Race to the Sky 2014 - Five Things I Learned

So we scratched. It was not the best of circumstances and, yet, I learned so much. Here’s five things I learned:

Number 1 – Leaders

    Since seeing what a good leader can do in Alaska (i.e. lead the entire Iditarod), I relied on three dogs all season. I trained others, but not enough to make them reliable. This was a mistake – I expected too much of dogs who weren’t ready for it. Not all dogs are able to lead an entire race and some will do it, but need a special “partner-in-lead”.

    The only way to train a leader is by letting them spend lots of miles up front. I cut some potential dogs short in this respect and over ran dogs like Urchin and Legolas.

    Also, in the race, I failed to rotate dogs each leg. I hadn’t done it the year before but the team and conditions are different every year. Going in and out of two checkpoints, when we’d never done it before, is mentally draining on dogs conditioned to stop at the checkpoint. We didn’t train going through our campsite and being far enough into the race that the dogs are tired, a break up front would’ve been beneficial for them.

Number 2 – Over-training

    Right before Race to the Sky we did a heavy 3-day training set of 70 miles, 60 miles and 50 miles – in tough conditions on our steepest trails. The dogs did really well but it left them drained for the race – mentally and physically. I noticed this in the lack of speed for the first “stage” leg.

    I’ve done it before (and I’ll probably do it again) – I get so worried the dogs will be under-trained and get caught up in “racking up the miles”. It’s a fine balance of miles and hours on the trail…and rest. In 2015 I only ran more than 3 days in a row once in December – when I did a 5 day set – and the dogs had much better attitudes.      

Number 3 – Respect

    There is a fine balance of respect and trust between musher and dogs. The dogs are gifted athletes but they are also animals – you have to learn how they think and gain their respect. Each dog is different, so you have to tailor your style to them individually and, then again, as a team. Every year the team is different. My team in 2014 seemed disjointed (looking back) compared to the team I have now…some of it is the blending of different styles of dogs and some of it is teaching manners. But the dogs should obey the command, when you give it; regardless of what they want to do (the dog’s trust in you comes in here).

    The time to teach dogs manners and respect is in the early fall training, in the spring (harness breaking time!) and in the yard…and even to puppies you raise. By the time you’re on the sled it’s too late – the dogs need to be focusing on other things.

    After the team quit I never thought I’d be able to trust them again. But trust is built over time – and it can be repaired! The dogs haven’t let me down since and some of the dogs who camped on the mountain with me are more confident than before.

    I need to confess that, as far as respect goes, I tend to “baby” my dogs more often than I should. I tend to think something’s wrong when they just need to be pushed. It’s something I’m working on…I need to command them, not ask them. If you think about it, it’s the same thing I do to myself when I’m running: I don’t ask myself to keep running – I make myself keep going!

    I believe a key to building trust is spending time with your dogs, getting to know them…and letting them be dogs. If you have dogs, you have to accept that they will jump on you and get excited at feeding time and bark if you’re not out to feed on time. They have squabbles that need to be broken up and some are such good friends they need to be next to each other to play.

    I go through the yard 4-5 times a day. I may not pet each dog every time, but they all get attention in the course of the day. You learn small tidbits about each dog which come in handy – like how Mambo likes brief attention, Sweetwater likes to be made much of (she things she’s the queen of the yard), Eagle likes to wiggle between your legs and stand there for petting (he likes to be close to you) and Razz needs to be told he’s special with a hug every day (or else he’ll hug you, and you’ll be much dustier for it). It’s getting this special time with each dog which keeps me from ever getting too large of a kennel…

Number 4

    I’ve said it before and continue to realize this in new ways each year: a dog team feeds off the musher! If you’re upset with one dog, the other dogs know it and if you’re feeling depressed, they get depressed. The dogs didn’t get up and going again in 2014 because I didn’t show them the way – my running ahead of them would’ve gotten them going again; but I didn’t so they took a nap too. Essentially, I’m the weak link in the team. I don’t blame the dogs much at all; it’s my fault.

Number 5

    I overfed the dogs in Race to the Sky. WAY too much! Since 2014 I sat down and listed out calories for each meal to balance snacks/meals better…it helped a lot (as we’ll see in 2015). Also, don’t let your soaking food get too hot – the kibble spoils in the cooler and gives the dogs trouble. And then, if the dogs aren’t ready to eat it might be good just to let them rest first or skip a meal – once you overfeed and their stomachs go sour they won’t want to eat for a while. That’s about all I’ll say about feeding for now – I don’t want to spoil future “food” posts!