The good news is that all of the dogs on both the Black Team and Red Team are 100% healthy and solid, so those two teams will run with Allen and Aliy exactly as reported in the Howler.
The Red/Black Team with Bridgett at the helm, however, will have two substitutions. Both Betsy and Cutter showed signs of soreness and stiffness this morning and have been scratched from the team. It’s always unfortunate when a dog is prevented from running — and ever so sad for the poor hounds who have to miss out on what they love doing most! — but you know that SP Kennel is a “dog first” kennel, and that the health and safety of the dogs comes first.
Their replacements will be Minnie and KitKat, and we look forward to great things from them this weekend!
How many extra dogs do you typically take with you to a race to cover incidents like this? Where do these dogs stay once the race begins?
Hi Frank – We don't typically bring any extra dogs… and didn't this time… I wrote this post last night, so "this morning" was before we left the Kennel… I can imagine that if you read it this morning (Sat) you could infer we had extras on hand down here at the CB300… If we ever do bring extra dogs… Like we sometimes do to Iditarod… They stay at our "support kennels" in the area, just like any dropped dogs do when they are returned to Anchorage… Worst case, they would stay with the handlers in the dog trucks like any dropped dogs would… Sorry for the confusion… Time delays, etc. can make this process a little challenging! — Mac
Better safe than sorry, for sure.
Given the short racing schedule this year, is there any chance these two will have an opportunity to race this season? It doesn't seem likely, given a goal of running three teams now was to pick the best for the Iditarod.