side. but perhaps what people don't understand these guys are like olympic athletes >> they truly are. they put in the time and the practice and the repetition and all of that in order to compete at "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" level -- at

"purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" level of and the bond and the team work that we see between these pairs that gives you the great performances you'll see out on the field. >> throughout the hour we'll see the jack hustle racing and the diving dogs but we'll kick it off with special stories >> a competitor has been competing since she was eight. we'll see her back here in the arena all grown up. and inspiring story that shows how dogs and humans are better together. >> and the top dogs from today's competition will be invited to the national championship finals of the "purina proplan incredible dog challenge" held at purina farms outside of st. louis. let's get to. >> it's a fast dash of skill and athleticism as they maneuver through a set course of

obstacles get ready for agility. >> and get ready for nitro. kelly rossi is the handler and they're from clear wawater, floa >> and all the jumps are set to the course of the height of the dog. nitro is 19.5 inches and all about team work. the dogs are truly listening and watching the commands of their handlers out on the course. >> chemistry very key and critical in the large dog agility competition so far kelly rossi and her dog having a phenomenal run mistake free >> that's what you're going have to in order to win. >> that's how you get things

done in the large dog agility competition. what a pace set by kelly rossi and nitro >> the judges are watching that the dogs make sure they touch the yellow contact zone. this is a tricky spot right here in the tunnels and again, the handlers have to direct the dogs. >> here's the story we talked about earlier. >> pretty amazing to watch "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" out here. versace, a 5-year-old and our tallest dog, standing 22 inches at the wither. in a wheelchair out here working this dog. this is a working breed, a herding breed so they work well with verbal commands which is what jean is operating off mostly. >> jean having the great

communication skills. >> there she goes. a little bit of mistake but, wow, that is amazing. what a pair. so inspirational to see. "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" is a very, very fast dog so she has to be able to have versace just respond to the voice command. the ten second vault came here. little bit of a mistake but all in all a really great performance. >> next up jordan connolly and blitz. >> jordan connolly made her debut at the age of eight. returned to compete in 2010 and again more than a decade after her first appearance in 2013. >> we were lucky enough to catch up with her at "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" year's eastern regionals in st. petersburg, florida to talk about her journey to competing as a child to adult >> i was eight-year-old when i got my first dog, buck.

i thought it was the coolest thing ever. when i got my first dog we went to home depot and put together a put together a bunch of pvc jumps and two years later i was invited here and so it was affirmation and taught me a lot about responsibility and what it was like to have a goal and achieve. >> when i was 9 and 10 i think i was a little more naive, i guess. i was so excited to be running around with my dog and being on tv but now it's a goal of accomplishing what i want to do. i knew he was great when i first got him. he was a tiny ball of fluff and giving me all kinds of attitude. it was a matter of controlling everything. he's so willing to learn. i taught him numerous tricks. he's so eager to do whatever i

want him to do. this is my dog i trained for years every day for years. so we have a great bond. personally he's just a dog that i can come home to after i had a stressful day at class and not done so well on a test and i can come home and he's super happy to see me and he wants me to throw him a ball. it starts out light and something you can always count on that will always be there. >> it's great to see jordan back in the arena all grown up, a premed student at the university of florida. but as you talked about, there with her best friend blitz. oh, and a down bar. blitz is so fast goiand little mistakes can cost you >> you have to have patience. >> that's going to be a big one.

blitz goes too fast and they didn't go back and correct it. that's 20 seconds that will be added on to the total length of the run. >> each competitor gets a new run and the best that counts. she will look to run two to redeem herself. >> you want to get through the course fast and shave off fractions of time by cutting the jump just a little too tight and blitz hit it the back leg. i'm not even sure that jordan saw that. in their second run they'll want to correct the mistakes. >> top time right now 38.18 by kelly and nitro. >> legend, 5-year-old border collie, very fast. wow. loves that. out here working together on the field. you can see body positioning, man to man and those verbal

kwacues we talked about earlier and personal training style and what works with your dog. >> hundreds of people joins us in st. petersburg, florida. that affects competitors a little bit with verbal commands. >> not a mistake on the obstacles but hesitation there. >> crowd getting after it. 37.25 is the time for legend. >> legend is a super fast dog and full out sprint on the field trying to keep up and make sure that she's directing legend to the right obstacles. at the end "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" set of jumps very tricky. some hesitation, not a mistake, but that hesitation costs you time. >> nevertheless, they are in the lead with that 37.25 time here in round one. final competitor in round one and this is sara duke and kate. >> 4-year-old border collie. border collies really excel at

"purina pro plan incredible dog challenge". they're herding and like to work and fast and very athletic. and they're great at following commands >> that's their strength ground speed. >> wow. >> we got a new leader, 33.35 coming through on the final run in round one. >> you're going to see our top two kate and legend and this is where you'll see the ground speed come into the play. they're at the same point in the course. kate a little bit behind going into the tunnel but watch this. out and in faster and out of the tunnel. her ground speed just picks up

and gives them a four second advantage going into first place. >> kate 33.35 the time to beat leading into round two. before we get to that let's go down with a special guest. >> thanks. we all know whether you're a human or dog you have to have the right training and nutrition in order to have a high level of performance. with me is bryan from proplan. you're a ph.d. canine nutritionalist >> we look into new and advanced dog foods and those are nutrition alan >> we're going to utilize this wealth and knowledge of information that you have. we'll have questions and bryan will give you very interesting answers. back to you, trace. >> thanks. round two of the large dog agility coming up next. we'll see who brings home the title and then the fun, the fast and the furious jack russell hurdle racing and then incredible diving dogs flying

high into the pool from the "purina proplan incredible dog challenge". more from las vegas when we come back. hang with us.

crystal geyser. crystal geyser. then we deliver it directly to you.

the 2013 "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge" eastern regionals is brought to you by >> back with you at spa beach park in st. petersburg, florida for the "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge". great crowd on hand as always here the champions will be fortunate to head to the national championship finals in st. louis. right now the large dog agility looks like this. kate in the number one position. 33.35 that is the time to beat. it's the best two that count here and we'll count it off with kelly rossi and nitro 38.18.

mistake free run in round one which means they'll to have pick up the pace if they want to get down to the 33 second mark. >> the first go round right now i think kelly is going to push it for that extra speed to try to get a spot on the podium. >> sometimes pushing the speed is when you can see more mistakes happen but they have nothing to lose. they already got a clean run under their belt. >> wow. >> yeah, he likes to jump big and when you're getting that much air over the jump it actually costs you more time. jumping tighter and lower is a better way to try to maneuver. but they have another clean run here and i think they'll improve on their time. >> wow. coming in at 35.79. great job. not enough for the number one spot but faster than round one >> very nicely done. all the way through the course. working together and improving

that speed. >> and here's the special story we're talking about. these guys in their first incredible dog challenge competition. jean and versace. >> she's in the herding group so the trainer that i have is a very big lady and she has a border collie. so she can't run either and can't keep up with her dog. so she and i decided to do more verbal commands because i can't keep up with them. we are probably at a disadvantage with someone who can run, but we've developed a few techniques like where can i take her behind me and she responds to that verbally. so we've overcome a lot of the disadvantages that we might have had with people running. >> anybody can really do this sport. it just takes dedication. you know how to train a dog.

you have to spend the time with them. we do beginning agility classes at our club and so forth. my favorite is sharp training sessions and often. this gives something to do in retirement. we do have other hobbies, but this is the game that keeps me going. i'd rather be with her than 99% of the people and i have some very good friends, but i'd rather be with her than almost 99% of the people that i know. >> dogs definitely make the companions and if you love your dog and wants to get involved in doing this, you might want to check out the purchase rena proplan app so you can do what you y;yo;yo;you ;you love with your dog.

gene has does verbal commands only and versace has done it in under 25 seconds. he has had comments all over the worldc world complimenting him. >> let's listen to his verbal commands. >> right! left! go! [applause] >> so impressive and inspiring. >> 43.47 so that's what they'll use as the top score. >> this event, again, all about team work. they are true partners out there, gene, working with the dog and versace listening to the commands and watching the verbal cues saying let's do this together. >> jordan connolly and blitz, first round time 63.70. they had 30 seconds added

because . >> that's what jordan will be focusing making sure they get through the course clean. blitz is so fast. theyf they don't have any faults they have a good chance of being on the podium. she really stays up with blitz supporting him all along with body, hand and verbal commands. >> kate still has the top time of 33.35. >> here we go. across the finish line. nicely done and no mistakes. >> 35.21. no mistakes on this run. they'll find themselves on the podium so far. >> again, a lot of experience in this young competitor. she's been doing it for over ten years. two different dogs and that shows in that run right there. jordan connolly and blitz. >> two more competitors remaining in the large dog

agility round two annette alfonso and legend. first round time 37.25. >> experience out here on the field, annette started training 17 years ago in agility. she loves this sport and loves competing with her dog. >> she's got those strong communication skills out there as well. >> they had a clean rup the first go round. all she's doing is trying to push the speed. so far it's clean and improving on the time. >> blazing fast. 34.12. so there's an improvement that keeps her on top of the podium. they're in second. >> the only place can i see where they could shave off fractions of time would be the height there over the jumps and taking off so far back. but otherwise that was great team work. >> by virtue of a great first round time of 33.35, kate and

trainer sara duke have won this competition so now they're having some fun and see if they can improve upon their time and pad that lead. >> just a little bit of a glory run. no pressure. that's got to feel nice. of course i don't think the dogs ever feel the pressure. this is fun to come out and do what they love doing with their owner and handler. >> victory lap if you will. nice to come into that second round in the "purina pro plan incredible dog challenge". look at that 32.36. faster run and a little show off action. great job. >> super impressive performance going through it in large dog style getting everything right. ground speed, maneuvering the obstacles correctly, this is the way it's done and this is the way you win regional

championships. >> sara duke and her dog kate the champions. sean smith is down on the field with the winner. >> first off, happy birthday. what a nice surprise for you. let's talk about how fast your dog is and how hard it is to keep up with your dog. >> someone he willed -- asked me if i held back and i can't do that. she's blazing fast. >> two of the fastest wins all day. congratulations you're going to national championships >> we're excited about that. that was our goal. >> thanks a lot, sean. congratulations to sara duke and kate. what a great birthday gift for her today. when we come back jack hustle hurdle racing and incredible diving dogs. more from sn. -- competition. ♪

welcome back everyone. the iconic pier over looking beautiful tampa bay and we are ready for jack russell hurdle racing from st. petersburg, florida. trace & this is the eastern regional championships and everybody all fired up and will chip away through the bracket and see who becomes the fastest jack. >> this is a race where anything can happen. six jack russells start at once and jumping anding three obstacles and finishing through a foam tunnel less than one foot

wide. the first dog through the tunnel wins. get ready for jack russell hurdle racing. >> our first quarterfinal heat. the top three will advance to the next round, the semis. >> goes out over the huddles and we have tom and cracker and through the tunnel will dot come. >> the advantage comes leading the lead out first. if they can keep the lead that's easier than getting caught up in the rest of the pack. dotcom and cracker took it to the finish. is the first dog through the tunnel because sometimes a switch can happen at the last moment. we have a camera on the other side of the tunnel to determine for sure who wins. >> sparkle, bailey, rocker,

jumper, paula and moxie. >> right now we have sparkle and red the clear leader and winner all the way through the finish. >> clean finish. a lot of times we see some tangling up right at the end. >> and chaos a little bumble over the hurdle but sparkle, dai dale bailey and -- bailey. this is is what they like to do. less than a foot wide. but these dogs aren't that big themselves. >> hard breaker, beasley, moon shine and drakeo in the third final quarter heat and the top thr three advance to the semifinals. >> oh, ahead of the pack.

we have drako. he hit the tunnel at the end but it's made of soft foam but look at that he breaks out in front and catapults his way to the tunnel. drako followed by heartbreaker and beasley. those three will advance. the head-on look, very focused. every dog determined and they wear those musclt muzzles to ma they don't fight. >> i love these names. moondogy and maverick. and they're off. a little bit of a stumble but out in the front we have moondogy in blue and takes the number one spot followed by maverick and trouble. you can see they all bunch up

going over the hurdles and down there you saw three dogs go through the tunnel at once. the camera determines the order. >> tight race coming up. the fight heats of jack russell and then one of the most entertaining events on the series, it is diving dogs. but first, let's test your canine knowledge. true or false it's important to match your dog's nutrition to his activity level? well we'll have the answer right after this. n. -- competition. ♪