The winners are in... the top 20 is in... the top 30 are in... the top 40 are almost all in...


And some 40 teams are working their way up the coast to Nome.

But does that mean Iditarod is over?

Well, for this year anyway, it pretty much does!

But a lot of those mushers fresh off the trail are already thinking about next year ad a lot of not on the trail this year are too...

So, no- Iditarod is certainly not over.

Running dogs is a lifestyle. And really, i the modern world it isn't a very respected lifestyle... spending hours and hours with "the dogs," blowing through tons of money to care for them... The truth is that running dogs dictates almost the exact opposite types of behaviors that we as Americas generally hold up as "ideal adult conduct!"

We scrounge and struggle ad work as hard or harder than most people to provide the best possible care for our animals... but we don't lust after material wealth- the latest flat scree tv or the latest, greatest version of Playstation. As a rule, consumerism, materialism, aren't high priorities for a musher....

That sets us a bit at odds with the majority of US society... which is a pretty uncomfortable place to be really!

So, Iditarod provides the acceptable excuse to do what we do- namely spend our lives with the dogs-
And because of that... it's never over.

Sure, there are those mushers out there who run Iditarod just to say they did it... they buy their teams for a year, run dogs they hardly know, finish the race and then move on to something else... but those aren't mushers and for them Iditarod never really started... So how could it be over?

For the rest of us though... Iditarod Race, or no Race... the IDEA of Iditarod is never out of our minds- ever "over"

Lace Mackey wins again! Hard to believe but true, for the second year in a row Mackey won both the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod in the same year.

Up until last year that feat had never been done before... now Mackey has done it two years in a row! Amazing!

And he did it with an amazing display of canine endurance... shattering the old ideas that dogs needed equal rest time to run time... It seems like Mackey might have been running almost twice as much as he rested! Everybody always assumed (and experienced) dogs would slow down if you did that... but not Mackey's! They actually sped up compared to Jeff Kings more rested dogs over the last 150 miles! So that all down the Yukon King was faster, even pasted Mackey in Unalakleet for a short time... then starting in about Koyuk of even Elim... Mackey became the faster team!

Amazing.

Next up this year is the All Alaskan Sweepstakes... a +400 mile race out of Nome. This race began 100 years ago, ran every year until ww1 and then off and on since. This year will be the 100 year anniversary and is being run under the original rules... which means no drop dogs, you have to finish with everyone you start with!

Both King and Mackey will racing again so it should be exciting. What a string of victories it would be if Mackey could pull off another win!

Lance Mackey just pulled into White Mountain with a 1 hour lead of jeff King. It was something like a 40ish mile run from Elim the last place the two rested their dogs teams... Mackey left Elim about an hour before King with an hour less rest for his dogs....

I am sure King thought he could gain a good junk of that time back by running faster to Wt. Mountain than Mackey... After all King has been gaining about a half-hour to an hour on every run since Ruby...

... but then Mackey pulls this great run where King gained nothing on him!

They each have to take their mandatory 8 hours rest now... and then King has 70ish miles to the finish to earn back that hour... an hour he couldn't get any of during the run from Elim....? Mackey must feel good about that!

...And still Mackey has been nothing but sorta' down on the prospects of his team winning since they left the Yukon river...

There has been no doubt that King has been running the faster dog team... running faster and taking longer rest than Mackey... a strategy that should have him continuing to run the faster team all the way to the finish in Nome...

And along the way passing Mackey's less rested, slower team, along the way....

The problem is that he hasn't passed him and, on the last run, is no longer running the faster team!

So has Mackey played King?!

Has Mackey known/felt all along that his team was strong and capable of a bit more speed... And just tricked King into thinking it was slower than it was... So that in the end he could move away from King?

I think so!

Now it's Race!

Who's team will come off their 8 hr rest with the best speed?

What a race we have had!

It's been close all the way and what an amazing show of effort and work all the racers have put into this thing! Way to go!

The 3 Mushateers pulled off an amazing victory but both the Snowdogs (eventual second place winners) and Scuderiaracedogs were close on their heels! If the 3 Mushateers hadn't had such an outstanding run from Rohn into and out of their 24 hour layover we could ave had a totally different winner!

In the end though, every team did an excellent job, learned a bunch, and showed true character in even getting to the race... let alone performing so well once in it.

I am sure there are some very happy dogs in every racers team!

I'd like to thank all of you for your hard work and wish you luck in next years training... whatever that training might be for!

Joe Garnie scratched in Rainy Pass yesterday.

This is a huge bummer! Joe taught me how to run dogs. He is a true Dog Man- born and raised with sled dogs.

In past races he was always near the top, having won second place a few times and playing a huge role in Libby Riddles first place win (she lived and trained with him the year prior to her win and used many of his dogs). So he is a great racer.

But way more than that too! He understands dogs in ways very few people do. At his home in Teller (a place I lived for 5 years) dogs are key to a way of life.

When I lived there he taught me so much, he's an amazing teacher, but the most important thing was that the dogs are the center of life- without the dogs food isn't collected, either is wood or drinking water or any number of things that you might normaly take for granted. It's true that lots of people use snowmachines for these things but in rural- Bush- Alaska gas is expensive, heating oil is too, and running water is very rare and so is cash money to pay for it all... so traditional ways of living are still super important.

Truly running dogs takes commitment... time and energy -from breeding the dogs to running them, and all the stuff in between... fishing for them, making your own sled, lines, etc.

Dogs are not just about racing.
And I think so many people in the Iditarod, and around the Iditarod, forget that. They spend tons of money on pre-built sleds, fancy lines... they even rent, lease, or buy already trained dogs just weeks before the race....

And right now a lot of those mushers are still running down the trail while Joe heads for home...

What a bummer!
In so may ways it doesn't seem fair... of course, what is?

But then... thinking about it, it seems like maybe even though those mushers are going to finish this one race... big and as important as it is... they are really missing the whole point, or anyway they sure are missing the best part of mushing... making the dogs a true part of your life- not just a hobby or sport.

So I hope as Joe heads home he's not to down about it all, though I would (and have) been, because running dogs is so much more than a race!

The leaders are through the mountains and into the interior of Alaska!

Normally, this would mean the the temps would drop... but not this year. This year the racers are looking at near freezing weather at least until Thursday. That's really warm weather for that part of the state and while weather might sound good it also makes easy to get wet... from sweat or melting snow.

Iditarod is a long race though and certainly the weather could change... I am sure the dogs would prefer it! 30 deg. is a bit warm. On the other hand, if teams have gotten into a good run/rest pattern they should be resting through the hotter part of the days and running when it is cooler... 20 deg. is a lot better.

Well, the Iditarod is off and running! Whew... what a crazy weekend. While we aren't running this year a friend is. We have, off and on, been training together all year so we went down to Anchorage- and then Willow- to help get him out on the trail.....

Well, today is the Musher's Meeting for Iditarod 08...

And here I am sitting at home typing a blog... bummer.

To be truthful it is very frustrating time for me. I really wan to be running the race this year- but I am not.

And not running it is the right thing- but hard.
Sometimes, I guess, you just have to push through the hard things.

I remember almost one year ago, sitting in a little cabin at the top of the Alaska Range. A huge wind storm was swirling around outside. I had just returned from trying to push over Rainy Pass to Rohn. Five of us had left that morning all within about an hour of each other. We didn't know it at the time but it was the height of the storm.... there were winds the like of which I had never experienced, and it was cold, -20 to -30. Nothing friendly about! Everyone one of us got rejected. None of us made it through. And we all had stories to tell.

So that is what we were doing in the cabin... crying out our woeful stories.

Wet gear was hanging to dry from every rafter, the wind was rattling the windows but it was steamy hot inside from the raging wood stove. My face felt flushed and sweaty. My big toe was throbbing as it started to thaw out from some minor (very minor) frost bite- my thumb too. And we all shared our stories and tried to figure what to do next.

And while I was sitting inside hot, bummed out, the dogs were curled up outside- cozy inside little snow caves I had dug and filled with straw for them. Comfortable.

Inside I was thinking about them... do I push on, try it again when the storm drops a bit? Do I bag it again, go home and rethink things?

Well, in the end it is all about the dogs. And to be truthful I didn't think I had them prepared to go further. So that was part of my story in that cabin- a part not shared at the time- but all the same the most important part. My dogs and I were not prepared to face all the things we might face on the trail--- could we get through them... most likely. Could human WILL force the team through difficulties to the finish..... Sure.

But then, that's not really right is it? It's a dog race. A long hard one... but just a dog race, after all. It is about DOGS... not people. So once I saw the dogs weren't ready... there really wasn't any point in going further.

Some people in that cabin were done too. They went home with me and watched the rest of the race from their own kennels- just like I did. Others in that sweaty cabin pushed on. And I watched them, knowing where they came from and wondering what they were learning out on the trail.

I certainly don't know... but I wonder.

Iditarod is marketed a little about the dogs and a lot about those tough mushers... but it's not about tough... it's about relationships with your dogs. And those relationships should be formed over the whole life the dog. You should know them, respect them, and trust them... they should know the same about you... and the race should celebrate that.

If all those pieces aren't in place... what's the point?

If the goal is just to get to Nome... fly- it'll be cheaper.

So for this year and next... the hard path for me is to build those experiences, to build trust and love with the dogs... so that in a few years we can go have a party all the way up to Nome.

Well, today is the Musher's Meeting for Iditarod 08...

And here I am sitting at home typing a blog... bummer.

To be truthful it is very frustrating time for me. I really wan to be running the race this year- but I am not.

And not running it is the right thing- but hard.
Sometimes, I guess, you just have to push through the hard things.

I remember almost one year ago, sitting in a little cabin at the top of the Alaska Range. A huge wind storm was swirling around outside. I had just returned from trying to push over Rainy Pass to Rohn. Five of us had left that morning all within about an hour of each other. We didn't know it at the time but it was the height of the storm.... there were winds the like of which I had never experienced, and it was cold, -20 to -30. Nothing friendly about! Everyone one of us got rejected. None of us made it through. And we all had stories to tell.

So that is what we were doing in the cabin... crying out our woeful stories.

Wet gear was hanging to dry from every rafter, the wind was rattling the windows but it was steamy hot inside from the raging wood stove. My face felt flushed and sweaty. My big toe was throbbing as it started to thaw out from some minor (very minor) frost bite- my thumb too. And we all shared our stories and tried to figure what to do next.

And while I was sitting inside hot, bummed out, the dogs were curled up outside- cozy inside little snow caves I had dug and filled with straw for them. Comfortable.

Inside I was thinking about them... do I push on, try it again when the storm drops a bit? Do I bag it again, go home and rethink things?

Well, in the end it is all about the dogs. And to be truthful I didn't think I had them prepared to go further. So that was part of my story in that cabin- a part not shared at the time- but all the same the most important part. My dogs and I were not prepared to face all the things we might face on the trail--- could we get through them... most likely. Could human WILL force the team through difficulties to the finish..... Sure.

But then, that's not really right is it? It's a dog race. A long hard one... but just a dog race, after all. It is about DOGS... not people. So once I saw the dogs weren't ready... there really wasn't any point in going further.

Some people in that cabin were done too. They went home with me and watched the rest of the race from their own kennels- just like I did. Others in that sweaty cabin pushed on. And I watched them, knowing where they came from and wondering what they were learning out on the trail.

I certainly don't know... but I wonder.

Iditarod is marketed a little about the dogs and a lot about those tough mushers... but it's not about tough... it's about relationships with your dogs. And those relationships should be formed over the whole life the dog. You should know them, respect them, and trust them... they should know the same about you... and the race should celebrate that.

If all those pieces aren't in place... what's the point?

If the goal is just to get to Nome... fly- it'll be cheaper.

So for this year and next... the hard path for me is to build those experiences, to build trust and love with the dogs... so that in a few years we can go have a party all the way up to Nome.

We are stuck in the middle of a thaw!

This happens every year, the last two years it happened in the middle/end of Jan. So, this year it is a little later. Usually, after it gets cold again we have about a month of pretty consistent cold weather then another month or so of gradual warming before we hit our real "break up" weather.

I wonder if this winter will hang out just a few weeks longer? That would only be fair since it seemed to take a little longer coming this past fall.

Anyway, it's a busy time around here!

Charlie's Jr. Iditarod race starts this week end, Iditarod the following weekend, and we have puppies coming soon after that... so that means loads of Spring work building a new puppy pen.

Also we have plans to redo the whole kennel this spring... bring in a little bobcat tractor and dig down to the gravel... which is hiding about 4 ft under the ground. This will be a huge improvement, and one we have been thinking about for years, because right now the kennel surface gets real muddy with every rain- the dogs don't like, we don't like it, nobody likes it!

I mentioned earlier we ave puppies coming! The first breeding of the Spring was between Funny and Everest- which is very exciting! Funny is a third generation Husky out of our own lines while Everest is a brand new dog to us... 1/2 husky, 1/2 pointer... very fast from the Open Class Sprint Mushing World!

Next year is shaping up to be all about raising and training puppies! We hope to each (Charlie, Christina, and myself) all be running about 8-12 pups next year in with some core adult dogs (about 4 each).

Adding this many pups to the kennel means we need to find new homes for some of our current dogs... about 7 of them. We have an old sled, lines and harness'... so we are going to try to sell them all as a complete recreational team to somebody local. It's a good mix of dogs, a couple old leaders, some younger team dogs, etc... Never sold dogs before so if the right person comes along who will give these guys a great home I will probably just give them away :)

I was asked that today. Such a simple question! But I didn't really have an answer. I stumbled along about loving to be with the dogs on the trail... the relationship I grow with them on every training run... all the training a race requires- racing as an excuse to take all that time in training to be with the dogs... stumbling...

But it dawned on me that it is really much simpler than all that... dog racing is pure simple truth. Male or Female, old or young, rich or poor, regardless of race or culture, in dog racing you come together as equals and compete. It's clean. It's true.

And the winner won on the same terms the loser lost.

Well the true distance races started this last weekend. Up till now there has been a lot of mid-distance racing... 200-300 milers but now the 1,000 mile races- The Yukon Quest, and the Iditarod! These are the main events!

The Quest started this past weekend in Fairbanks with something like 25-28 mushers in -25F temps. And that was a warming trend! All week it had been -40F up there! It's a hard race with lot's more darkness than Iditarod, longer distances between checkpoints, and brutal cold weather... last week in one of the places the race will go through in a few days the temps bottomed out at -70F!

Yikes!

I guess that might be why only 25 mushers signed up for it! And already 1 has scratched... sighting age as his reason... i.e. he has just gotten to old! He's run the race 24 times so you have to assume he knows what he's talking about. Another was withdrawn... for dog care issues. I would assume that with the Ramey Brooks issue last year in Iditarod that race directors/managers/vets in both races will be watching mushers closer than ever- and that's not a bad thing!

Running dogs is a honorable privledge (sorry for the spelling) but a few bad apples can ruin it for all! So, as mushers, we should be glad if the races are taking extra steps to look after our images!

And that leaves Iditarod..... 100 plus mushers this year! Much more of an ego race than the Quest! Faster, more media, more money, shorter distance between checkpoints, etc... Food drops are due in just a few days and as I was helping a friend pack yesterday I realized how nice it was not to be running it this year.

Right now I know we don't have the team to compete in this race... and it is a race. So while I wish I had the team, wish I was packing my own drop, wish I was training distance... I am glad not be doing it with a team that is more inclined for long camping trips than long fast races. I am glad to have recognized what my team is capable of and not to be asking them for more than what they have!

We have plans to get back into the race with a team that is able to truly compete- but between now and then I am content to sit back and watch and learn and all the while breed and raise dogs more in tune to what Iditrod asks of dogs.

And in the end that's what is important.... dogs doing what dogs are supposed to do! It doesn't matter what it is... a Lab that chases a stick, a sled dog that runs for miles, or a lap dog that lays in your lap.... The joy of being with dogs is coming to the dogs on their own terms, seeing life from a perspective different from our own and growing from that experience!

Okay, so I promised photos... but someplace over the weekend I lost my camera with all the race images!

The race ended well though! Charlie finished 4th... the dogs kind of lost some steam at the end but ran their hearts out for sure! They gave Charlie everything they had and he took excellent care of them. He even won the "Siwash" award which honors the musher who shows the most skill in caring for their dogs during rests. He also won the Sportsmanship Award.

So all around it was a great race for him and the dogs.

By the time we drove them home after the race- about 6 hours- you couldn't even tell the just raced 120 miles in a quick 24 hours!

Everyone at the kennel is waaaaaay proud him! He has grown into a great musher!

Next stop for him and the team is Jr. Iditarod the last weekend of feb.


On another note, we have bought two new dogs for breeding this spring- both very "sprinty," fast dogs- so the plan to breed in more speed into the kennel is well on it's way!

Okay....

Charlie is off and doing great! He made it to the halfway rest- 60 miles and 6 hours into the race- just 20 minutes behind the leader and leading a pack of two other mushers in 3rd place

This is great because he ran to the top of our dogs abilities- 10mph- and made all the right musher choices! I think he has an outside chance at winning because the run home really matches the way we train. At any rate he has the hardest part of the run done for our dogs and now it hard on him!

If you study the times at this link you can see he is starting to run faster than the team in front of him and faster than the two behind.

Yahooo!

I'll get potos and more words up as soon as I get home!

Here is a link for following the Jr. Quest. This will be the first time he has run it and I think he is pretty excited!

The adult Yukon Quest is the only other real 1,000 plus mile distance race and runs from Fairbank to Whitehorse. It's know for VERY cold temps and super long stretches between checkpoints and all the checkpoints (or almost all the checkpoints) can be reached by roads so Handlers follow along and meet the mushers to clean up after them, care for dropped dogs, and take out un-used food drop gear. It turns out the Jr. Quest is just like it- temps should be below -20F and I will be showing up at all the checkpoints to clean up, take care of dropped dogs (although in a 120 mile race we hope there isn't any drop dogs) and bring home his un-used gear.

I can tell you already I wish I was in the race and not handling! While Charlie get's to run down the trail with the dogs I'll be scooping poop and racking up straw! :)

On a different note, While not trailing after the race I will be shopping around the Fairbanks Sprint dog kennels looking to buy a few dogs for this springs breedings! Pretty exciting!