Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Athletes of the Week January 27th - February 2nd

Bristol is a funny dog. She loves people so much and is always wanting loves from them. She is 4 years old and full of life. She is my most affectionate pup that I have! She runs the best next to her teammate Jeff.  Another funny thing about Bristol is she likes to dig on top of her metal bowl and she howls like a squealer monkey when food is being served!!  Bristol is Riot's sister . . .
Riot is one of the hardest workers on the team!  He has floppy ears and a crooked smile.  He loves attention like his sister Bristol.  I am excited to see how well he does in Iditarod this year!
Rainy has come a long way as a leader!  She is a sister to McGrath. Rainy is small in stature, but she makes up for it when pulling with the team. She loves to be cuddled and shown attention. I enjoy her laid-back attitude and sweet temperament. What Musher from Ketchikan wouldn't have a dog in their team named Rainy? LOL!



McGrath is opposite of her sister Rainy in stature . . . she has long legs and is very shy.  She runs well with all dogs on the team and I can always depend on her to be my biggest cheerleader in the team!

13th place finish in the Northern Lights 300!


 The team getting settled in at our first checkpoint Yentna Station!
 Beautiful full moon runs both nights, the northern lights also swirled green and light pink overhead as we traveled . . . very mystical and breathtaking!!
 First Checkpoint Yentna Station, teams all lined up taking their mandatory 4 hours and time differential!
 

 Starting to frost up . . . Friday the day of the start the temperature was 25+ ending the race on Sunday it plummeted to -40.  Amazing change in temperatures!
 Running towards Mt. Foraker!  What a gorgeous day to be racing!!
Pierce looking back to check on me as we run towards the Alaska Range!

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Northern Lights 300 Sled Dog Race

Here is the website for the race that I will be starting tomorrow morning:
www.northernlights300.org
The race should be completed by Sunday January 27th!

Monday, January 21, 2013

Carmack, Pierce, Win, and Pepe' ~ Athletes of the Week Jan. 20th- 26th

Carmack is one of my main leaders. He is 9 years old and one of my larger males in my team. He is very sweet, gentle, and very furry. He gets along with everyone on the team and he loves to run. He enjoys scratches behind his ears and along his sides.

Pierce loves to snuggle into people. He always seems to have a smile on his face. He is a hard worker in the team and he pulls hard in the wheel position. He works well with other dogs and he enjoys running and pulling hard.  He is the only dog that I have to watch while hooking up the team because he like to chew his neckline and his friends that is running along side him!!

Win is a smaller dog on my team. She loves to lead the team down the trail. Sometimes she has a hard time listening to commands that are given to her, but overall she works really hard. She loves people to scratch her belly and behind her ears.  She has a lot of attitude for such a small dog!!


Pepe' is one shy guy, but a heck of a leader. Once he gets to know you he loves to be scratched behind his ears and loved on.  Pepe' has a very soft coat of fur that will keep him nice and warm in the sub-zero temperatures that we will encounter this winter. I am really excited to see how well Pepe' does in our race January 25th (Northern Lights 300)!
Go PePe' Go!!!

 

Thursday, January 10, 2013

"Bee", "Willow", "Chip" and "Dale" Athletes of the Week

"Athletes of the Week January 13th-19th"
Bee is a 6 year old female who will is one of the leaders on my team. She is a very sweet and loving dog. She is the mother to Willow! I enjoy running her in the team because she is hard worker and she gets along with all of her teammates. She has electric blue eyes and a tender smile . . . I am very glad that she is a part of the team!

Willow is learning the ropes this year with her momma and her other teammates.  She has ran in lead and the team.  She is a very smart dog and picks up things very quickly.  She may be too young to run in Iditarod this year, but who knows only a few more weeks will tell!!
Chip and Dale are brothers . . . they are the sweetest boys and they look so cute running side by side in the team. They run in the team or wheel position. They both are hard workers. They both have very high metabolisms so it is a challenge to keep weight on them. They both love having their bodies rubbed all over and will snuggle right in to your arms. I just love these boys!!

"Jeff" - New Member to Our Team

Meet "Jeff"  he is such a handsome and sweet dog!  He is the largest on my team weighing in at around 60+ pounds!  He is a great team and wheel dog always getting along with everyone who runs with him!!

Over Night Camp Out with the Dogs . . .

 Riot and Hershey cuddled up!  I snuggled with them for an hour . . .
 Chop, Bee, Merv and Win relaxing before our next run of 48 miles!
 Jeff and Bristol chillin out, Bristol loves her tummy rubbed!!
 Sled parked for 4 hours of rest in between runs.  First run we went 42 miles and the second run was 48.  90 miles not too bad for the hard packed trails and warmer weather!
Scully and Willow bedded down!

Friday, January 4, 2013

Night Run!!

Cruising on down the trail last night!  The temps were in the teens and the dogs were firing on all 4-cylinders!!  It was a wonderful night for a run!!

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Ready to Run!!

Getting ready to run with the dogs, all set up and ready to harness!