Print edition: 
Of all the events that go on at the Sunflower Cluster Dog Show, the one that may be the most exciting is one that many people never see.
"It's such a neat sport, and nobody knows we are out there," Jeanette Davila of Derby said of lure coursing, a simulated hunt that lets sighthounds loose to chase an artificial lure along a 600- to 800-yard track in an open field.
"People say, 'I was at the dog show, but where was the lure coursing?' " said Davila, whose saluki, Peyton, competes in the sport.
"It's so exciting to watch these guys."
While most of the events at the dog show, coming up April 9-11, are inside the Kansas Coliseum pavilions, lure coursing is held outdoors at the south end of the campgrounds.
The sport is open only to sighthounds, dogs bred to hunt by sight, not scent. Many of the allowed breeds — from huge Irish wolfhounds to tiny Italian greyhounds — compete at the Wichita show, Davila said.
The purpose of competitive lure coursing, according to the American Kennel Club, is to preserve and develop the natural coursing skills inherent in sighthounds and to demonstrate that they can perform the functions for which they were originally bred.
The dogs earn points and titles judged on their overall ability, speed, endurance, agility and how well they follow the lure.
Unlike canine sports like obedience and agility, dogs cannot really be trained to do lure coursing, and the handlers do not participate with them, Davila said.
"It's a free-thinking sport," she said. "It goes back to primitive hunting, what they were bred centuries ago to do."
Handlers take the dogs to the starting line and release them. The lure — a white plastic bag — is started, someone shouts "Tally ho," and they're off.
Different dogs have different coursing styles, Davila said, often based on what they were bred to do.
Rhodesian ridgebacks, she said, were bred to hunt lions. They're not quite as fast as a greyhound, "but you can really see that power when they're running."
Greyhounds are fastest when running in a straight line but face fierce competition from salukis when making turns, Davila said, and "the whippets are just the little speed demons."
Salukis, which were bred to hunt gazelles, "in my opinion are the most beautiful to watch run," she said.
Lure coursing comes naturally to most sighthounds, Davila said.
"You can't make a dog do it, and you really can't even train a dog to do it. They just love doing it, and that's what's fun about it."
Davila and Cheryl Henry of Wichita, whose salukis are littermates, let their dogs run at the new south Wichita dog park to keep them in condition for coursing.
"We don't really practice, because this is a free-running sport. It's more conditioning than training," Davila said.
Henry's dog, Willow, and Peyton, Davila's dog, both 4 years old, like competing against each other, Davila said.
"Peyton's a little more experienced, but she's beat him a couple of times," she said. "Mine doesn't like anybody beating him. When she gets close, he kind of turns it on."
Peyton and Willow also compete in conformation, the breed judging that is often referred to as the "beauty pageant" portion of a dog show, and both are champions.
But Henry says she prefers the gracefulness and athleticism of lure coursing to conformation.
"I like it because the dog is judged on its ability to do what it was originally meant to do, and that's to hunt down prey," she said.
In lure coursing, as in conformation, "it helps to have a structurally sound dog," but they're not judged so much on their coat or color, Henry said.
In conformation, "they look more at just the appearance, while in the field they look at their ability to perform."
Lure coursing will be held from 9 a.m to 4 p.m. all three days of the Sunflower Cluster Dog Show, April 9-11, rain or shine.
Dogs will run by breed first — Afghan hounds against Afghan hounds, for example. Then the winners of each breed will face off for the title of best in field.
Davila and Henry said they hope people will come watch lure coursing at the dog show, and maybe decide to participate if they have sighthounds.
"Bring lawn chairs and just come out and watch the dogs," Davila said. It's really a lot of fun."
