Naked with Hair Everywhere is located in Alaska, and Class Act makes their home in Pennsylvania. But on the Limited Senior division rankings chart, they are very close. For the Fall Season, Alaska Captain Crystal Dennis challenged Class Act Captain Lori Napoli to a Grudge Match. The loser had to pay up at the end of the season. Crystal tells us how this challenge pushed both teams to be better and have even more fun!
By Crystal Dennis
One of the things we have loved about League is the team camaraderie, which is what makes a grudge match so much more fun!
During Season 5, the Limited Senior team Naked With Hair Everywhere of Alaska noticed that we were chasing down Class Act of Pennsylvania for second place. Class Act narrowly beat us out, and we took notice.
Season 6, we were ready! We closed the gap, and it was a nail biter to the final round scores. Neither team knew who would take the win, but you better believe each captain was tracking it on a spreadsheet.
When the scores came out, with Class Act very narrowly eeking out a win, the game was afoot! Alaska decided to challenge Pennsylvania to a grudge match, but we really wanted to have an eight-dog versus eight dog matchup. (The maximum number of dogs allowed on a League team is eight.)
Out went the message to Class Act Captain Lori Napoli: Alaska Challenges your team to a Grudge Match: Eight dogs vs. eight dogs! Her response was “You’re on!” And the fun began!
Both teams had 8 dogs, and many in the same jump height class. Then Class Act members proposed making it more interesting: Loser sends the winner a box of goodies from their state. What fun this was going to be!
What our team members may not know is how much the two captains talked each week about the courses. Both teams have some slower dogs, some medium-speed dogs and some uber-fast dogs. No one stacked their team trying to win. We would message one another asking questions: Where did your team struggle? Where did they do well? Which way did you turn on Obstacle 8? Was this a strong round or a slower round?
When the scores came out at the end of each two-week round, we would message one another again… “Good job! Way to go!” We encouraged one another along with lots of laughs and lots of ribbing.
When it became apparent that Class Act could take the Division Championship for Season 8, the Alaska team rallied behind them and we cheered them on! THIS could be Class Act’s Season! And maybe, Alaska could take second! Each week we pushed one another further and further.
Even though Class Act was taking the lead in our Grudge Match, Class Act sent us a care package with Pennsylvania goodies. We were so surprised at how “fresh” the Hershey chocolate bars were… like they came right out of the factory!
New friends from afar — isn’t that what League is about: Community, dogs and fun? Then the Alaska team started to plan our “Grudge Match Win” box to send to Class Act. We could see they were pulling ahead of us, but we never gave up.
Both teams have said Season 8 has been the best season yet due to the Grudge Match! We have had so much fun running our dogs, tracking scores, and comparing score. We’re even in talks about having members from each team attend the “live” 2025 League Championships and naming our Team “Act Naked In Class.” What fun it would be to hang out with our new friends! Here’s to a successful Grudge Match! And to a well-deserved Championship win to Class Act – Senior Limited Season 8!