Yukon Quest in a Large Nutshell

I really apologize, but blogging took a back seat once the racing season began. I’ve done a poor job of keeping everyone updated, but I’ll try to pack all the exhilaration of the past month into one blog post.

After the Copper Basin 300, our focus turned to Allen’s 1000-mile Yukon Quest and Aliy and I’s Quest 300 races. Dogs were trained. Drop bags were packed. And logistics were worked out. For all those unfamiliar with sled dog races, the Yukon Quest is the lesser-known of the two thousand mile races- the Quest and the Iditarod. Like the Iditarod, the Yukon Quest trail alternates routes depending on the year, but this year the race began in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory and ends in Fairbanks, Alaska…40 miles past our backdoor. Knowing that the dogs would be inclined to stop at the kennel rather than continuing on 40 miles down the Chena River to downtown Fairbanks, Allen and I prepared the dogs by running the 75-miles from the last checkpoint, all the way past the kennel to downtown and ending with staw, food, and lots of atta-boys to ensure they understood that Fairbanks is the end (in just a couple days we’ll see if our training paid off). Those 75 to 80 mile runs were also essential in preparing Allen’s team for his first Quest appearance.



In addition to those runs, I was training a range of slower/older/younger/less experienced dogs, some of whom would run on Aliy and my Quest teams. Among them were a few of my favorite dogs at the kennel- the Fab Four Yearlings (Spoog, Schmoe, Sissy, and Scooter). These four had never before camped out or rested while in harness, so we had a couple trial runs hoping that the overly excited pups would get the idea to lay down and rest on the straw rather than keep barking obnoxiously and lunging into harness. Luckily, they quickly learned the basics of camping after only two short campouts, and come race time, I decided to bring along Scooter and Sissy on their first big race. Exciting!

In between training runs, we were packing food drop bags to be sent out to the different checkpoints and to resupply us along the trail. The Quest is unique in that the checkpoints are few and far between. For comparison, the Iditarod has around twenty checkpoints, and the Quest has only nine! Allen had sections of trail without a checkpoint for over 200 miles! For the Quest 300, we had 70-100 miles between checkpoints, so I planned on camping between each one and packed accordingly. In the drop bags were food for the dogs (fish snacks, horse snacks, beef snacks, fat snacks, fat crumbs, MVP dog food, soaked dog food, cooked fish, and tripe), gear for the dogs (booties, blankets, any vet gear like wrist wraps or Algyval massage oil), gear and food for me (chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate with perhaps a granola bar thrown in or a Mountain House dehydrated meal), and whatever else we might need. We sealed those up then dropped them off in Fairbanks to be shipped to the various checkpoints along the trail.




On February 1st Allen, Aliy, Ray (Aliy’s brother-in-law), 38 dogs, and I loaded into the two dog trucks and began the 12+ hour drive to Whitehorse. Luckily the roads were relatively clear, and we arrived later that evening. Even though the race wouldn’t start until Saturday the 5th, Allen had numerous meetings, his vet check, and banquets to attend before the start of the race. In between all the hubbub, Aliy and I wanted to stretch out the dog teams since they were basically living on a dog truck for a week prior to the start. With the race beginning in downtown Whitehorse and continuing down the Yukon River, it seemed easiest to just hop right on the race trail and go for a couple hours. However, Whitehorse was currently melting in uncommonly warm temperatures (which we struggled to convert to Fahrenheit every time the weather was shown on TV), so our nice stretch-out run became a mushy, chaotic swim. At one point Aliy’s dogs were swimming in overflow! I had strategically chosen the second team, so Aliy’s dogs tested the waters and let me know where to steer clear. An hour later, wet and worried, we returned to Ray and the dog truck and began to ponder the upcoming race only two days away. Would the trail be ready? The trail markers had lead right through the worst of the puddles. How would we prepare the dogs? How would we prepare ourselves? Should we buy waders?



Luckily, the next two days brought colder temperatures and solidified the trail for our Saturday starts. The AMAZING handlers Ray, Dave (a friend of Aliy and Allen), and Doug (Aliy’s dad) helped Allen leave at 11 in the morning and then Aliy and I around five that evening. The trail was fast and perfect for the entire race!



I was very excited about my dog team with the yearlings Sissy and Scooter, trail-hardened veterans Bullet, Teddy, and ChaCha (all 8-9), and my bedmate Stormy. Other superstars Hank, Lester, Newt, Pepper, Moonpie, and Tug rounded out the team for a nice mix of young and old, experienced and novices.

Throughout the race, we camped twice when the distances between checkpoints were too far to make in one run (Whitehorse to Braeburn and Braeburn to Carmacks). We saw nights full of vibrant, green Northern lights and beautiful scenery along the frozen lakes and Yukon River.



The dogs were incredible, and motored along all the way to the finish line on Tuesday. Even when I thought we’d taken the wrong trail and backtracked to Stepping Stone Hospitality Stop, only to find out it was the correct trail, the dogs trotted on at an even brisk pace. I’m so thankful for the all the help from Dave, Doug, and Ray as well as the strength and happy attitude of my dog team. The Yukon Quest 300 could not have gone better.



At some of the checkpoints, we were running with the “Big Dogs” (the 1000-mile Quest mushers), making me excited to someday tackle the real thing!





Immediately after I finished my race, Doug drove the dogs and me to Dawson City where the rest of the SP Kennel crew was awaiting Allen’s arrival for his 36-hour mandatory layover. Each team is assigned a camping spot, and the handlers are allowed to turn their area into a little doggie day spa so that Allen’s team would be comfortable, warm, and pampered during their 36-hour break in the middle of the race. That evening, Allen arrived with a very strong dog team. Allen went back to the hotel to get some much deserved sleep while Aliy, Ray, Dave, and I settled the dogs into their new home for the next couple of evenings. Over the next 36 hours, we messaged, fed, walked, and pampered all the dogs. Allen organized his sled and prepared himself for the road ahead.




At 11:16 AM, Allen and his team took off from Dawson on their way home. Currently he’s between Mile 101 and Two Rivers. Since Dawson, the dog teams have experienced more bad weather, overflow, slow trail, and challenges than thought possible. Dog teams have faltered, at least 10 teams have scratched, fingers have been frostbitten, sleds and mushers submerged in overflow, and sadly two dogs have expired. But even with all the adversities, teams are pushing through. Allen’s tenacity and sheer determination to get his team off the Yukon, through the overflow and -50 temps on Birch Creek, and over Eagle Summit dog by dog is unbelievable. I’ve learned so much just by watching him and the other mushers persevere through all Mother Nature throws at them, and hope that when my turn comes, I’ll have the strength to do the same.

The race is almost over, so be sure to check out www.spkdoglog.com for faster updates.

ALSO:

My brother Nick is keeping a blog (http://www.guayusagoodtome.blogspot.com/)
about his experiences working for Runa in a remote town in Ecuador. SP kennel is represented in Ecuador!

Handler Concept Revisited

I know I already discussed a bit about being a handler in my previous post, but I wrote a little something for the SPK Dog Log and figured I might as well post it here too.

2011 Copper Basin: Handler’s Perspective

For many folks unfamiliar with the world of dog sled racing, I’ve decided to give a slightly different perspective of the CB300 and highlight a group of people easily overlooked: the handlers. Before I delve into the trail, checkpoints, and challenges of the race from the eyes of handler, I’ll first explain who/what exactly is a handler.

Handlers are essential to most races (excluding the Iditarod), and yet we can do so little during the actually competition. In fact, the term ‘handler’ is a bit misleading, seeing as we cannot touch the dogs or assist the musher once the race begins. Perhaps, a more accurate title would be ‘observer’. Essentially, we’re like a pit crew at Talladega that can’t actually touch the car, instead saying, “Hey Dale, it looks like you’ve got a flat tire. You might want to fix that.” We can’t help bootie or feed the dogs; we can’t heat up water; we can’t lie out straw; we can’t even pet or massage the dogs.
So what can we do? We can scout out a checkpoint before our musher arrives and stomp out the perfect spot for our team to camp. We can find where the water, drop bags, straw, food, and lodgings are located. As the mushers tire, we can gently remind them that they were going to wrap so-and-so’s wrist, or that they wanted to feed the two wheel dogs too. We can keep track of their rest times and wake them up when it’s time to leave. Once the musher and the dogs hit the trail, we can clean up their campsite, pack up the truck, take any dropped dogs with us, then drive to the next checkpoint to wait and watch some more. In between driving, waiting, watching, and cleaning, we catch a few moments sleep.
After reading the responsibilities of a handler, you may wonder who in their right mind would sign up for that job? And the answer is…everyone. Often times we’re volunteers who just like to be a part of the dog sledding world for a weekend. For many, meeting and interacting with the other handlers is half the fun. We’re an eclectic bunch, ranging in age, profession, interests, and experience, but for some reason we all find ourselves standing at -10, anxiously waiting for a light to start winding its way through the trees. Among the many characters I met were a young couple from Norway, a fellow Alabamian experiencing her first Alaskan winter, a guy from Anchorage with zero dog knowledge, and a “multi-handler” who has no real kennel affiliation but shows up to races and handles for whoever needs assistance. The excitement of racing and the enthusiasm of the dogs draw people from all walks of life who just want to be a part of the experience, myself included.

Now that I’ve established who/what is a handler, we’ll look at the Copper Basin 300 through the eyes of a participant who never sees more than 50 yards of the trail. Let’s start with the weather. During most of the race, the temperatures were warm by Copper Basin standards: 10 to -10 degrees. For handlers, this was wonderful. It is much more enjoyable to wait outside in these temps than the typical -30 to -40 degrees commonly found during Copper Basin. For the musher, however, this meant more open water and deep overflow, so that they returned from runs wet and cold. This year’s trail route also varied from previous years. The race started from Paxson, and once all teams were on the trail, the handlers could drive the 3-4 hours to the next checkpoint, Chistochina. For the mushers, starting in Paxson meant that they were able to tackle the enormous hill with a fresh dog team right from the beginning. For the handlers, the already long drive from Paxson to Chistochina was further complicated by the 2-hour time differential between the first and last bibs (aka Aliy and Allen). The addition of the Spot Trackers in this year’s race was also incredibly helpful for the handlers, when they worked. Now only if we could get wireless or even cell phone reception at each of the checkpoints. And finally the finish in Paxson along Paxson Lake and the airstrip, while long for the mushers, gave the handlers a heads up as to their arrival so that we weren’t caught sleeping when they crossed the finish line.

Overall, handling for the SP Kennel teams in the Copper Basin 300 was three days packed with fun and excitement. I had the chance to learn from veteran CB300 handlers, Ray and Bob, and I’m looking forward to the upcoming races!

Weather Swing

One week ago, we were experiencing -40 to -45 temperatures, and today? Yes, we're not running dogs because it's too WARM! Record high of 45 above zero!


MIDDLE TANANA VALLEY-
INCLUDING...FAIRBANKS...FORT WAINWRIGHT...EIELSON AFB...ESTER...
NORTH POLE...MOOSE CREEK...TWO RIVERS...FOX...CHATANIKA...CHENA
HOT SPRINGS...SOURDOUGH CAMP
447 AM AKST SUN JAN 2 2011

...RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES THIS MORNING...
.TODAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY. HIGHS 30 TO 45. TEMPERATURES SLOWLY
FALLING IN THE AFTERNOON. EAST WINDS 10 TO 20 MPH. LOCAL GUSTS TO
25 MPH ON THE HILLS IN THE MORNING.
.TONIGHT...MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 10 TO 20 ABOVE. SOUTHEAST WINDS
AROUND 15 MPH.
.MONDAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY. HIGHS 15 TO 25 ABOVE. EAST WINDS 10 TO 20 MPH.
.MONDAY NIGHT...MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOWS ZERO TO 5 ABOVE ZERO. EAST
WINDS 15 TO 20 MPH.

The Sheep Mountain 150

Last weekend we competed in our first race of the season, the Sheep Mountain 150 (Allen, Aliy, and Bridgett raced. I handled). After months of training and preparation, the racing season has finally arrived. This is what we’ve been waiting for. The many hours on the back of a sled in below zero temperatures, the shovel full after shovel full of dog poop, the sorting and resorting of gear, the frustration of nothing working at forty below--- has all come down to this: Racing. Some folks might ask, “Why do you enjoy racing sled dogs?” But this is a question best left unanalyzed. No good will come of pondering why you paid money to drive a dog team at 3:00 in the morning after sleeping two hours when it’s -20 degrees and you can’t feel you fingers. The fact is we race because we want to. I’ll admit I don’t enjoy every second of a race, but something about working with dogs and overcoming the challenges Mother Nature can dish out makes racing surprisingly rewarding. And with maybe five people waiting at the finish line, it better not be for the glory.

At this particular race, I was handling for Allen, Aliy, and Bridgett. For those unfamiliar with sled dog racing, a handler is a person who assists the musher during a race by taking dropped dogs and helping manage run/rest times. Ironically, the term ‘handler’ could not be farther from the truth in a race setting. I do no ‘handling.’ I can’t even touch the dogs. I’m like a pit crew at Talladega that can’t touch the car, but instead says, “Hey Dale, it looks like you need to change your tires. You might want to do that.” The inactivity can be slightly frustrating when all I want to do is start rubbing down the dogs or help booty the team. Rather than “handler,” I should be called an “observer.”

Even as an “observer” I thoroughly enjoyed the Sheep Mountain 150. I had the chance to watch 40 dog teams in action and compare the checkpoint routines of some of the top distance mushers. Combine that with the breathtaking beauty of the surrounding mountains, and the Sheep Mountain 150 is one of the best.

I put together a short video of the race:

It's 40 Below What?

Talk about extremes: currently my older brother, Nick, is working for Runa, an entrepreneurship based in the Amazon of Ecuador (where it rarely gets below 60 degrees). After every few blog entries (http://www.guayusagoodtome.blogspot.com/), he ends with a compare and contrast of our two lifestyles. It makes for a very funny read!







Oscar Wilde was quoted to say, “Conversation about the weather is the last refuge of the unimaginative.” Oh, how I beg to differ. Fairbanks weather is most certainly conversation-worthy. We have hit the days of an average 20 below, with lows dipping to a frigid -40 degrees Fahrenheit/Celsius. (Yes it’s so cold out, you know longer have to specify if it’s Fahrenheit or Celsius, it’s just plain cold). Rather than lose interest when the grocer says, “This week, it’s supposed to be a little colder,” I snap to attention. How cold? Will the cars start? Will it burn when you touch metal with your bare hands? Should I cover every inch of skin when I go outside? And before I moved into my own cabin with indoor plumbing, do I really need to use the restroom tonight? That first day of -40, something about me must have screamed amateur because everyone I met kindly smiled and said, “Is it your first winter here in Fairbanks? Don’t worry, soon 20 below will feel warm.” Perhaps it was the huge parka I wore or how slow and stiff I was doing chores. Or maybe my shining red nose. Luckily, I consider myself a quick learner, and I’ve already picked up on a few tricks of the trade.
1. A parka ruff is a necessity. If don’t want your face to peel away, you have to get used to the idea of surrounding your face with wolf and wolverine fur.
2. Hand and toe warmers are no longer for the wimpy and sensitive.
3. Cold metal burns, then sticks. As Li’l Debbie demonstrated, licking metal is a bad idea.
4. Nothing works in the cold. Everything will take longer.

Anyway, I’ve made my point. It’s cold, and we talk about it.

So you may ask, when it’s that cold, how do the dogs handle it? The answer is, they’re made for cold weather. If it’s below -20 during a run, we’ll put dog jackets (complete with pee protectors) on the boys and short-coated girls, but that’s it. Right now, it’s 30 below, and the dogs are spinning around, playing with their neighbor, and causing raucous. The fact is these Alaskan Huskies are just tougher than we are. Right now, our dogs are getting ready for their first race, the Sheep Mountain 150. It consists of three consecutive 50-mile runs. To prepare, we’ve been taking the dogs on 45-60 mile runs in an effort to get them comfortable with cruising at a steady 10-11 mph pace for 50+ miles. I doubt there is a human athlete that could run 50 miles at an 11 mph pace, much less do it comfortably. This weekend, we’re traveling again to the White Mountains for a 50-mile run, campout, 50-mile run. And we’re still at the beginning of the season! As the saying goes, “These athletes eat raw meat, run naked, and sleep in the snow.”

A short clip taken in the White Mountains.

WAR EAGLE!!!!!

Postponed running dogs to watch the game. WAR EAGLE!!!

Treadmill Study Video

In the previous post, I mentioned the treadmill work our SP Kennel dogs have been practicing. To give everyone a better idea of what exactly the dogs are up to, we made this video: