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Sports

Columbia's Top Dog

A local dog is making a big splash in the new world of DockDogs competitions.

Imagine, for a second, a dog suspended in midair with its legs propelling it forward. 

For a moment, the dog flies. 

Then, with a mighty splash, the dog enters the water before a roaring crowd, its shaggy body landing nearly 30 feet away from where it launched.

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This is DockDogs. A competition developed by a company of the same name, it’s a relatively new sport for dog lovers who compete with their dogs at track meet-like events held throughout the country and abroad.

But instead of running the 100-yard dash, dogs compete in events like “big air,” for which a dog is trained to jump off a dock into the air in pursuit of its toy, which has been thrown as far as possible by its owner into the water.

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“It’s all about ‘toy drive,’ ” explains Columbia resident Frank Moraff. “The dog really has to have a desire to get that toy more than anything.”

While the sport might be unknown to most people, Moraff has become somewhat of a local expert through being a DockDogs competitor with dog Cali, an athletic and spunky 2-year-old chocolate lab.

A tour through Moraff’s house, tucked at the end of a quiet cul-de sac-and with a large backyard, is proof of his passion for the activity. A corkboard in his computer room is littered with papers detailing events and sporting information, while a spot in an empty bedroom is dedicated to the dozens of ribbons the pair has won over time.   

“When I saw DockDogs for the first time at a fair I thought, ‘Wow—this is really cool,’” Moraff says of his launch into the sport. He’s since connected locally with the Chesapeake DockDogs club, which holds practices in Pennsylvania and in Adamstown, MD. Club members have built a dock there specifically for the sport.

“Once you do it, you get hooked,” Moraff explains.

After pulling up a YouTube video about the sport that delivers a montage of dock jumping dogs to the tune of “Who Let The Dogs Out,” Moraff says that for him, the sport is about spending time with his dog—and having fun.

But it’s also about competition, and Cali has recently risen through the ranks, winning numerous titles in local competitions and getting ranked nationally. Her farthest jump measures more than 25 feet; the world record is nearly 29 feet.

“Right now we’re one of the top dogs in our club,” Moraff says with pride.

However, Cali didn’t start leaping off docks immediately.

“When you are starting, you are just trying to get the dog into the water. … It’s a progression,” he notes. “It’s amazing watching the dog grow to have real confidence, and really take off,” Moraff says.

But one has to ask: While an owner might get pride out of seeing his or her dog win, what’s in it for the dog?

Moraff answers that it comes back to “toy drive.”

“When she is doing this, she doesn’t care about treats. She cares about the toy,” he says.

Watching the two practice in the backyard affirms this, as a rambunctious Cali is constantly jumping at Moraff to pry from his hands her toy—an oblong, orange rubber plaything.

As for the sport, according to the organization, it’s growing. According to the DockDogs website, in 2010 the organization held more than 150 events in four different countries. Local clubs are being established across the United States. Currently there are 26 affiliate clubs.

Moraff says his club consists of 60 members, and they are always looking for more. Anyone over the age of 7 with a dog (any kind of dog) and a toy can participate.

In the meantime, Moraff and Cali will compete in about 10 events this year, and attend countless practices during the season. A father of two grown sons, Moraff admits it’s a nice hobby.

“There are lots of different kinds of dog people out there, like in the show dog world where there is all this doggish pretentiousness. In DockDogs there is no class system—it’s a very relaxed, fun atmosphere,” he says.  

His wife, Hope Moraff, jokingly chides her husband for not thinking twice about trekking for hours to attend a competition.

“Frank did a lot of coaching with the kids in baseball and basketball. Now all his time is going to the dog,” she says with a laugh, adding that she thinks he’d have a good second career as a dog trainer.

“I think he would be really good at it,” she adds. “I think it’s his calling.”  

To learn more about DockDogs locally, visit: chesapeakedockdogs.com.

This article has been changed to correct the length of Cali's best jump and the distance of the world-record holder.

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