Recreational Mushing

I think I need to have a sit down talk with all my dogs and explain what being a recreational mushing team is all about. They are STILL crazy and I STILL cant get them back to the truck looking tired. I know Remus has a lot to do with this as he never seems to tire and he adds so much to the entire team. Ichabod is also doing very well and Salmon too... heck, they are all doing great and all holding up very well, even little Nyx.

When we got back to the truck they looked very fresh but when I let them out at home I actually saw a few of them linger in their boxes as if they were tired. Success!!

I didn't want to focus on mileage so much today but wanted to pay more attention to keeping their slower speed and finding a place to break trail. So I was quite surprised when a snowmachiner put in a beautiful flat, smooth track on a trail that I was hoping to have at least a little snow on it so the dogs could work and develop their muscles. I even started loading up the sled with more of my regular gear to give them something more to pull but it didn't seem to faze them at all.

Since the trail was so effortless I decided to try and find some old trails from last year and let them break through what little snow we have on the ground to get some good training in. We got a good start but lost our way and it took some time to find the right trail back to the truck.

I haven't lost my bearings in such a long, long time so it was a bit weird getting turned around like that. I always carry my GPS with me in case of emergency but I like to wait until the very last moment to rely on it. The same goes with my headlamp, I wont use it unless I absolutely have to and I run in the dark as much as possible. That way, if I have any equipment failure I will be some what used to working without those aids.

The dogs ran just over ten miles and seeing how fresh they looked after that run, even with all the work they did breaking trail, I'm thinking I can bump them up a few more miles and get some more exploration in.

There are miles upon miles of trails to explore with no housing or residences anywhere near by. There are some places you can run to that are populated but from where we start you almost have to try to find them.

I left Gemini at home this time and the babies too... I was pretty upset by that decision because I like to have all the adults on the trail with me whether they are pulling or not. But at times the trail was very tough and narrow so I'm glad she wasn't with us. The babies stayed at home because I wasn't sure how long we would be and it was really great to see them when we came home.

Having the team being so different this year has me thinking about them more so than usual. We didn't used to have this much stamina, this much power or drive. Well, actually we didn't used to have this many dogs! I started with a three dog team years and years ago, worked that up to six then eight but still the dogs I ran with were not race caliber or anywhere near what I have right now.

Then it dawned on me... the difference in my team is not because I changed my entire team but because there are a few new faces. Now a few new dogs may not seem to be able to cause such a change but it does.

When we lost Spock from his leadership position my ENTIRE team fell apart. We were stopped dead on the trail, you could see the confidence in every one of them just drain away. They didn't have their big strong man up there leading the charge.

Thats only one dog, but his influence had the worth of ten. Even today, when he starts to feel his 'oats' and runs to the front of the team, temporarily leading them down the trail, you can see a change come over them all... a new stamina seems to come from nowhere and dogs working with their heads down suddenly perk up and have a new life.

Its the emotion that drives an entire team and using Remus this year has shown me that emotion doesn't have to come from a leader. Remus' influence where ever he is in the team is felt throughout. When they slow or are unsure, Remi takes the charge and pulls the sled up past the point of a snag and gets everyone moving again. Hes so confident in his position as if he knows the leaders will do their job if he keeps doing his own.

Hes even acted like a babysitter for me, holding my hand while I walk back to the sled, still unsure if my hooks will hold. He lets me hold his harness, walks back with me, I get on the sled, he waits, looks at me to make sure all is well, then turns and gets right back in his position in wheel. Its so comforting and so wonderful to get to know this boy. Hes amazing...

I remember back when I was asking other people how I could get my dogs to run better, what I was doing 'wrong'. I got a LOT of advice and tried to use just about all of it with no success. Some information was helpful but most did not apply to me and my team. I realized tonight that no matter what situation you are in you have to work with what you have. Thats all there is to it. The best thing I did was I didn't expect more out of my dogs than they were willing to give me. For all I know, they gave me all they could... We didn't go as far at the other musher's, or as long, we always came in late and took more breaks but that was what my team needed and I made it work for all of us.

There is no text book to read that will solve all the questions you may have about your team, to fix problems you may have with speed, stamina or attitude. There is no quick fix to any part of this sport, but that is a gift... for it is in adversity that we learn so much. If our team was perfect we would have no opportunity to perfect ourselves.

I am eternally grateful for the years I had with my 'slow' team I learned so very much. Probably more than I would have if we were zipping down the trail missing all the subtle cues from the dogs who needed my extra help and direction. If this new pace is the way my team will run this year and in the years to come I will welcome that too, for there will be new challenges to enjoy, even more lessons to learn and wonderful hours on the trail in the beautiful silence that the forest brings.