SPK Dog Log

Blizzard conditions shut down the kennel for a day of shoveling, plowing and trail breaking. But, after that we were up and after it. It is GREAT to have snow ~ seems like a new world for a new year!

Here is a video from yesterday’s trading run:

Happy New Year! We hope 2017 is the best one yet! We wish you good health and happiness… and why not world peace while we’re at it.

Congratulations to Katy Hund from Maine who is a fan of Amber!

Amber is super excited and ready to launch (literally) into this season. Her enthusiasm is priceless. She is small but that won’t hold her up. She is stepping up into a lead dog position this season.

Katy Hund wins a signed Iditarod 2016 poster plus an SP Kennel patch. Of course she will get a photo print portrait of Amber also. We hope you enjoy your packet Katy!

Our next scheduled Dog Fan Club draw will be on January 13th and will be Copper Basin 300 themed! Everyone who has joined by then and hasn’t already won will be in the draw to win! Before that we will do a bonus draw – we are fast closing in on 200 dog fan club members and once we hit that magic number we’ll draw again so keep an eye out for that!

Click the button below for more information about how to join:

Click this button to take you directly to the Dog Fan Page.

Okay… heads up this is a LONG video. Elf Aliy and Elf Wendy passed out some of the treats that were sent to SP Kennel from all you lovey folks. THANKS!!

For those of you who have been crossing your fingers, toes and paws for snow… it WORKED! The white fluffy stuff is falling.
Weather service is calling for an impressive Winter Storm in Interior Alaska for the next few days ~ “Heavy Snow” predicted.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from all of us here at SP Kennel!

Merry Christmas, Seasons Greetings and Happy Holidays to everyone celebrating at this time of year.

The best gift we at SP Kennel could hope for is something we already have: the support from our fans! Thank you so very much for all the support you give us: be-it monetary, vocally, a comment on our blog or simply a “like” on social media. We appreciate you all.

We’ve made a bonus Fan Club draw today and congratulations to Nancy and Gaige boy from New Hampshire who are a fans of SPARK!

Spark is a talented goofball. Probably the most happy dog at SP Kennel, he runs with his tail half way in the air (in case he needs to wag it excitedly!) He flirts with everyone, all the time. He is running in lead position often, we will count on him this season.

Nancy and Gaige boy will receive a holiday themed “glam” shot of the Olympic puppies, some SP Kennel goodies and a glossy glam of Spark. We hope you enjoy your packet!

Our next scheduled Dog Fan Club draw will be on December 30th and everyone who has joined by then and hasn’t already won will be in the draw to win!

Click the button below for more information about how to join:

Click this button to take you directly to the Dog Fan Page.

I was driving home yesterday and thought how G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S it was in front of me. Since many of you have never driven the last mile to SP Kennel, I invite you to come with me now! I used a Dire Straits song, “On Every Street”, because I think of the last mile to home very fondly and I hope you think of the last mile to your home the same way.

I, was not, and am, still not, very comfortable talking about the assaults on me during the Iditarod 2016. Originally, I thought that by sharing that horrible story, it would only create a world of drama and undercut the terrifying reality of the attack on me. There seems to be enough make believe drama in our world that I didn’t want this serious of an event to be trivialized. Also it just plain hurt to talk about. Imagine someone actually trying to kill you. Yea… not a great thought, eh?

But now, I have come to realize that by not sharing the awful details of March 12th it has left many people not understanding how much the attack affected me. So the reality is that I have struggled for over 10 months to try to return to the ‘person I used to be.’ I have only recently come to the realization that I will never be that person again.

But today is a good day. It is the first day in over 10 months that I can start to look forward instead of back. Arnold Demoski plead guilty and was sentenced to serve a six-month prison term for his attacks. I was able to say a few words to Demoski – the man who single-handedly created many nightmares and current fears in me. I was glad to speak my mind and it helped me tremendously.

The exact outcome and prison sentence is simply a resolution. I have learned more than I ever wanted to know about the State of Alaska criminal justice system. I can only hope to never be a victim of a crime again.

For me, today was the end of waiting and worrying and waiting. Now, I can focus ahead. There are only 74 days until Iditarod starts. I have not yet been able to picture myself or my dog team out on that trail again. So now my job is to focus ahead and bring back the ‘Aliy’ that loved that trail for many years. As always… I will do my best.

For more details on the actual Court Case both the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and the Anchorage ADN have articles today.