SPK Dog Log

Allen hugs Quito at the finish line at Takhini Hot Springs.

More to come.

The Black Team leaves Braeburn on the final run of the 2014 Yukon Quest.

Take a look at Quito as she comes past the camera – doesn’t she look proud of herself to be single-leading this team to Takhini? And also take a look at how Allen takes time to talk to each dog on the way out, I love watching that. And… seriously… Mac and Boondocks? I’ll never get sick of seeing that!

Obviously, after 900-odd miles the team is not slamming into their harnesses to go another 65 but they still looked really well rested and like they were happy to do it for Allen. “Okay Boss, let’s do this”.

The amount of kibble that the team ate during the eight hour break means that there will have definitely been a “peeing and pooping” wave go through the team for the first couple of miles. Aliy even joked with a photographer that he might be better to head a few miles down the trail if he wanted a good picture!

Allen planned to make this run much like a training run and stop several times for snacks and rest breaks and the speed plot on his tracker confirms that. You can be sure he will enjoy this last run in the Yukon wilderness with his awesome team.

We’ve stopped briefly at the hotel in Whitehorse where we hope to rest a little before heading out to Takhini Hot Spring to greet the team later tonight.

– Moira

What a difference 24 hours can make. At this time last night, Allen was competing for feet and inches. Tonight he is cruising toward the finish line with something like an 8 hour lead. I’m reminded of how Allen was quoted before the race began: “Crap is gonna happen!” It certainly did, and we hope everyone is okay.

Many of you have asked for my prediction about what time Allen will finish. I’ve been unable to accommodate you because I was privy to his plan to stay longer at Braeburn in order to visit with Brent, but had no idea how long that might be.

I still don’t have a very reliable time to offer, because it appears on the tracker that Allen is taking it pretty easy with his team on the trail. His speeds look to be in the 5-7 mph range, so it’s likely they will travel the 65 miles to the finish in about 10 hours.

The team left Braeburn at 3:30pm so that would put them at the finish around 1-2am. Honestly, though, that’s just a guess. I’m not completely sure what time zone they’re in!

I haven’t heard from the crew about their whereabouts, but I think they’ve left Braeburn and are on the road. Due to weather conditions, the finish line has been moved to Takhini Hot Springs, some 20 miles or so up the road from Whitehorse. There’s no telling what kind of internet connection Moira may find there, but you can be sure she will do her best to keep you posted… Stay tuned!

It certainly turned into a dramatic day with what happened to Brent Sass – please go to the Yukon Quest website for the official information about this. It deeply affected everyone here at Braeburn to see the events unfolding.

You will see that Allen and the team left Braeburn at 3.28pm – he stayed longer than his mandatory eight hours as he wanted to spend some time with Brent. I don’t know what was said when he and Aliy visited with him just before he was transported to Whitehorse, and I won’t ask but I know that Allen wished he knew what was going on behind him. He had no way to tell and when he came in to Braeburn this morning he presumed Brent was not far behind him. He is very disappointed for Brent and his team and was fully expecting this final leg to be a head-to-head battle between them.

Allen left on the final 65-ish mile run with 11 dogs, BEEMER gets to do the final leg in the truck with us. He’s fine, just didn’t appear to be excited about going and if he’s not having fun he is better to catch up on his rest. Quito lead the team out in single lead, Schmoe and Nacho in swing, Chica and Scout behind them, Boondocks is still running with Mac, Clyde gets to run with Olivia and Biscuit and Scruggs will run in wheel. It’s quite a juggle about, just really to mix it up a bit for the final run.

Before we left the checkpoint we waited for Brent’s team to arrive. His handlers asked everyone here to give the dogs a cheer as they came in so they knew they had finished the race! They deserve their kudos for a well run race and they looked great coming in. It was quite a moving moment.

I’ll work on some video as soon as I can. We will head for the finish line to set up for the team to arrive over night and I am unsure on the internet situation there.

– Moira

The team is about half-way through the eight hour layover and the dogs and Allen have had a good rest already.

L-R: Chica pops her head out of her straw bed to watch Allen prepare lunch; Mac keeps an eye on Allen from under his blanket as lunch is almost ready.

I watched as Allen gave the dogs their first big meal (they snacked heartily when they first arrived!) then I caught up with him when he came in for a bowl of soup and asked a couple of questions.

I imagine many of you were nervous yesterday afternoon when Allen stopped to rest at Carmacks and Brent blew through the checkpoint. I know I was.

Allen rested his team the full 4-hour amount according to his strategy before setting off in pursuit of Brent, despite what must have been a very strong urge to hit the trail and not fall too far behind. It looks like that has proved to be an excellent decision, typical of Allen’s wisdom and experience both with his dogs and on the Yukon Quest.

It wasn’t a very fast run, but it was steady. As you can see on the summary plot below, the team made consistent progress, slowing slightly on the uphills and speeding up slightly on the downhills. Such was the team’s march to Braeburn.

As you know, the team arrived in Braeburn this morning and are well into their 8-hour mandatory rest. That may not sound like a lot, but it is plenty for SPK dogs to recharge, refuel and be ready for the last run of about 65 miles to the finish line.

Quite honestly, Allen is almost certainly feeling the worst of the bunch, but he’s as tough as they come and will certainly rally to the occasion. Allen’s primary focus is always on the dogs, but he’s also a staunch competitor who wants his team to do the very best they can. I’m sure we’re all looking forward to the team’s next march to the finish line!

On a separate note, I’m concerned for and about Brent. Through much of the night, he and Allen kept pace, with Allen inching ahead over the course. Brent suddenly stopped his team about 15 miles short of the checkpoint and stayed there for quite a while.

I can’t conjure up any tactical reason to stop so long just short of a mandatory 8-hour rest, so my thoughts run to him having some problem. There are many things that can happen on the trail: A dog can get loose and be hard to recover; a team can lose confidence and balk at a steep hill; a musher can have an accident and be physically impaired.

I hope none of those things have happened to Brent. He has run an amazing race and deserves to finish in good form. Perhaps someone will run out from Braeburn on a snow machine to check on him. I’m sure there are many of us who would like to know he’s okay.

Here’s a quick video of the team coming in to Braeburn Lodge checkpoint.

Apologies for the poor quality in the low light!

We were so excited to greet the team in to Braeburn a few minutes ago. They were alert and business-like and, I’m sure, looking forward to their eight hour rest here. Quito and Scruggs lead the team over the road-crossing at 6.40am. This means they can leave for the final leg to Takhini at 2.40pm (local time).

The routine for the team during the eight hour break will include lots of snacks right away and the usual steps of de-bootie then plenty of straw, jackets and fleece blankets to stretch out under, a couple of big meals and a long sleep in between them. Allen and the team know the eight-hour routine well and Allen will get his work done efficiently as he will be looking forward to a famous Braeburn Lodge breakfast and a good long sleep himself. This checkpoint is also very well equipped with a drying room so he can ensure all his gear is dry.

It’s cold here in Braeburn, below -30F (that’s as far down as our portable thermometer goes!) with a very light snow falling. It’s that kind of snow that looks like diamonds and glitter are falling from the sky. It’s beautiful, but cold.

I’ll work on the video shortly.

– Moira