Is there anyone who can help me with some dog agility questions?

I'm getting ready to enter my dog in UKC AG1. I would like to start training her for weaving in AG2 as well as if we decide to do AKC. I've been practicing at the agility club with a set of 6 poles which I bend down and have her go thru the middle. For some reason, the instructors don't use those guide wires but don't those work well in weave pole training? What has been your best experience in training a dog to be proficient in the weave poles? This is my first experience with agility. I have a 11 month old Sheltie who according to the instructors is a "natural". All mistakes made are because of me! She goes thru the poles slowly right now. She goes thru the course fast but not nearly as fast as she can. Is this because I need to work on "distance"? Is she going slower because of me most likely? I mean, I can run preety fast but no where near as fast as she can! So my 2 questions are about the poles and speed. Will she get faster as I improve?