A practical guide to how races are run, what counts as a fault, and what all the shouting at the start line actually means.
If you’ve read the What is Flyball? What is flyball page, you already know the basics. This page goes a step further and looks at how racing works in practice.
In most leagues, flyball races:
[IMAGE IDEA: A simple two‑lane diagram with teams facing the box, four jumps in each lane, and a start/finish line with a judge.]
A standard flyball lane includes:
From the handler’s point of view, the dog runs:
Start line → jump 1 → jump 2 → jump 3 → jump 4 → box → tight turn → jump 4 → jump 3 → jump 2 → jump 1 → back over the line with the ball.
Each league has its own exact measurements, but the overall feel is the same wherever you race – four jumps, a box, and a straight sprint there and back.
[IMAGE IDEA: Overhead course diagram with distances labelled (start line, four jumps, box).]
To keep things fair for dogs of different sizes, jump height is usually set from your team’s height dog – the smallest dog running in that race.
In most rulesets:
You’ll sometimes hear people say things like “we’re racing off a 7‑inch height dog” or “we’ve got a 9‑inch card”. That simply means the smallest dog on that team has set the jumps to that height for the day.
[INLINE TIP CALLOUT: Brief note explaining what a height card is and that rules can differ a little between BFA, UKFL, NAFA, etc., with a link to the league rulebooks section further down the page.]
Tournaments can use either:
Electronic systems are also used to spot early passes and very tight changeovers. When you see lights or a digital display at the end of the lane, that’s what it’s for.
This is what you’ll see if you’re stood behind the ring ropes watching a typical race.
When it’s time to race:
If a dog breaks the start early, it’s treated like any other fault and that dog will usually have to rerun later in the heat.
Each dog has to:
As soon as the first dog’s nose crosses back over the line, the next dog is released. The ideal handover is nose‑to‑nose, where the incoming and outgoing dogs cross at the line with almost no gap.
The heat ends once all four dogs on one team have completed a clean run. If both teams run clean, the team with the faster time wins. If one team has faults and has to rerun a dog, the other side can often win with a slightly slower but clean run.
[IMAGE IDEA: Side‑on sketch or photo showing a dog leaving the line as the previous dog returns – highlight the “nose‑to‑nose” pass.]
Nobody gets everything perfect all the time. Here are the most common faults you’ll hear called in the ring and what they mean.
If the next dog in the relay crosses the start/finish line before the previous dog has completed the course, it’s an early pass.
The dog must take all four jumps on the way to the box and all four on the way back.
If the dog:
…then it’s a fault and, again, that dog will usually need to rerun.
Other faults include things like:
The exact penalties depend on the league and the judge’s discretion, but the aim is always the same: keep racing fair and safe for dogs and people.
[NOTE TO DESIGN: Consider a simple “faults grid” component with three columns – Fault type / What it looks like / What usually happens – to make this section easy to scan on mobile.]
A full competition day is more than just one race. The exact format varies by league and event, but you’ll typically see:
So if a race is best‑of‑three, the first team to win two heats wins that race.
Teams are grouped into divisions based on their recorded or estimated times, known as seed times. This keeps racing competitive and reduces the number of mismatched “blowout” races.
Within a division you might see formats like:
You’ll often hear captains talking about adjusting their seed time or “breaking out” if they run faster than their division allows – these details are defined in each league’s rulebook.
Most major leagues award points to each dog based on how fast their team runs in official races. Over time, those points add up to titles.
The names and point bands differ by organisation, but in general:
[NOTE FOR LATER: Link this to a dedicated “Points & Titles” page once you publish one.]
Behind every quick run there’s a whole team of people making it happen.
Handlers are responsible for:
Good handlers keep their dogs focused and confident, especially in noisy rings.
The box loader:
They don’t handle dogs, but they’re critical for smooth, safe runs.
The team captain makes decisions about:
Some teams also have a dedicated line‑caller, who stands at the line and calls passes so handlers know if they’re early, late or spot‑on.
Depending on the event you might also see people:
It’s all part of the team effort that sits behind a fast time on the scoreboard.
[IMAGE IDEA: A candid team photo showing handlers, captain and box loader between races, with labels pointing out each role.]
If you’re new to flyball, the numbers on the timing display or scoreboard can be confusing at first.
Most events will show at least the overall team time for each clean run, for example:
These ranges are only rough guides. Surface, weather, jump height and box turns all influence how quick a team can go.
Some timing systems also give individual dog splits – how long it took each dog to run their part of the course.
Captains and trainers use these splits to:
You don’t need to know all this to enjoy watching a race, but it’s useful context if you’re planning to compete or you’re just a bit of a stats nerd.
This page is meant as an easy‑to‑read guide, not a replacement for official rulebooks.
For full details, always check the rules for the league you’re racing under. A few good starting points:
[EXTERNAL LINKS LIST: Link each league name to its official rules page or PDF.]
If you’re unsure which rules apply at a show, ask the tournament organiser or your captain – they’ll be able to point you in the right direction.
If you’re just getting into the sport, you might like to read:
[CTA BLOCK IDEA: Simple card linking back to the main Learn Flyball hub, plus a softer secondary link mentioning the Flyball Hub app for teams who want help organising dogs, members and competitions.]
