Hello everyone,
Again very sorry for not posting recently. With the loss of Chase and his would have been 10th birthday a couple weeks ago I have been struggling to write again. I have also been frantically trying to apply for scholarships for veterinary school before their deadlines.
Things have been extremely busy here for the past month and half. After finding out about my acceptance to veterinary school this fall and Chase passing away DeeDee and Peter came home from the Kusko 300 race the following day. DeeDee earned her first Red Lantern ever in the race. Red lantern is the prize for finishing last. She said it was a humbling event and learn a lot from it. She had taken a very young team with new leaders and all in all the dogs did great, the 6 that finished were tough and proved themselves.
We began doing long runs right after that, 8-9 hour runs as the temperature was dropping to around -20. I was grateful Mike built a bench for my sled so I could rest my legs during the runs as I was driving the tag sled.
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| Sunset |
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| Love the sunsets while out on a sled |
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| Getting the team all hooked up for a long run |
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| So grateful for a seat on my sled standing for 9 hours is exhausting |
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| River run |
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| Happy Girls |
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| beautiful line up |
Besides all the training runs we had to pack all the check point bags again. 2,100lbs went out on the trail this year! Since the race start moved from Willow, AK to Fairbanks, AK it was a bit tough packing for new check points. The start was moved due to the lack of snow in the state this year.
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| Each drop bag gets labeled on both sides like this |
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| So many bags to label |
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| Annabelle helping me finish up the booties |
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| I have amazing friends here who spent 6 hours helping me finish booties, pack gloves and socks, and pack hand warmers for drop bags! |
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| Laying out gear at each stop to check off everything that goes in each bag |
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The purple bags are called return bags. They get mailed back to DeeDee at the end of the race so she can get her personal gear back from the trail.
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| DeeDee has to stay well hydrated during the race |
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| Packing up Dee's food and drinks |
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| We even vacuum seal things so it packs better |
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| 2,100 lbs of meat and gear for the dogs and DeeDee |
DeeDee and I spent Valentine's Day driving up to Fairbanks for a sports medicine lecture for dogs. It felt great to be back in a school and learning about dogs! Makes me very confident that I am more than ready to start vet school in August! We also stopped in Nenana, AK where the first check point will be to take a look at the river. It was -18 that morning there.
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| Nenana, AK |
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| Little cafe DeeDee took me too in Fairbanks |
I was lucky enough to see an old friend a few weeks ago. She came up from WI for her brother's wedding and I got the day off to go see her and her family! I even was able to get some skiing in, finally!! It felt amazing to ski again I have missed it so much.
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| Outdoor wedding, burr |
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| Best therapy ever |
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| Alyaska |
Sorry I can not post any pictures of the actual wedding since it will be televised soon. Look for it on Extreme Dream Weddings TLC
Last Month DeeDee did the Kink 200 race that started here in Willow. She started 24th finished 9th. It was fun to help her get out on the trail and see some other friends take off. I was able to be there during her mandatory 6 hour rest to watch the dogs and see what she does during her breaks. I also got to enjoy the northern lights that night. It was great seeing DeeDee and some of my new friends racing, it looks like so much fun and definitely hard work.
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| Jaimee Loving up on Osprey before the race |
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| Getting the sled ready |
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| Brothers Track and Trig ready to go |
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| Colby with handler and Dickory getting excited |
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| Starting line at Deshka Landing |
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| DeeDee coming to the starting gate |
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| Beautiful start day |
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| At the Finish line waiting for DeeDee |
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| Volt did so good leading for his first time in a race |
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| Everyone who raced got to sleep in side for a while, it was very cold that week and they all deserved to be spoiled! |
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I will try and get another post up on Monday about the start and all the events this week. I fly out Tuesday to Galena to work with the drop dogs. I will not have any cell service or internet, this is rural Alaska. I am very excited to experience this and to fulfill yet another dream of working on the Iditarod trial.
Here are video links and pictures of more recent things going on:
My youtube channel
Click the above link to see my recent videos posted!
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| Omni and Annabelle being super cute |
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| Gouda and Annabelle |
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| The most amazing gift! I have wonderful friends :) |
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| Real men wear pink! |
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| The snow is trying to eat my house! |
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| Cole has become my lap dog, 90lbs of lap dog |
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| Chase's 10th birthday was Feb. 21st |
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| DeeDee's new sled bag |
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| ECG day for all the race dogs |
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| Been rainy and icy so rain boots with cleats is the new trend |
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| Vet check day! 24 healthy pups ready to race |
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| Annabelle in the middle is a champ! Her 2nd time running and she was wonderful! |
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| Got the tenders out for a short run too! |
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| DeeDee;s exhibit at Pet Zoo in Wasilla |
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| Some very lucky pups here at the kennel 20 new dog beds |
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| This was taken with my cell phone! Norhtern lights put on an amazing show the other night |
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| Amber is loving house dog lifestlye |
How did I almost forget.... WE HAVE PUPPIES :) Gouda have 4 little ones last week, 3 males 1 female. I get to name them and im super stoke for it, no idea on names yet.
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| Melts my heart |
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| Little girl |
