Australian Flyball Nationals 2026: Bendigo guide

Australian Flyball Nationals 2026 is due to run in Bendigo, Victoria, on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 September. Entries closed on 19 August, so this guide is for teams already heading to the event, people arranging the trip, and supporters who want to follow it properly.

T-Keilor Flyball is hosting the AFA-sanctioned weekend at the Fosterville Gold Exhibition Centre at Bendigo Showgrounds. Two indoor rings are planned, with Regular and Open class racing listed across both days. This is an independent Flyball Hub guide, not organiser advice. Check the official event site before travelling, because its timetable is indicative and details can change.

If you are new to the sport, our introduction to flyball explains the relay, hurdles, box and changeovers before you start following a major race weekend.

Australian Flyball Nationals 2026 at a glance

These are the details published by the organiser and the Australian Flyball Association record:

• Dates: Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 September 2026
• Venue: Fosterville Gold Exhibition Centre, Bendigo Showgrounds
• Address: Holmes Road, Bendigo VIC 3550
• Host: T-Keilor Flyball
• Sanctioning body: Australian Flyball Association
• Planned racing: Regular and Open class racing across both days
• Planned setup: two indoor rings
• Entry status: closed on Wednesday 19 August
• AFA race record: CAF1295

The AFA record names Keilor Obedience Dog Training Centre as the club and Drew Harrison as race meet organiser. It also gives Bendigo Showgrounds, Holmes Road, North Bendigo, Victoria as the location. The public organiser page uses the Fosterville Gold Exhibition Centre and Bendigo Showgrounds address above, so use the directions sent directly to your team rather than trying to reconcile public wording on the day.

The Nationals site describes two indoor rings as planned. That is useful for setting expectations about the event, but it is not a published heat draw or ring allocation. Full heat draws and ring allocations remain pending, so there is no sensible way to predict where a team will be racing or when a particular dog will run.

The published timings need a last check

The organiser has published an indicative timetable, explicitly marked as subject to change. Saturday lists gates at 7:00, team check-in at 8:00, racing at 8:30, lunch at 12:30 and racing again at 13:30. A competitor function is listed for that evening, with details still to be confirmed.

Sunday's indicative timings list gates at 7:30, officials briefing at 8:00, racing at 8:30, lunch at 12:30 and racing again at 13:30. Finals and presentations are listed for late afternoon.

There is one detail entered teams should not gloss over. The AFA race record lists check-in at 7:30 and judge briefing at 8:00, while the organiser site lists Saturday gates at 7:00 and team check-in at 8:00. Those are different public timings, not two parts of one schedule.

Use the direct instructions from the organisers and your team contact for check-in, briefing and arrival. Do not turn this guide, an old group-chat message or a previous Nationals schedule into a race-day instruction. For travel, leave enough room to deal with the latest official information rather than building the whole morning around one public time.

What is known about the racing

Regular and Open class racing is planned on both days. Beyond that, the public information checked for this guide does not confirm divisions, starter numbers, heat draws, ring allocations or the final running order.

That matters for entered teams as well as spectators. A weekend with two rings does not tell you which ring your team has, when you need to warm up or how long a break might be. Treat both days as full event days until the organiser releases a final schedule and sends any team-specific instructions.

If you follow another flyball organisation, the broad shape of the sport will be familiar, but an event's own paperwork controls its racing. Our flyball rules and race format guide explains the basic structure, while our guide to flyball rules around the world provides wider context on how different bodies organise the sport. Neither can replace AFA instructions for this event.

For newer supporters, a close race is more than the final time. Watch how teams prepare dogs for the lane, how each dog comes back over the jumps, and how calmly handlers manage the time between runs. The small parts of a relay tell you a lot, even when the full draw is not yet public.

Planning the Bendigo trip

The confirmed venue is the Fosterville Gold Exhibition Centre at Bendigo Showgrounds, Holmes Road, Bendigo VIC 3550. Put the official site and the venue address in every driver's phone, then check the event page again close to departure for any updated access or arrival instructions.

The organiser describes onsite powered and unpowered camping as available. It does not give this guide enough verified information to promise a pitch, quote a price or say whether bookings remain open. Anyone considering camping should use the official event information to check the current process and status.

The event site also describes free parking, catering, food vendors and coffee. Recheck before travel, especially if a food plan or vehicle arrangement depends on them.

Keep the club plan simple. Decide who is carrying shared equipment, who has the latest organiser message and who is responsible for passing changes to the rest of the team. A basic note with arrival plan, dog list, contact numbers and kit ownership avoids the usual situation where several people assume somebody else has the spare lead or the important update.

If your dog settles better with familiar routine, pack that routine rather than redesigning it for a big weekend. Bring the bedding, rewards, food and ordinary recovery items you already know work. A collapsible dog water bowl is an easy item to keep with the dog kit, rather than in a bag that only appears at lunch.

Set up for two indoor days

Two indoor rings can make the venue busy, even when your own team is waiting rather than racing. Give dogs a clear rest plan before you arrive: where they will settle, who is watching them, how water is kept close and when they get a quiet break away from the lane.

Do not assume that an indoor event removes every practical job. Dogs still need regular water, toileting opportunities, familiar handling and a way to come down after exciting runs. Handlers need food, water and a place to put the information that changes through the day.

Keep your normal warm-up and recovery choices in proportion to what the dog needs. The schedule may move, a team may wait longer than expected, and a dog does not benefit from staying switched on for hours because a race could be next. A quiet crate break can be the best use of an unexpected gap.

For teams with a dog that works for tug, check that the usual reward is packed, dry and easy to reach. A bungee dog tug toy can be a practical spare, but check the toy suits the individual dog before relying on it at an event.

Our equipment and safety guide covers the ordinary gear and checks that make race days less frantic. The point is not to bring everything you own. It is to know where the things your team actually uses are when the next call comes.

What spectators can plan, and what they cannot

People travelling to watch can plan around the confirmed dates and Bendigo venue, but should not assume admission arrangements, spectator numbers, seating, final ring times or a particular team's schedule. None of those details had been confirmed in the public information checked for this guide.

The published gates times are part of an indicative timetable, not a promise of spectator access terms. Before setting off, check the official Nationals information linked at the start of this guide for any update about visiting, parking, food, venue access or event timing.

Once you are there, give racing dogs space. A dog waiting to race or coming down after a run does not need a new person saying hello. Ask before approaching a dog, keep clear of team set-up areas and save the loud support for the lane rather than the resting space.

If you are following from home, wait for organiser updates before sharing results or claiming that a team has won a division. No official streaming, live results route, final heat draw or ring allocation had been verified when this guide was checked. A social post can point you towards information, but it is not proof of a final result.

Keep event information in the right place

Big weekends create a mixture of official notices and club notes. Keep them separate. The organiser is the authority on access, check-in, race format, draws, ring allocations, results and any late operational changes. Your club notes are for who is bringing what, dog routines and the things the team needs to remember.

Assign one person to check official updates and another to pass the confirmed points to the group. That reduces the chance that an indicative timetable becomes a fixed instruction after it has been forwarded three times.

Flyball Hub can help teams keep dogs, training notes, event notes and competition planning together in one place. Take a look at Flyball Hub features if your club wants a clearer record of the practical details around a weekend. Organiser instructions remain the source of truth for the Nationals itself.

After each racing block, record the plain useful observations while they are still fresh. Which dog settled well? What did the team need but not have to hand? Which travel arrangement worked? A short factual note is more useful for the next competition than a general memory of a busy weekend.

Final checks before leaving

Entries closed on 19 August, so the next job is preparation rather than late registration. Before leaving for Bendigo, check the official event site and direct organiser communications for:

• The final timetable and any change to arrival times
• Check-in and officials briefing instructions
• Heat draws, divisions and ring allocations
• Venue access, parking and camping information
• Competitor function details
• Any spectator information, live coverage or results links

Do not fill in those gaps from a previous event or an unofficial post. Australian Flyball Nationals 2026 is planned for 26 and 27 September at Bendigo Showgrounds, with two indoor rings and Regular and Open class racing. Save the official links now, get the club's practical plan in place, and give the dogs a calm, familiar setup when the weekend arrives.

Sources checked

• Australian Flyball Nationals 2026 official organiser site, https://www.nats2026.com.au, checked 1 September 2026
• Australian Flyball Association race record CAF1295, https://www.flyball.org.au/race-meeting/australian-flyball-nationals-2026/1295/, checked 1 September 2026

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