our Races in Alaska.

Well we are back from Alaska. The trip proved to be a productive one. At first I was wondering why we were even there. Our first race wasn't until the 31st of Dec. There were always races there on the 26th 28th then the of course the last week-end of Dec into the first week of Jan. The races early in Dec were cancelled. We had dogs on the truck and were training on different trails. The trails in Anchorage are very difficult to run dogs on so being there training dogs is well worth the time there.
When Rachel trained there she had a leader quit in her team. Spartan. Very unexpected. We have always looked at Spartan as our best leader. One of the best we had for a very long time. We just never expected this from him. It is difficult to know why it happened. In at this track in Anchorage nothing surprises me. There could be anything out there. Rachel said he just stopped and the dogs would run over him. She would straighten it all out and it happened again. She thought it was water that was under the bridges this time. when other times it was not there. Rachel said it was a problem on the six mile trail.

Leanne ended being the first one to race Rachel's dog team. It was a four mile four dog race and a six dog six mile race. The first of the races was a four dog. on the four mile trail. When the four dog and the six dog teams were made Rachel thought the best leaders in the four dog team would be Spartan as one. Rachel though that the problem spot on the six mile would not be encountered on the four dog trail.

LEanne left and took off no problem. The teams left the starting chute in one minute intervals and Leanne left number three. Just to add, to those who do not know, Leanne does not really race dogs. She has not raced for a number of years. Mainly to always having a crash or just a general bad experience. However when we are in areas that only have adult races, ones that will not let Rachel race at, then Leanne is more than happy to jump on the runners and give the dog teams a good experience and a good training run while in a race environment. Leanne does not train them Rachel does all of that. So basically Leanne is getting on the runners and hoping the dogs run fast and where they are suppose too without any problems. We all hope the same thing when she leaves the starting chute.
We waited and waited for leanne to return. So we knew something was going wrong. When she came into the finish line she looked pretty disappointed at her run. When asked what happened she said that Spartan was quitting on her. over bridges and on any trail that had steep drop offs on the sides. IT put the team into last place. This is odd. It raises some concerns in regards to his vision although he is just a young dog? We just do not know why this happened or what caused it, yet. Dogs are so full of surprises. You never know all you think you know about dogs, there is alway something to learn.
Leanne also ran the six dog. Rachel put a nice six dog team together. Leanne had a clean run. And was in second position. This is what we would think, and hope for if we are there. Somewhere in the top three.
On day two we needed to make some changes in the four dog team. I suggested using a dog named Rafiki. in lead. Rachel said no because that dog also has issue with some tunnels and bridges. So why not use Mac. I looked at Rachel and I asked if she was serious. She said yes mac can do it. So here is this silly big houndy dog. he is just a goof and never portraits any kind of intelligent behaviour. but how smart does he have to be to run like hell. As if he had no idea where he was. Perfect I thought if he has no distractions behind him he may just make it around the four mile trail as a leader. Leanne left last I think 7th in the four dog. In the starting chute Mac acted as if he may not go and may just leave and wonder why he doesn't see any team mates in front of him. He noticed the teams ahead go so maybe he may think of catching them. Remember there is only on minute between teams. Away Leanne went and Mac looked like he was actually running good in lead. So We left the chute waiting for LEanne to come back. I do believe she was in first place on day two time but because of day on it kept her in the back of the field. During the run Spartan was now in wheel. the position just before the sled. Mac ran by all the obstacles and even passed other teams. He also kept on pulling when Spartan would quit at the same spots that bothered him in the training runs and in the first day of the four dog race. After a couple of stops while in the wheel position Spartan started to run by these spots again without stopping which means it was good training.
When Leanne was out on the racing trail it was very busy at the truck. her six team had to be ready. when she gets back there will be very little time to have her team ready before she leaves number two in the six dog race. We usually get all the dogs walked or for sure the leaders. You want them to move around and have a good crap. This some do right away and some need more waking and coaxing. We forgot about one particular dog that has this problem we discovered last year but of course forgot about it or this year.
Leanne came back from the four dog and we rushed to get her six dog team ready. She was in second position and could move up to win or of course the opposite could happen. She came back from her run and said she had some troubles. I asked what and she said bullet had to crap while running. This interrupts the teams flow. If you do not know it is going to happen you can get tangled. this is what happened to Leanne. She got tangled up more than once and had to untangle dogs to continue. This moved her into third in the six dog. So she would have been 1st and 2nd or maybe won them both. This could have happened easily. It only takes a second to move from 1st to third. That is what happens in the sprint races. You cannot have a shut down. Once you do you just lost.
Rachels race was on the third. She raced one junior that is going to the AWG in the six dog and he was her closest competition. She won her five dog race six miles. This was a very good race for Rachel and the time was pretty good. Rachel's six dog team also had a bad experience when she was training. She tried to pass in the trail coming home. the last stretch of the race trail is called no mans land. Passing is allowed there without even asking for trail. Rachel had tried to pass there in a training run but was tangled up with another team. This made it a rather negative experience for her two leaders. The best way to correct this is to have a successful pass as soon as possible after the bad pass.
In Rachels race she passed a couple times and in the same chute coming in the finish line she passed a team at the exact same spot as the place she stopped in while attempting to pass in training. Perfect training. this is exactly what we wanted to happen. She also was first. with a pretty slow time of 18:14 Rachel will run this distance in 17:15 may-be under 17:00 this year. When they are ready for it.

Sorry for the slow reply. We will keep you updated