Canadian Challenge: Dogs on the Trail

Time to dis-spell a myth in regards to the dogs health at a race.

I received a message today.  This concerned non-dog sledding person was worried that the dogs of this years race were being pushed too hard.
It was suggested that all the dogs being dropped this year was because they were all hurt and how could a musher 'really' care about his dogs if they were pushing them so hard.

Well.
I need to address this and what better time than at this moment sitting with the tracker open on my screen waiting for Aaron Peck to reach the finish line.

The trail was hard and fast, there is no denying that.  If you look at the statistics from the first part of the race you will see that the teams were running at incredible speeds.
Because all the teams had the same top speeds at the beginning I can only assume that most mushers were running their dogs with both feet on the brake or drag mat, or both! (if only they had 4 feet).  Most mushers I know like to start their race slow and steady, so they don't burn out their dogs or create any early injuries.

Due to the fast hard trail there were dogs that were dropped early due to sore wrists and shoulders.
Usually the dogs just need a bit longer of a rest and lots of massages with oils.  Most of these dogs are ready to return to the trail not long after the musher has left without them.  However once a dog is dropped they cannot re enter the team.

A musher will determine if a dog is not having fun anymore.  A sore shoulder will make it hard for anyone to have fun.   This is when a dog is dropped, or bagged on the sled.  Sometimes a ride for a distance is enough of a break and they come back on the team ready to continue without any issues.

Yes it can happen, dogs can be pushed too hard which then leaves a musher with many issues to deal with, However the seasoned mushers, such as Aaron, know their dogs and what they are capable of.
Aaron would have not dropped down to 7 dogs for the last leg of the race because they are all injured. Most likely he dropped down to 7 in order to pick the best of this team and avoid further injury.

Aaron is running for the win.  He is not being chased, so he has no worry of being over taken by competition.  There is no reason to create a smaller team other than the fact that he cares for the dogs enough to leave those behind who are slower and maybe are not strong finishers.  The team he has left with is faster and why worry about creating unnecessary injury by taking dogs who might have to ride in the bag, even for a short distance, slowing the team down.

And you can replace Aarons name above with any good musher.

Then there are those that scratch.  It has nothing to do with bad mushers or bad dogs, it has everything to do with conditions and bad timing.
As I have already mentioned, the trail was hard and fast and having a team of power house dogs up front that love to run, and love to run fast, it can be difficult to slow them down.  This is when you end up with injuries.
The trail can have many hazards for the musher as well, hitting some conditions on crazy fast trails is like playing Russian roulette, some make it, some don't.

Steve, Chris and Gerry all have incredible dogs.  They are amazing athletes that love doing what they do. They just happened to hit those conditions with bad timing.
All three have winning teams, they will be back.

The mushers that I know personally, and many are mushers here this week, love their dogs.  They know each dog so well, from the slightest movement of the head, to how they hold their tail.  Each dog is watched for hours as they run the trails making sure each one is happy, healthy and willing to run.

The dogs LOVE to run at night
Photo Credit: Kandis Riese

My Biggest Mistake

It's been a strange few months when it comes to my blogging.
One reason for my absence has to do with my phone addiction.  I find it easier to hang out in cyber land on this little hand held device than deal with my broken lap top, however blogging with a teeny tiny key board has its challenges as well, so I just stayed away.

The other reason for the silence has more to do with why I have avoided coming here.
Today is the day.
 I feel it is time to break the silence even though it is still hard to talk about.

I should have been packing and prepping to leave for the Percy deWolfe Memorial Race. The plan was to leave this weekend.

I will not be going.

My heart hurts with the disappointment.

For two years it was all I could think of.
Nerves and excitement hung around me all the time.

I had a good feeling about my three dogs that were coming with me.  They were running well and we were slowly building distance.
There was a worry that the miles were not being put on quick enough, but they were strong and loved to run not wanting to stop when we did.

Hubba was losing weight as was I.
The only big step was to practice skijoring with the three together and with the pulk.

That is when I made a mistake.

A big mistake.

I did not listen to my dogs.
They put ALL their trust in me and I let them down.

We had gone running for the day with friends on gorgeous trails..... Perfect trails for training on.  I was so excited with the thought of camping here and spending most of my weekend on the trails only a couple hours away.
It was a nice day with temperatures hovering close to zero.  Nice for the humans but could have been a little cooler for the dogs.

What I loved most about this training were the hills.... Great training for both myself and the fur kids as I also had to run.

However it is also part of the reason we came into trouble.  One in a larger equation.

My first mistake was not packing water snacks.
I was told we wouldn't be gone very long so I did not pack them.  I should have asked how long we would be as my idea of not long is an hour or two.... We were out closer to five.

My second and biggest wrong doing was not listening.
I knew my kids were tired.
We were working hard on those hills and Rigby's tug line kept going slack.

His tug line never goes slack.... Ever.

I knew I should stop to rest but our human leader insisted we keep going to get out to the trucks.
Worried about being out on the trails in the dark we kept ourselves running forward.
I should have just stopped should have listened to my inner voice that kept telling me to stop.

Instead Rigby collapsed.
Heat exhaustion took over and he had to be bagged for the rest of the ride.

Rigby was fine by the time we got back.  But he has never run the same since.
He is worried that this will happen again.
He does not trust in me anymore.
Rigby was my power house.

I let him down.

I let myself down.

I knew then that there was no way I would be able to get the training miles on or just go with two dogs.
It still took over a month before I could tell anyone I was not going.

It broke my heart and my spirit.
It still hurts.

But I AM excited for Raija as she leaves today for the Yukon and to carry out our dream.
I will be with her in spirit.

A Happy Ending

My boy is home for a weeks holiday making this Mommy a happy one.
However with only a week there are a few 'to do's' that must happen and one of those was Dad and Son heading out on the lake to go fishing.
With my girl off to the Stampede with a friend I was left alone with my fur kids for the day.

The 'Mum' in me decided it should be a day of baking so there could be treats for the family for the next week.

Door propped open with a rock the fur kids could come and go as they pleased while I kept busy in the kitchen.
I had purchased a couple of flower pots and was not in full trust that they would not pull them apart so I did head out a few times to see what they were up to and throw the ball for Rigby.

Dogs in and out, napping at my feet and sniffing up at the counter, it all seemed like a normal day, there was no indication to the adventure that was about to ensue.

I was just cleaning up from my latest batch of cookies and had a tray in the over with about 3 minutes left to go on the timer when Hubba popped in whining and seeming rather agitated.
Drying off my hands I threw my chore shoes on (which are loose and clumpy on my feet), stepped outside and called to the dogs... "hey puppies!!"

Nothing.

The yard was empty.
Void of dogs.

The gates were closed.

What the hey???

Walking around to the back of the yard I just about fell over.  Two fence boards had been ripped off the fence and a huge hole stood between the yard and freedom.
My guess was a cat happened to be on the other side resulting in the escape that was most likely all Penny's doing.

"Shit!!"  I stood staring at the newly created gate to the front yard frozen to the spot with my brain reeling with what I needed to do to bring all 5 dogs back by myself.

Running inside I grabbed their collars which of course they were not wearing (bloody hell), the leash and stopped to tie my shoes that were slopping about on my feet. 
Leaving the back door open I grabbed my cell phone and keys and took off outside calling all the dogs names while standing in the middle of the road.

Nothing, no sound, no sign of any dog.

I jumped into the truck and started off down the road hoping that I picked the right direction, the one we use to walk the dogs.
Nothing, no sign of them at all.

Why did this have to happen when I was at home alone?

I drove about 6 blocks or so when all of a sudden I see Hubba and Elly sniffing a backyard fence.
Leaping out of the truck (surprised I put it in park) I called to them both.  Nothing at first, but as soon as I dropped to my knees they both came over to me.
However without collars on I could only get a hold of one dog at a time.  So Elly was picked up and put into the back seat, but before I could close the door she had jumped out again.
This time I grabbed a collar and slipped it over her head and put her back in the truck.
Hubba in the meantime was running around the truck looking all pleased with himself.
Putting him in the truck was a different story.

Collar on his neck I put his front feet on the floor to the passenger side front seat then lifted his butt up into the truck.  He would not however step up so I had to lift all 90 pounds of him up onto the seat.

I flew home put the first two into the kennel in the yard, grabbed a few dog cookies and ran out once more.

I seriously didn't think I would get so lucky again, but lo and behold when I turned down the first street there was all three of my kids running back towards home (yes, this is what I am telling myself).
Jumping out of the truck and calling to them I watched in disbelief as they all ran right past me, not even glancing my way once!!
Again I dropped to my knees and called Rigby while showing him the cookie... he thought about running ahead but at the last second he changed his mind and came to me tail wagging with a big grin on his face.

One in the truck it was time to get the other two.

Rocky came to me next in the same way Rigby did.

Penny on the other hand wasn't as willing to get in the truck, but she did come to me when I called her, again squatting down to her level.

With all 5 dogs back in their kennels I went inside and dropped on the couch which was when I noticed that I was dripping in sweat.  No.  Not just dripping I was drenched.
I also had to take a few deep breaths to slow my heartbeat down to normal again.

After a calming break alone in my quiet living room (and finishing off the last couple batches of cookies) I head back outside with hammer and nails in hand to fix and make the fence escape proof once more.

I'm sure there was some form of guardian angel watching over me and the dogs this afternoon.
I feel very lucky to have all 5 of my kids back home safe and sound.

One thing is for sure. 

We are never going through that again!!

Mushers' Meeting

The first sprint race of the season is here.

Are we ready? 

As ready as we'll ever be.  We don't have as many miles under our paws as I would have liked for this, but ya gotta start somewhere.
I am also not entered in the skijouring class which makes me sad, but I don't have a dog ready to run two 4 miles back to back as would have to happen.... actually I'll be completely honest, I don't think I'm ready to ski the 4 miles myself!

The race this weekend is for bragging rights, a trophy and all for fun. 
I am not in the top 3 for the 4 dog open class that I've entered and although I'm not saying we don't have fast dogs.. we do... but we have a Sibe on our team which slows us down just enough for the other faster Alaskans to rip past us on the trail.
I can't wait to have my two fast babies ski trained to enter the skijour class and see what we can really do... soon enough.

I will admit it publicly... I'm not a huge fan of sprint racing with the sled.
My heart beats a mile a minute.
I get caught up in the rush of getting the dogs hooked up just moments before being called to the starting chute... dogs ramped up and screaming loudly to be let loose.
The take off..... the speed... the feeling of not being in control at all for that brief moment as you find your 'sled legs'
I don't breath up until that point.

The scariest part of today is the fact that we have yet been on our sprint sled this year. In fact the dogs have not trained without any weight in the sled up to this point... which means... we are going to FLY today.
I just hope I can make corners without flipping my weigh nothing sled.

And I do LOVE LOVE the adrenaline rush that is brought on by all this, I just think perhaps it is our lack of experience in racing as a team and having others pass us on the trail that make me feel as if my stomach is in knots.  Well I guess as I stated earlier... ya gotta start somewhere.

So, I've completely gone off topic from what this blog was originally titled.

I may not 'love' the sprinting of the sled but I do love the meeting of the mushers.
My favorite part of the weekend is Friday night.. walking into the room and seeing familiar faces that you have not seen since last year.

The people in this 'world' are the most laid back friendly people I know and I'm always left feeling like we have known each other for years and that no time has passed since we last saw each other.
Everyone is eager to share their tips and tricks and I always walk away having learned something new.

Perhaps all the time we spend hanging out with our fur kids has rubbed off on us somehow... 

.....or maybe we just learn from our dogs better than others.

Well... I'm off to get ready for the races! 

Happy trails everyone!

Lessons from My Dogs #2

Enjoy the simple things in life.

These days our lives move way too fast.
We have instant everything at our finger tips.
We have high speed Internet.
Are able to text anyone whenever we feel like it.
We carry our phones with us at all times.
Everyone drives way too fast.
You don't have to leave your car for food, coffee, or even banking.
We even eat fast food.
And can use same day delivery services.

Do humans even slow down to notice the little things anymore?

I sat watching my dogs as they ran around the yard letting off pent up energy. 
They love to run, they live to run, they were born to run.
Yet each of them always stops to explore some wonderful scent, or interesting object found hidden among the leaves or under the snow. 

Dogs understand happiness that comes from the simple life.
They always take the time for a back scratch or a belly rub and hey, if you have ever stuck your finger into your dogs ear you will understand pure pleasure.
Share with them a new toy, which may just be an empty water bottle, and they will show you the fun that can be had for an entire afternoon.

But throw them a ball and watch as joy explodes from them.

 If we all could enjoy the simple things I believe life would be so much easier.

Lessons from my Dogs

Enjoy the ride.

Life kicks ya in the butt, that is inevitable
Like kids moving far away and the hurt of missing them.
However I am lucky in that they are both in a good space with their lives and although they are far I can feel good about them being so independent.

So, I let them live their lives and I will be happy for them.....

As for me.. I'm going to listen to my dogs and sit back and enjoy the ride, who knows what is around the next corner.  I just hope it is something fun, like a ride on a sled being pulled by 5 of my best friends.

Dog Tired

 A great way to begin the new year!

My New Years wish for everyone is to be as satisfied with what ever it is you choose to do this year as my pups were after their first ever run in harness today.

Way to go Elly and Rigby!!