Dog Catchers

Remember Ashley Whippet, star of that ’74 pennant race game between the Dodgers and Reds? His catch brought 50,000 Dodger Stadium spectators to their feet, not to mention the national TV viewers.

It’s late in the game; fignernail biting time. He’s running--30-plus m.p.h. and leaps nine feet into the air to bring it down! A Frisbee that is. Ashley’s between-inning heroics started a naionwide dog-soaring, Frisbee-catching craze. Unfortunately, his owner did time behind bars for trespassing. But this was no “agony of defeat.” The thrill lives on.

Saturday the Ventura Department of Parks and Recreation will host the Ventura and Santa Barbara County regional “1990 Ashley Whippet Invitainal Canine Frisbee Championships”’ for both novice and experiences high-flying dogs and their owners. The competition will be held at the San Buenaventura State Beach, 901 San Pedro St., Ventura. Registration is free and will commence at 9 a.m.; competition starts at 10 a.m. There is a $4 parking fee at the beach. For more information, call 648-1895 or 658-4726.