SPK Dog Log

I built this roster assuming that Lester would be my main leader and he was! Lester will pair with anyone, and run anywhere. He is a confident little trooper but he doesn’t like to press the pace so lucky for me I was trying to go slowly (9 miles/hour) for most of the race. I thought if I sat between 9-10 miles/hr hour at the start, I could finish doing 9-10 miles/hr – apart from the two huge hills where I would go 2 miles/hr!

I brought Boondocks as my back up quarterback, and because she makes me laugh. She totally looks small compared with the small two year old girls! She really has no legs and I don’t know how she gets over the trail like she does. I can see Boondocks has definitely slowed down over the years, but haven’t we all? It wasn’t too long ago she was winning the Quest.

Chemo (right) was an alternate for Allen’s team and at the last minute he chose Commando so I was happy to have Chemo on my team – it was slightly unexpected.

I guess in one word he’s ‘steady’ but I thought “why not mix things up a little?” so I put him in lead leaving Central on the longer run over to Circle. He really stepped up to the plate and he was genuinely happy to be up there.

He’s not super fast but when you talk to him and get him excited he will pick up the pace (and drag Lester along with him).

Driver’s (left) been on every one of my mid-distance races this season. He’s such a big lug of a dog compared to all the little sprites on the team but he can move those legs and stay up with every one in a simple casual trot, whereas the other dogs have to canter to keep up. I like that he’s pretty excited to go whenever we stop – it reminds me of his dad Biscuit. I expected him perhaps to get a little more tired on that last leg because he did lose a tiny amount of focus but his tug line was never loose. He was in swing for the last 150 miles and it’s important to be enthusiastic in that position.

This was Iron’s (right) first 300 mile race. He is a strong positive part of the team and he just is always there when you need him, that’s for sure. His one flaw is that he grabs for snow off the side of the trail constantly. I actually put a neck line on him because he would accidently fall into the deep snow when he misjudged his dip and that would bring the team to an angered halt with him deep in the snow. So he had a neckline on.

A little over 5 miles from the finish line there was a long patch of crunchy sugar snow and we were all sinking pretty deep into it and we came up an embankment. I saw Iron go deep into the snow and I think he may have damaged a tendon. So, for rest of the race I made the team go a little slower because he was not comfortable on it going up hill.

I had Sandy in wheel – I guess I just habitually put her there. She’s pretty agile and fast so she can maneuver all those quick turns we had. You can tell she’s a pretty experienced three year old: she’ll set up camp as soon as I want her to, eats all her food when I want, then she gets up , gets tangled with excitement and is ready to go. I don’t think that race was very hard on her. She’s just kinda always there – I don’t know what else to say about her.

Amber ran in the back in wheel with Sandy and they are a nice little pair together. Amber is one of my favorites, she doesn’t seem like she should be as perky as she is because she is kind of shy and reserved in the yard, especially meeting new people, but, holy cow, whenever we are getting ready to leave a checkpoint she is jumping on her back legs screaming or when climbing a big hill (and there were quite a few!) she would actually scream going up the hill. The team was quite vocal climbing up the hill, there were 5 or 6 of them yelling. Possibly all the two year olds wondering what the heck are we doing? That was her first 300 mile race.

Daisy (left) is a bigger bolder dog than her female siblings. She’s not actually that much bigger but she seems it. She really likes being near the front of the team so I ran in swing with Driver for last 150 miles. She has some confidence up there. She puts her head down really low and she trots, she’s not a loper, but she puts a lot of effort into that harness. That was her first 300 mile race as well.

I like to call her my little brown dog because she’s so ‘plain’ looking compared to the glamorous Amber and Violet and the other blue eyed dogs.

Champ is gorgeous, number one. He should be the best sled dog we’ve ever had seems he such a handsome fellah. He was completely solid. He has a really pretty trot – an efficient, pretty trot, I could tell that those longer runs made him tired though, he was actually laying on his side in Circle, sound asleep snoring when I came out to the team. Not curled out in a little ball – he was splayed out. He’s a really easy dog to get excited about anything: he’s one of the first to get to howl and another of the dogs barking when climbing the steep mountains. This race must have given him more confidence and that’s the only thing he lacks. This was his first 300 mile race.

I really like Chena. She’s an honest worker and solid leader – I’m not sure she knows Gee, but she definitely does know Haw – or smart enough to ignore me at times. She did quite well for 100 miles but when we pulled the team out of its parking spot at 101 she was limping. Neither the vets nor I noticed anything weird earlier so she might have slept on it wrong or got a cramp, but regardless, I didn’t want to take a limping dog down the trail so I left her with Wendy.

I really really like Violet (right), she’s not graceful by any means, hergait is kind of a pace but she’s comfortable in it so I guess I can’t complain. She’s got longer legs than any of her sisters so I guess she’s gotta do something with those appendages. I had moved her in last 150 miles up to middle of team running with Boondocks. Boondocks, as we know can get a little sassy, but Violet can handle that sass if I put them together. She did exceptionally well on this race. This is her first 300 mile race that she actually finished.

I love Spark. He just generally makes people smile because he’s such a goof and he’s no different on a race. Honest cheerful and I’m kinda bummed that he didn’t make it the last 150 miles. I could tell he had some kind of upper right hand stiffening going on because he started to do a little different gait than normal to compensate for something. The vets thought that maybe he had a cramp in his shoulder muscle. After I dropped him Wendy said he had a meal and was running around playing so I hope it is nothing serious.

Bill Cotter (former Yukon Quest champion and multiple Iditarod competitor) was joking with me prior to the race when he asked: “Why do you insist on running the hardest 300 miles?” I laughed it off but boy, you forget how hard anything is you when you finish. This is a challenging 300 mile race! Don’t ever let anyone tell you that the mountains on the Yukon Quest are not challenging. Because they ARE!

Probably the thing I like the most about it is that you can decide how much rest to give your team. It’s not decided by the race rules. The only mandatory rest you are required is for an official vet check and gear check and that’s a 6 hour rest so you can give anywhere between 6 or 25 hours if you want to, which I like because then you can do your own thing. I chose to rest my dogs the minimum amount that I thought they needed in order to complete those 300 miles. I might have been able to skimp another hour but I think my speed would have dropped dramatically in the end.

Always my goal is to finish with all my team mates because when you leave a couple behind they, and you, don’t get the full experience that you signed up for.

So, I was rather confident in this team. I was running up Boulder Summit – the mountain before Rosebud – and at the beginning it is not real steep but you do have get off and run behind the sled. I saw a team parked ahead – doing stop and go, stop and go, and my team was barking and ready to roll. They like mountains so I got right behind this team (Tore in the YQ1000) BUT then that’s when I got cocky and shouldn’t have. I decided to pass him right on the steepest part of the mountain! I asked my leaders to go Gee and we went in deep snow around his team. I got off and ran straight up hill (what we’d all been training for) and I was ahead of him for a while and he was right behind us.

We got almost to the precipice and it was very steep, I don’t know how to describe how steep. The steepness only was a problem because it was so windblown and hard packed that my boots didn’t have any traction. I needed crampons (which – side note – Allen ALWAYS packs on YQ). My sled came to a stop, I need you to push because at this point I was underneath and the dogs are above it. I could get no traction at all and the sled started coming back about 4 feet because I couldn’t hold up. I was failing at my end. Then it slid back another 2 or 3 feet and I couldn’t hold the sled or myself from sliding down mountain.

The dogs, trying to please me obviously thought: “Oh you don’t want us to go up any more? You want us to go down?” and I can’t blame them as I did pull them backwards. “Alright, we’ll go back down.” Tore was right there any my team fell into a little ball of dogs right at his feet. Anyhow, we got that sorted and I told Tore to go ahead, I didn’t want to screw up his race. His team lined out up the hill and I thought that my team had followed them before so they might again now. It took a bit of time for us to get sorted out, I put necklines on everyone and needed to get the sled in right direction so by time we were ready he was already at the top.

Then Ryne was next up the hill at the same time my team was still in a cluster. She asked if I was alright – “Yeah… kinda..” So she went on by and I was trying to put one snow hook behind the sled then crawl up to front and put the other snow hook in front so they couldn’t turn around. I got them sorted out and untangled but I still had no traction! I had to use my little snow hook as an ice axe to climb up I looked up and Ryne come running back down hill. She’d parked her team at top and she didn’t say anything – she just grabbed the hook and I got on back of sled and together we went up the mountain – all 14 of us. I don’t think I even thanked her because there were no appropriate words but I’ll make it up to her somehow. I would have made it up that hill but it would have taken me probably another hour at least using the snow hook as ice axe, so I sure am happy I didn’t have to do that. Thanks Ryne.

We are all ready for the team as they come off the trail sometime tomorrow!

We got to Dawson in record time and not because we did anything illegal, simply because we left Fairbanks at around 9pm and there was zero traffic, and all the places we might normally stop to get a bite to eat were all closed up by the time we got there. So… we just kept going and snacked on trail mix and dried fruit.

Once we got to Dawson we checked in with Gaby, the Checkpoint Manager, and picked up the drop bags we sent ahead. Then we found our camp spot (the spots are pre-assigned by bib number) – a really nice, secluded spot where the dogs will not get disturbed by any foot traffic up and down the main thoroughfare. After some planning we set to an shovelled out the spot for the dog shelter and our arctic oven handler tent. Thanks also to Bob Huston (our sled sponsor), John and Jen for helping us out – it really made a difference to have so many hands on deck!

Before

Bridgett and John shovelling snow

Ready for the tarpaulin

The dog shelter is so cozy – we’ve laid out a couple bales of straw and have their jackets and blankets all ready to wrap them in. They will be snug as bugs in rugs! We’ll take you on a tour in the next day or two.

Phew. Now we are sleeping. With the computer…

As I write this, the SP Kennel Black team is out of Eagle and cruising down the trail to Dawson, holding steady in second position about 20 miles behind leader Brent Sass. This is a remarkable accomplishment. Here’s why I say that:

Let’s face it, we’ve all become a bit spoiled over the past few years cheering for SPK with dogs like Quito, Olivia, Chica, Nacho and their sibling superstars in the team. Those dogs have had amazing careers racing for SPK, but now they are all either retired or running shorter races to teach the youngsters their craft.

Much like college sports, top sled dog teams often change rosters almost completely over a four year span. When you get a group of superstars at their peak all in one “class” you let them compete together as long as you can. When their time on the roster comes to an end, you can find yourself almost starting over with a new class. That’s pretty much the case now at SP Kennel.

Here’s something to think about: Of the 14 dogs on the SPK Black Team right now, 6 dogs (Mismo, Chipper, Kodiak, Dutch, Felix and Commando) have no YQ1000 experience at all. The only 1,000 mile experience they have has been running with Allen once (twice for Mismo and Felix) on the Iditarod “puppy team.” Running on a “puppy team” is all about having fun, gaining experience and getting to the finish line. There is no “race pressure” on them, it’s all just a casual series of eat-sleep-run days on the trail.

With these youngsters — SPK’s “next generation” — racing in the YQ1000, Allen must walk a fine line. He must push them to be competitive, but not so hard that they get too tired, lose confidence or spoil their positive experience. Allen truly excels at this. Being so close to the lead 400 miles into the race really shows that they have “the right stuff” to become future champions. Allen must be pleased and very proud of them.

I would be shocked — delighted, of course, but shocked — if this young SPK team wins the YQ1000. They’re up against teams which have vastly more experience in the race. A second place finish would be fantastic, even astonishing. I will be immensely impressed and thrilled for the future if they finish in the top five.

Speaking personally, the only thing about sled dog racing that ever bothers me is the focus that is placed on the mushers rather than the dogs. I’m the first to admit that dog breeding, training and care along with race strategy and skill are all reflective of a musher’s outstanding ability. That said, it’s the dogs who wins races, not their musher. I remember Lance Mackey speaking at the Iditarod finish in Nome after his fourth consecutive win: “Anyone could have won with my dogs.”

In line with my comment above about four-year cycles for dog teams, it’s worth noting that Lance’s four consecutive wins (2007-2010) were followed by four years not finishing higher than 16th. Susan Butcher and other mushers have had similar four-year peak records. We all know that Aliy had three consecutive 2nd place Iditarod finishes with a superstar SPK team, after not having finished higher than 11th in her previous 11 races. After a great four-year class of dogs, you generally have to restart and rebuild with the next generation.

Please understand that I am not trying to take anything away from the mushers or their mastery of everything that is involved in sled dog racing. All I’m trying to do is place the spotlight on the next generation SPK team in this year’s YQ1000 and emphasize both how well they are doing and what it may mean for the future. Knowing Allen, I can assure you he is racing with a smile on his face. No matter how the team places in this race, you can bet the future is bright… Go SPK!

Today is the transition day.  Aliy, Moira and the handling team are making there way around on the LONG route to Dawson.  They are currently in Carmacks, making great time.  Allen is in Eagle, though I expect he will be heading out shortly on his stretch to Dawson.

For those of you who don’t live in Fairbanks, you probably didn’t get to see THE commercial.  Aliy, Chica and the team had some fun filming a Super Bowl commercial for The Prospector – ‘Alaska’s Finest Outfitter’ in Fairbanks.  It aired during the second half.

Check it out!

The Dawson crew are about to head out on our long drive and you won’t hear from me for at least 24 hours so I will update you of things as they stand now.

After Allen’s nap in Circle he took his time to pack his sled and equipment ready for the long run into Eagle. There are no official checkpoints between Circle and Eagle to send supplies to so they must carry enough dog food, human food and supplies to keep them safe and happy along the way. They left Circle City looking refreshed and rearing to go with Hugh Neff just a few minutes behind them.

Currently the top four of Brent Sass, Hugh Neff, Allen, Matt Hall have left Slaven’s Roadhouse and on their way to the Trout Creek hospitality stop. Ed Hopkins will likely follow them shortly. From Trout Creek they run to Eagle, Matt’s home town. It is an extremely remote community and the town really gets behind the race. I’m sure the mushers will have some fun there during their mandatory four hour stop.

It’s such a long wait until we see them again, and rather excruitiating to watch their journey on the tracker, so it is probably a blessing we will spend the next 20-odd hours in the truck! (Silver linings?) Once we get to Dawson we will make up the dog camp ready for the team’s arrival. Depending on how much time between completion of camp and the team coming in we may get to rest OR it might be straight into our “hands on” portion of the race.

For a bit of really interesting reading in the meantime, check out this Mushers’ Guide to the Yukon Quest Trail by two-time Quest champ John Schandelmeier. It will give you a great idea of the trails they are mushing on.

We also have some special treats for you, by way of videos that were made before the race, that we will post during the next day or so when we have no other news to tell. Here’s one from Clyde – Aliy interviewed him prior to the Quest.

Congratulations to Aliy, Lester, Boonie, Daisy, Amber, Violet, Driver, Iron, Champ, Sandy and Chemo, plus Chena and Sparkie at home, on their 2nd place finish, just as the sun was setting, in an exciting Yukon Quest 300.

The Red Team under Nordale Road bridge on Saturday afternoon soon after the start of the YQ300

Aliy will be so pleased with her young team; she wanted them to race a competitive 300 mile race and they have done just that. The one disappointment for her will be that Chena and Spark weren’t there to finish the race. They are both very promising lead dogs and she wanted to see what they could do under some pressure. They will get another opportunity however so all is not lost.

We have no photos yet as Central has limited cell and internet coverage so we will catch you up when we can. The Yukon Quest Facebook page has some great pics from their reporting team on the ground so keep checking back there.

Thanks to Wes and Wendy for their great care and attention to the team. It makes a huge difference to have such a good handler crew that knows the musher and dogs so well. You can sleep soon!

Congratulations to Jessie Holmes in his rookie Yukon Quest 300! We hope everyone who raced achieved their goals and had a lot of fun. There were several different strategies in play for the top bunch of teams over the final two legs so it was a fascinating race to follow. It looks like Two Rivers will be well represented in the top bunch also which is exciting!

I will make use of some down time in the truck to Dawson to get Aliy’s dog-by-dog wrap-up and get it to you as soon as I can.

Woohoo!

Both handler crews are in Circle City!

Our drive over to Circle was beautiful but it can be a treacherous journey so we decided to do it before it got dark. We knew we would have a long wait at Circle for any mushers to come in but it was a good decision and we managed to catch some much needed sleep.

Circle checkpoint is based in the village Fire Hall. Olaf and his team make it as comfortable and welcoming as can be! The local school had made ‘welcome’ banners for each musher in the Quest and there was plenty of scrumptious food for everyone. Thanks team!

At 11.37pm, Allen and his Black Team trotted happily into the checkpoint. They had just spent around 70 miles on Birch Creek, not the most interesting part of the journey as they weaved and serpentined along the river. They camped along the way for a few hours and will have enjoyed their rest in the warmer temperatures (-5 – 0F) in this part of the trail compared to the -15F we had in Central during the day.

We had a chance to chat to Allen as he ate some meatloaf and he told us that the team did great over Eagle Summit. They were screaming as they went up the hill; the usual suspects: Schmoe and Mismo were joined by Dutch, Commando and a few others in the joy at climbing a big hill!

Eagle Summit was beautiful. He said he’s seen it with 30 mile an hour winds and blowing snow so it was a treat to enjoy a calm, beautiful day. The trail from Central on Birch Creek was “perfect” and he said he couldn’t ask for a better trail.

Allen will have a (very) short sleep here then once they leave here, we say goodbye to them until we meet again in Dawson city.

They travel through Slaven’s Roadhouse, Trout Creek Hospitality Stop then onto Eagle checkpoint. After Eagle is American Summit, all 3,420 feet of it then into Dawson City for the 36 hour layover.

These runs between Circle and Dawson are long and the mushers will likely be camping on the trail, getting to enjoy the intimacy with their dogs Aliy and Allen talked about prior to the race. They are travelling over historic trails and seeing parts of the world few people get to see.

This is also when the handler crews start their epic road journey. We must now go back down through Central, 101, Fairbanks right down to Whitehorse in the Yukon; turn left and head up the Klondike highway to Dawson. It’s always a race between dog team and dog truck at this time.

I will be stopping back at the kennel to unload the truck and pack it for Dawson so will get a chance to update then.

RED TEAM UPDATE

By all accounts the dogs are doing a great job. They tackled Eagle Summit eagerly and sloshed through wet overflow with no problems. They have all learned a LOT on this race and Aliy is pleased with how the two year olds in particular have handled being pushed a little.

Talk about picturesque campsites!!!

Currently Aliy and her 10 team mates are is on her way to Circle having left Central in great spirits (see the Dropped Dog updates for info about Chena and Spark). We are looking forward to seeing her and the team later this morning. The YQ300 mushers then to turn around, get back onto Birch Creek and return to Central for their finish.

Immediately after they finish and feed the team, Aliy, Wes and Wendy will jump in the truck, had back down the Steese Highway and meet the Dawson crew ready for the long drive to Canada. Aliy will fit some sleep somewhere in there too!

Aliy left Sparkie with Wes and Wendy at Central. Just before they came into the checkpoint Aliy noticed Spark had a bit of a “head bob” indicating a limp in his front end. She had the veterinarians check him over and she decided to leave him. She left him on the line while the team rested in Central as he was cozily snuggled with his team mates then Wendy took him to the truck before Aliy got ready to leave.

The team has two long legs in front of them along Birch Creek which is likely to be very hard and fast and that type of trail could aggravate a sore wrist or shoulder.

Don’t worry, Spark is happy… Spark is ALWAYS happy whether he is running, resting or playing.