We get around...

Apparently we made it to the news... not sure which channel but a friend of mine mentioned she saw us doing the Mush for Kids event. Wish I could have seen it, I bet Juno was smiling big for the camera!

We've been getting light snow for quite a while now. Its really done the trails good. Again I find myself thinking its fall and that this new snow is just the tip of the season. It really doesn't feel like April...

Stayed in the office and did as much work as I could before taking the team out for a short break. We did a short loop, I believe it was seven miles or so, and the dogs really kicked it up. More than once I found myself gripping the sled a bit tighter than normal wondering what the heck I'm going to do with all this power!

These guys are really strong but apparently that strength is limited. When I pushed them up in miles this season they started breaking down towards the end of the longer runs. I'm not sure why this is, if we aren't getting out enough, if I'm expecting too much of them, if I'm letting them run too fast in the beginning... more than once I find I'm in a whole new world needing to learn even more about driving dogs and how train effectively. That's the nature of this sport, once you think you've got it down the team changes and you have to start all over again.

It was hard to turn them home after such a short trip but some of the dogs hadn't been out and the pups were looking tired.

We have certainly had our share of adventures lately but unfortunately all dogs have not been able to attend all of the events. The ones who have are strong and showed signs of wanting to continue on but those who havent welcomed the short trip.

I'm still wanting to wait for the four wheeler to really train the puppies but since we still had snow I couldn't help but plug in Boreas and Calypso. Thani could have gone in too but the main team was so anxious to get off the post that I didn't wait to find a harness to fit him.

Calypso did okay when I plugged her in a few miles into our run. She was up in swing in a free spot and again the team was anxious so I didn't waste time switching dogs around. I wasn't sure how well the hard pack would hold my hooks with so many areas of the trail lacking snow pack due to our warm temps.

The main team stayed pretty calm though, their good training showed through, but still, chances with such a strong team are best not taken especially at the beginning of a run when they are so fresh.

Since Calypso was so far up front I couldn't tell how good her work ethic was but I was able to see that she wasn't stressed. About a mile or so from the truck she started second guessing herself so I pulled her out.

Boreas on the other hand took a wheel position next to his poppa and did AMAZING! He still has to learn to pull steady but hes got the lunge down... that is something I'm going to have to teach him later, to be calm and wait for my command to go. So far this little boy looks SOLID! He should have no trouble fitting in as a working dog.

Thani and Hermes still need to have a try but as usual we will have to watch the weather and go with the flow. On sleds or gravel... its all good!!