Over the Alaska Range, into the Interior

They're off!  Mike and the dogs have hit the Iditarod trail.

As I write, Mike and the dogs are resting in Nikolai.  Mike is running a very smart race.  His travel times are very competitive, yet he is giving the dogs enough time to rest so that the youngsters, including Gunnel and Gibson who are only one year old, can succeed.  I look forward to watching him make steady progress.

I expect Mike to leave Nikolai after giving the dogs a good long rest.  From here he will push through McGrath and on to Takotna where he will take his 24 hour break.  Actually it will be 25 hours and 30 minutes to accommodate for the start time differential. 

At this point Mike has made it across several of the difficult parts of the trail:  down the Happy River Steps, through the Dalzel Gorge, and across the Farewell Burn.  I was glad to see that the burn had some snow on it.  The Iron Dog snowmobile race crossed this same area a few weeks ago and showed very little snow on the burn. 

There have been a couple of videos on the Iditarod Insider that have great footage of our team.  Look in "Alan Taylor, Iditarod Volunteer"  "Dr. George Stroberg Explains What the Vets See"  and "Mike Santos’ Young Team Headed to Nome"  You need to be an Insider, but again, I highly recommend it. 

Iditarod 2012

Let the games begin!  Iditarod 2012 is underway.  Mike and the team had a wonderful time at the ceremonial start in Anchorage.  From our homebase at the Inlet Tower hotel, we were able to attend several fun events.  The festivities included time to meet with friends and fans at the musher's banquet.  Mike drew bib number 22 from the mukluk.  On Friday, Mike, Mitch Seavey, and Jeff King, put on a jam packed musher meet and greet.  On Saturday, Mike gave a great presentation for the Denali PEAK homeschool families. 

The ceremonial start was a party.  Mike played it up for the cameras and there is a great video of him and our team on the Iditarod Insider.  If you are not an Insider yet, I highly recommend the account.  I especially like the GPS feature which gives you updates of Mike's precise location and speed every 10 minutes.  (Which leaves about 5 minutes for working or sleeping in between updates. :) ) 

In the ceremonial start, the mushers take two extra people with them.  Their Iditarider bids to ride in the sled and someone else rides a tag sled for extra control.  Our Iditarider this year was Fran Lockwood from Indiana.  She had a lot of fun and made us feel like family.  Mike took me along on his tag sled this year.  I was nervous that I would mess up in some way and either hurt Mike's race sled or be photographed upside down, which could get Mike in the paper, but maybe not in the fashion he would choose.  However, it turned out that I was worrying unnecesarily.  (Not me!)  The ride was really fun and easy.  I had never driven Mike's race sled before and it steers really well.  I guess he knew what he was doing when he built it.  (Thanks Jim Wheeler for helping make it happen!)

 

On the ride through the city we went through crowds of fans.  They clapped, rang bells, reached for high fives, and yelled out words of encouragement.  I was impressed by how they would yell, "Go Mike!"  It gave the impression that they knew us.  I realize that Mike's name was in the paper, but personal greeting feel very Alaskan to me.  We are a huge state geographically, but very small in population.  People really do know each other and take pride in the accomplishments of fellow Alaskans. 

The ride took us through the city streets and trails, through two tunnels and over two bridge overpasses.  The dogs had no problem with seeing all of these strange things.  Snow was falling and the trail was soft.  About half way through the run, Mike asked me to pick up my drag mat.  On the sled there are two breaks, a drag pad for slowing down and a metal break with teeth to stop.  Mike often makes fun of me for standing on the mat too much.  This time he asked me to pick it up right before we went over an overpass that led into a sharp turn.  Even without my mat, we made the corner, and the paper.

Sunday was the restart in Willow.  Mike left the starting line with Rachel, our neighbor, riding the sled with him.  I wondered if she would go all the way to Nome with him, but she was in school the next day. 

This whole weekend could not have been possible without the help of many people.  I really feel like we had the dream team this year.  Christian and Ian, our handlers, Ellen, Chris, Rick, Shane, and Jen for doing everything needed, Tom Farbo for caring for all the dogs at home (especially Willie),  Justin Mason for taking amazing pictures, and most importantly Clint Warnke for making sure everything was done right and taking the load off my shoulders.  Thank you all for your help. 

Sweet 16

Iowa

Nestor

Twain

Fang

Gibson

Lugnut

Urchin

Hawkeye

Hook

Gunnel

Bruiser

Zazu

Patton

Fossil

Ozzy

Clifford

Look Mom, No Hands!

2012 Race Schedule

     As 2011 comes to a close, and the 2012 racing season begins I've finally put together a race schedule which I'm really excited about.
     
     Putting together a race schedule is one of my biggest challenges each year, and there are many factors which I look at before I decide to commit to a race.  

     Mother Nature is usually to blame for making racing decisions difficult.  NOAA  has a hard time predicting what the weather will do an hour from now, so trying to guess if some of the early races will actually go off, or if there will be enough snow to have a safe race is almost impossible for me to predetermine.  This year Mother Nature has made almost all of us Alaskan mushers very happy by blessing the entire state with plenty of the white stuff.  This is the first year that I've been racing in Alaska where weather wasn't a factor in determining where I would be going.  

     The next thing I look at is the quality of the event.  What makes a quality event?  One thing a race needs to have is a good trail, which is well marked.  A good trail is one that is safe, and makes sense to negotiate with a dog team.  I gave up adventure a long time ago and no longer feel that in order to prove myself worthy, I must do all the foolish things I used to do.  As for a well marked trail, I live in one of the more remote locations on our road system so I'm very fortunate in that I can get lost at my own leisure without leaving home.  Cool huh!

     Next, I look at the rules.  Most of our races have similar rules, but each race usually has at least one or two rules which may vary from the norm.  What I'm looking for in the rules are things which I feel do not make sense to a dog team.

    The most important consideration is are the distances, and mandatory rests appropriate for my team at each specific time of the year.  As the winter progresses, the dogs' condition improves, and so each race should be challenging, but well within the abilities of the dogs on my team.   

     Enough of my yapping, let's go to the races.   

The Knik 200

 January 7th + 8th

 http://www.knik200sleddograce.com

The Northern Lights 300  

January 27th.

http://northernlights300.org

Paul Johnson Memorial Norton Sound 450   

February 8th*

Iditarod

March 3rd

http://www.Iditarod.com

     *dependent on whether or not I can convince 3,500

      of my dearest friends to give me a buck.

     Well that's all for now.  Looking forward to seeing all my friends, and hoping to make a few new ones.  Until the next time, I hope you're having as much fun with your dog or dogs as I am with mine.

 

 

  

     I'm outta here, Mike

Load Up and Go

Team Work

  
      I had the privilege of listening to John Baker speak a little bit ago, and loved his description of what he calls Team Baker.  In the most humble manner imaginable, from a man who is not only the reigning Iditarod champ, but who has the distinction of having the fastest Iditarod finish ever, he referred to himself as simply the driver of Team Baker.

     I think that all too often, at least in the eyes of the general public, dog mushing is viewed as a solitary endeavor, because unlike in NASCAR, rarely does anyone ever see our pit crews.  As the 2012 sled dog racing season approaches, I thought it appropriate to introduce you to our crew.  

     Introducing our handlers this year. These are the guys who are in the trenches day after day, night after night, doing the million little things right that allow us to succeed. 

  






From Topeka Kansas, Nicholas Guy, with his favorite dog Nestor.  














 From Jericho Vermont, Christian Taylor, with his favorite dog Edison. 








     Handlers are the unsung heroes of the dog mushing world, without whose help it would be impossible for us to do what we do.  Maintaining a large kennel is in many ways very similar to other forms of farming in that it's a 365 day a year job, which requires a lot of man power.  I rely on these guys, even if you don't see them often, just like a NASCAR driver depends on his pit crew.  The world's fastest driver can only get out of the pit as quickly as his crew can change his tires and fuel his car.      


     As I begin to look at putting together a race schedule that makes sense for our team and our team's goals, there is another group of folks who are vital members of this team that I would like to thank.  They are our sponsors.  They are the folks who make it possible for us to purchase the mountain of stuff a dog team requires on a yearly basis.  Their financial support of our team cannot be overstated, but I'm also proud to be associated with them all on a personal level.  They are our extended family.

• Rick McMahan, and the boys that make fishing fun at Denali Fly Fishing Guides.
• James and Joy Wheeler, EMS K-9 Unit. 
• Jayne Hempstead, Cantwell Veterinary Service for taking great care of our dogs.
• Frances Gray, dear friend and supporter.
• Kenny Dolenak, Josh Baltimore, and the gals in the office at Ringers Gloves
• Claude and Jennifer Bondy and the crew at Alpine Creek Lodge.
• Land officer James Smith and AHTNA Inc., our neighbors.
• Michelle Henderson Grainger Industrial Supply. Can't wait to take you mushing Michelle 
• Mark Roberts, and the fellows from New Zealand for making the greatest dog food on the planet at K9 Natural.
• Scott Lee for making me feel at home at the Inlet Towers.
• Tom and EZ Farbo, long time friends and supporters. Love you.  
• Maureen Regan, my Iditarod chef from Mighty Fine Kitchens.