YQ: Black Team on the Trail

Allen and his 14 Black Team teammates are now on the trail for the 2020 Yukon Quest. Hear from Aliy just after they left:

They left the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Centre at 11:09am AK with two tag sleds behind. Daughters Jennifer and Bridgett and their kids enjoy the short couple mile run on the trail before being ‘cut loose’ for Allen and team to continue towards the first checkpoint at Two Rivers.

Padee captured this video of the team as they dropped onto the river.

Earlier in the day Aliy got up and at ’em early to give all the racing dogs their Prilosec tablet. In this video she ‘interviews’ Five.

Omeprazole/Prilosec is an approved medication for the prevention of gastric ulcers. Dr Mike Davis and his team, who did several research projects at SP Kennel, did extensive research into this and it is now very common, and strongly advised, that mushers give omeprazole or pepcid to their teams every day they race. The tablet must be given three hours after food and half an hour before food so becomes a major consideration for mushers when planning their feeding routines.

Once the truck with the team arrived into Fairbanks the pre-race routines kicked in. The sleds were set up and Allen set about packing his essentials. The only things he can add to his sled once he left the start chute are things he included in his drop bags that were sent ahead of the teams, so he spent a good deal of time and concentration ensuring he had everything he needed with him.

About an hour from go-time the dogs came out to get dressed and ready. They also had their microchips confirmed to ensure the dogs racing today are the same that were approved in vet checks last week. Random pee testing also happened pre-race and will continue throughout the race to ensure no banned medications or substances are present.

Thanks to the many people who helped get the team to the start line!

Lisa captured some great video of the team making their way to the start chute then as they hit the trail. Included is an interview with Decaf and Lisa’s amazing jogging-backwards-without-falling-over skills!

We had a bunch of people taking pictures and video at the start – thanks to all!

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Bridgett sent through a short video from the back of the sled. Looks like they had a blast!

Allen is wearing bib #4 which is sponsored by Melinda at Mushing Tech. Check out her Facebook page – she does fantastic statistical analysis and gives great insight into races. Thanks for sponsoring the bib Mushing Tech!

The team is now headed towards the first checkpoint at Two Rivers, passing right by the kennel along with way. The GPS tracker link is working now – you can find it here.