Starting Position?

A small poll is traveling around the dock diving circles on fb this weekend. It asks the reader which position is the best to start a dog in for Big Air. The vast majority of people suggest the sit position because it is supposedly the best for allowing a powerful push off at the start, allowing the dog to gain speed more quickly, but I'm not so sure. (I answered "depends on the dog" lol)

Let's look at this in more depth:

SIT: The most common starting position in my experience, sit does seem to be more stable than a stand, but still allows creeping at the start and for some dogs. Sit does gather the dog's hind feet below him as well, so they are positioned well for that push off when released.  Switching from a sit to running might be difficult for some dogs though, because the feet are under their body weight and they must push the rear up before moving forward. This likely only takes a split second, but does it use up needed force for that start?

DOWN: I've seen this used more by herding breed handlers than any other - it seems especially helpful for breeds that crouch when working as it is more natural than a full sit.  I have seen some dogs creep in a down, but less often than in a sit or stand, and their starting momentum seems about the same as a sitting dog, though when that creeping stance is in play there might be a slight advantage in having the front low in more of a down than a sit to allow the front legs to "dig in" a bit more.  Dogs who tuck their feet under or flop onto a hip before release will be at a definite disadvantage, however, as they'll have to get their feet sorted before starting forward momentum.

STAND: This seems to be the least preferred position and I think this is likely due to the difficulty most dogs have in keeping a true stand stay - creeping is just so much easier when you're already standing! One commenter on the fb poll did say that he had noticed dogs in a stand taking a stride to get up to speed as well, but I haven't watched enough stand started dogs to comment on this.

Another commenter on the poll mentioned trying a "bow" position (front down, rear up), which does make sense as it would eliminate the push up part of a sit and give the front more grip like a down, but I've never seen anyone use this, so who knows how well it works in practice.

For me, I've been starting Aeri in a sit just because she has a more solid sit stay than down stay at this point, but I may try all three positions in the future to see what works best for her.  For Kestrel, a down seems to help him maintain position better than a sit - in a sit he switches to a crouched stand with creeping some of the time, while in a down he switches to a crouched sit without the creeping.

Perhaps our next trip to the dock will involve some experimenting!