“Silly people with silly dogs doing silly things.” That’s how Maine Boats, Homes and Harbors (MBHH) magazine associate publisher and World Championship Boatyard Dog Trials coordinator Dave Getchell describes the annual event, which features intrepid water dogs performing feats the good folks at Westminster would never dream of. In years past, canine contestants have raced over lobster crates, rowed boats, kissed damsels, offered bribes and doused their owners—all in the name of winning the coveted, perpetual Pup Cup.

The trials take place each year at the end of the MBHH show in Rockland’s Harbor Park, on the second weekend in August. For those unacquainted with the event, perhaps it’s best to start with the rules, of which there are exactly three.

Rule 1: Either dog or handler, preferably both, must be soaked by the end of the contest.

Rule 2: Cheating is not only tolerated, it is encouraged.

Rule 3: There are no other rules.

According to Getchell, this unconventional approach to law and order occasionally causes confusion—particularly when more serious, professional athletes get in the mix, their experienced handlers looking for a way to get an edge over the competition. “They want to know the rules, but there are none,” said Getchell. “Do silly stuff. Make people laugh … A lot of times, the [contestants] who get the most applause are the ones who actually refuse to do what their handlers tell them.”

Downeast Dog News publisher Holly Sherburne, who will judge the event for the fourth straight year, echoes Getchell’s sentiment. “There’s a serious effort,” Sherburne said, “but also a serious effort to make it fun. It’s a great crowd pleaser—everyone just has a good time.”

Although this is its seventh year as the World Championship Boatyard Dog Trials, the competition has been a tradition around these parts for longer than that. Beginning as an informal competition during a short ships rowing regatta Getchell used to take part in, it then found its way into Camden’s Windjammer Weekend before eventually becoming the logical extension of MBHH magazine’s popular “Boatyard Dog” column.

The pre-qualified contestants for the event are chosen based on a photo and letter of interest, which Getchell said most frequently comes either written by the owner on behalf of the dog or “dictated to the owner directly by the dog.” And since this is, after all, the Boatyard Dog Trials, priority is definitely given to seafaring pooches. Dogs that work the docks, sail the high seas or just keep the boatyard running are all encouraged to throw their collars in the ring.

This year, the event will be held Sunday, August 9, beginning with a parade of the entrants and their handlers, both of whom are “strongly encouraged” to appear in costume. This year promises an even more elaborate spectacle with the inclusion of the Maine Lobster Festival’s newly crowned Sea Goddess. Getchell said of the addition, “If you’re gonna go all the way with something like this, you have to go all the way.” Which means, naturally, adding “a genuine princess to our parade.”

Once the contestants have garnered support from the crowd during the parade, it’s time to strut their stuff on the open ocean. This entails navigating a timed obstacle course that may include “negotiating a tippy dock, jumping over lobster crates, getting in and out of a small boat, fetching bizarre objects from the water or whatever else [the coordinators] dream up,” according to the MBHH website. After the obstacle course comes the biggest crowd pleaser of them all—the freestyle event.

And freestyle has never been freer than at the Boatyard Dog Trials. Dancing dogs, spy dogs, dogs that juggle, dogs that joust, dogs that get their handlers to do their bidding—you’ll find them all here. Creativity and humor are highly prized in this venue, but they are not the only thing the judges take into consideration.

According to Sherburne, this is also when rule number two most frequently comes into play, specifically in the form of bribes. Sherburne said that in the past, judges have been tempted with “cookies, blueberry pies, iced tea ... candy, dog toys—all kinds of things.” The bribery isn’t limited to the day of the event, however. “I may have let it slip that I like chocolate,” said Sherburne, who in years past has received chocolate covered strawberries a week before the show even went up.

The winner of the trials is featured in the MBHH “Boatyard Dog” column, and is awarded temporary ownership of the prestigious, perpetual Pup Cup. Last year’s winner was a bloodhound mix named Truman, an entrant from the Humane Society of Knox County that was trained by a group of teens from the nonprofit youth organization Youthlinks and dog trainer Marie Finnegan. Working with his handlers, Truman—a.k.a. Agent K-9—ran the obstacle course like a pro, then proceeded to wow the crowd by completing a complicated super-spy scenario that included disarming bad guys and kissing a femme fatale.

This year’s competitors include a black German Shepherd named Mykala, that “runs” West Bay Boats in Steuben, Maine; a rescued terrier mix named Mattie, owned by local schooner captain Neil Parker; Getchell’s very own Henri, a “singer” spaniel and renowned canine vocalist; and a team of four ambitious dogs known as the Outward Hounds. Outward Hounds includes two Papillions, a Papillion mix and a Border Collie that reportedly collectively weigh an impressive 51 pounds. With talent like that on the water, the seventh annual World Championship Boatyard Dog Trials promises to be another memorable, dog-tastic event.

It should be noted that, because of liability concerns, no pets other than the pre-qualified contestants are allowed in Harbor Park during the MBHH show. The 2009 World Championship Boatyard Dog Trials takes place at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, August 9, at Rockland’s Harbor Park. Admission is $10, and children under 12 get in for free.