As per the AKC "Regulations for Agility Trials dated September 1, 2006", the broad jump is composed of either four 8" or five 6"
sections and four [4] corner markers. The actual width of the 8" sections is 7 to 8" wide. Therefore, the panel can be made from standard 1 x 8 wood which is actually ¾ inches thick and 7.5 inches wide.
The actual width of the 6" sections is 5 to 7" wide. Therefore, the panel can be made from standard 1 x 6 wood which is actually ¾ inches thick and 5.5 inches wide.
The overall length of the jump is twice the jump height of the division. For example, a dog in the 16 inch division must hurdle a broad jump that is 32 inches long.
As per the AKC "Regulations for Agility Trials dated September 1, 2006", the highest point of the tallest section is 8½"
and the lowest point of the shortest section is 3½".
The low point of any section is at least ½" less than the high point.
In other words, the difference between the high point and the low point of a
panel/section is a minimum of ½". This diagram helps illustrate their point.
This table shows the high and low points for the 8 inch panels:
Allowable Panels Widths (inches) |
|
| Low Point (inches) | High Point (inches) |
| 3 ½ | 5 |
| 4 ¼ | 5 ¾ |
| 5 | 6 ½ |
| 5 ¾ | 7 ¼ |
| 6 ½ | 8 |
The first row of this table is included here for the new 4 inch jump class. Its dimensions adhere to the AKC regulations for the panel heights. Note that after the first panel, I increase my dimensions by ¾ of an inch. In doing so, the I use all of the allowable height defined by the AKC. Typically you may only see an increase of ½ inch.
This table shows the jump distance and the panels required for each height division.
| Height Division | Jump Distance (inches) | Number of 6" Panels | Number of 8" Panels |
| 8 | 16 | 2 | 2 |
| 12 | 24 | 3 | 3 |
| 16 | 32 | 4 | 3 |
| 20 | 40 | 5 | 4 |
| 24 | 48 | 5 | 4 |
| 26 | 52 | 5 | 4 |
The jumps that I build are constructed from standard 1 by 8 pine which is really ¾ by 7¼ inches.
The length of the sections are between 4 and 5 feet long. Two coats of paint are used. The first coat is a white latex paint. This fills in all of the nooks and crannies of the wood. The second coat is a white oil-base paint for protection against the elements. The blue stripe is also an oil-base paint.
As per the AKC "Regulations for Agility Trials dated September 1, 2006", to improve visibility, either the center of the sections or both ends must be marked with a color-contrasting band that is at least 3 inches wide.
I have a blue band that is 18" wide in the center of each panel. The
photo below clearly shows the wide band.
The longest panel is 60" and each panel fits comfortably under the next higher section for easy handling and storage.
Here is a picture of the five [5] panels of the 6" jump. For this particular set, the boards were cut to be exactly 6 inches wide.
The corner markers, or posts, can also be used as an agility course start point and or end point. In addition, the posts can be used to define points when performing the obedience figure 8's. The posts are 36" high and the base is an H that consists of ¾" PVC components.
The corner markers are sold separately!
Click on the picture for more details on the marker poles.
