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Burger Run Recap

January 24, 2011 by

And the winner of the Loudest Dog Team is…….SP KENNEL!
Yes, the enthusiasm of the yearlings at the start and finish of the Burger Run, combined with Ranger barking the whole way down the trail earned us the Loudest Dog Team (and 2nd place although no one was counting).

Overall, the Burger Run was a success. We got off to a great start with the help of musher turned handler, Aliy. It was a mass start, with the dogs beginning in harness tied to the truck. After the race marshal hollered “Ready, Set, Go!” all the mushers and one helper each ran to their trucks, grabbed their dogs, and hooked them to the gangline, then took off. Lucky for us, Aliy got the team out before we were caught up in the chaos and tangles of the other teams! Once on the trail, the yearlings exceeded all expectations, pulling hard the entire way. Even when passing teams (or being passed) the yearlings were unfazed. The only hiccup was the first pass when Scooter, in all the excitement, backed out of her harness and frolicked around until she realized she didn’t recognize the dogs in any of the surrounding teams. ChaCha and Stormy were my superstar leaders, and they couldn’t have done a better job. It was a perfect trail (no water), perfect team, and the weather was even warm (-20 instead of -40).

And what better way to celebrate than a delicious hamburger?

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Yukon Quest Food Drops Complete!

January 23, 2011 by
Food Drops are resupply bags that are sent out onto the race trail prior to the start of any event. Most distance sled dog races use the Food Drop system. These resupplies are basically – dropped – out at the various Checkpoints and wait there for the musher and dog team to race through and pick them up.

Shorter races – such as the Copper Basin 300, Tustemena 200, Kusko 300 – have the Food Drops due the day before the race starts. The longer (and more complex) sled dog races – the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod – have a Food Drop due date two or three weeks prior to the event. This is necessary in order to transport the supplies hundreds of miles by trucks or airplanes. All three SP Kennel Yukon Quest teams (Allen’s YQ 1000 and Aliy and Ryne’s YQ 300) Food Drops were due today.

These due dates are like any big looming deadlines. There are, of course, mushers who are last minute packers, mushers who have a routine and pack the same bags for 25 years and newbies who don’t know what to pack.

Volunteers help sort Yukon Quest Food Drops
The biggest challenge with these due dates is that a musher will not know what the weather, temperature or trail conditions will be in two or three weeks. It is relatively simple to pack for a race that will start the next day, but it will be over a month from today’s Yukon Quest Food Drop to when Allen goes through these bags at the Circle Checkpoint.
Most mushers will pack plenty of extras. Extra dog booties, socks, neck gaiters, gloves, dog jackets, musher food and the list goes on! As well as extra gear, extra dog food is essential. The race plan might be to stay at a checkpoint for 6 hours, but… in the real world anything can happen! (Aliy stayed in a checkpoint on the Iditarod during a blizzard for 24 hours.) Always be prepared to stay longer and feed more!
As well, the dogs’ appetite sometimes changes with the weather and temperatures. Fat snacks and Eagle MVP kibble are necessary in very cold temperatures, but fish snacks and Eagle Power pack are better in warmer temperatures. Will this Yukon Quest be a “Snow Cone” or a “Hot Cup of Tea” kinda race?
The bottom line in packing Yukon Quest Food Drops is: pack what you think you’ll need and then pack what you don’t think you’ll need, then you might be finished.
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Two Rivers Hamburger Run

January 22, 2011 by

Hungry for a hamburger? Today is the 32-mile Hamburger Run that goes from Pleasant Valley Store to Angel Creek Lodge ending with a hamburger. Joining me on my first race of the season will be some of the yearlings plus a few trail-hardened veterans like ChaCha, Oddball, Stormy and Skittles. Good thing the elders are coming along to keep everyone in line!


We’ve got high hopes for these spunky yearlings! The Burger Run is a perfect starter race to see how they do!

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Chena River Run

January 21, 2011 by

Before any race we will take the dogs on a training run as long as the longest leg of that race. Aliy went on a fairly long training run on the frozen Chena River prior to the Copper Basin 300 – literally from sunrise to sunset!

This video footage captures the beauty of Alaskan wintertime skies.

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Congratulations Pud!

January 17, 2011 by


Congratulations to Pud!

At the 2010 Iditarod start, Pud had the lucky opportunity to meet his sponsors, Neil and Charlotte Frick in Anchorage. Being Pud’s first Iditarod appearance, he was a bit shy during all the excitement of race day, but a little affection and words of encouragement from Neil and Charlotte were all it took. Pud did fantastic as a rookie.

This season, Pud has had bad luck. He was in training until Mid November when he just didn’t seem “right”. After several vet visits and blood draws, he was diagnosed with a thyroid gland deficiency. This is not common in huskys, but our last “thyroid” dog was Rosco who retired 5 years ago. So, we were surprised to see it in Pud. It is a simple fix – twice daily supplement. Once the vets feel that his thyroid levels stay normal for a month then he is free to be a sled dog again. A month is just around the corner, so, LOOK OUT…. Pud’s on the mend!
Thank you Charlotte and Neil for sponsoring Pud!

SP Kennel dog sponsorship is one of our most popular programs. Our dog sponsors are a big part of the SP K team. If you’d like more information about the program, check out How to be a Dog Sponsor.

Pud and Aliy
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