[Tobias]

split casting drill --- 2 or 3 buckets with 6-8 bumpers at each, about 15 feet apart, in a straight line or 25 feet apart if you want to extend those casts and start at a longer distance)

Start at 20 yd. Line dog to each. Back up - repeat. Back up again until dog needs to handle (with three buckets this maybe around the 40-50 yd mark). Don't move back til the dog can line to each one - cast as needed to get to the bucket you originally sent the dog to.

7 bumper lining drill --- can be found on youtube - Hillmann, I think

scattered bumper drill --- also can be found on youtube. I think Kevin Cheff has a very good one

Walking baseball - also on youtube - Evan Graham

using a whistle properly - also on youtube Pat Burns

 

[Tobias]

It's a fun journey.

Yes, the white buckets (or poles) facilitate in lining the dog. I use 2 gal buckets. They carry about 9 bumpers in each. If you do three piles you will find lining to the middle one the most challenging, most likely anyway. Builds confidence and helps teach tighter angle casts (vs 45 degree cast)

 

[Tobias]

Sorry for my seeming ignorance...

See above picture. This is what we are doing but at 200 yards. 1 white, down the middle, 2 green, and then none on the outer ones.
To modify this - shorter distance, 3 piles. No backing up until dog continuously drives straight back, correct?

The three pile drill is the way I learned it --- using a pole or small white buckets gives the dog a target. When the dog has successfully lined to a target, without veering left or right to a different target, you have a dog that has successfully 'locked on' and not changed his mind mid stream --- this is sort of like extended wagon wheel, at a much longer distance. Backing up makes it more challenging to both read the dog (know which bucket its locked on) and giving casts to slightly change direction. I don't care if the casts aren't perfect because the degree of the angle backs in this drill is pretty tight.... I sometimes think 2 buckets is more fair and more clear cut. The dog knows if you stop him when he has changed his focus on one destination, that you are asking him to change to the only other destination there is... rather than the dog second guessing you on the remaining two piles.

I like to see the dog successfully line to each pile before backing up - but it depends on what you want to get out of the training. It's one of many drills available for tightening up angle backs....

but don't forget to continue working on 'over' casts.... they can be pretty important in some situations... (like going away from a poison bird after getting that first cast refusal, or taking a cast into water, or off a point into water)