And Next Time?

If there is a next time I'd do a few things the same and a few things differently. I'm all rested up, the dogs have been eating well and have their full energy back, and I just can't stop thinking about what I'd do differently next time. It is worth remembering that these statements are based on one experience in what some said was the toughest trail conditions imaginable. These are the conclusions I've come to so far:

First of all, I'd have the same kind of dogs and use them exactly the same way. One major misconception about distance dog mushing is that you need speed. Speed can definately help at times, but any team that can cruise at 10 mph or handle rough trails at 6 to 8 mph can run a distance race. Some of the guys had very racy teams with lots of pointer in them, but a few had dogs like mine. Most notably John Baker and Paul Gephardt. They had dogs as large as mine. I purposely stay away from the 80+ pounders. I feel that athleticism meets power at 70 pounds. Paul Gephardt finished that race with 13 dogs. He dropped one, it had a sore wrist. That says a lot for good sized dogs. Also, the dogs did a lot of breaking trail, running across bare ground, running through water, all the stuff we do day-in day-out around here.

So we'd keep the same type of dogs, but we'd need a lot more of them. My 10 dog team would have been fine with a more "normal" trail. I knew that if I had to drop a bunch of dogs we'd have a tough time. Most finished the race with 6 to 9 dogs, a few did better. So most dropped at least 5 dogs like I did and a few dropped 8. With 10 dogs you don't have the luxury of dropping so many dogs. In order to have 14 (the limit for the K300) a musher needs to be training at least 2 dozen. Starting training with 24 solid adult dogs gives the musher room for injuries during training and makes it possible to pick the best ones for the race. So I wouldn't try this again without a lot more dogs in the yard.

Thought a lot about training too. Most started the race with 1400 to 1600 miles on the dogs. I started with 1000 to 1200. That was more then some mushers started with. The Iditarod mushers are on a pace to have around 2500 miles on their dogs by the start of the big race. If they start the race with 3000 or more miles they find their dogs have already peaked. So most of those guys finished the weekend with about 1900 miles on their dogs and may do another mid-distance race, but will only put on another 600 miles the rest of this month and February. So how would I put the miles on the dogs?

• First of all, I'd try having a swimming program during the summer. Getting the dogs swimming twice per week would be a great help for them. The dogs could be trucked up to the lake or down to Kanakanak. It would take some figuring out, but it could be done.
• Then I'd start with road work the first of September, basically doing it the same as this year. Just for time's sake, I'd probably hitch-up 24 dogs in front of a truck and run them every other day starting with 3 miles and building up to around 25 miles by November 1st.
• November 1st I'd head to Ekuk. November is a weird month weather wise, but for a number of years now it is still Fall. A team can run 45 miles down Ekuk Beach before having to turn around and head back. I'd go down there for a few weeks in early November and do back to back runs. Run down 30 miles, rest 4 hours, and run back. Give them a day or two off and do it again building up to running down 45 miles, resting, and running back. You'd have to pay attention to tides, but it could be done. A team could figure on leaving Ekuk with 1000 miles under their belts.
• Then I'd come home, let the working dogs be working dogs and let the weather do whatever it wants to do. I'd run the dogs on bare ground breaking trail, haul wood, set a few traps, plow through fresh fallen snow while following their old trail. Just keep the dogs moving, having fun, and letting the weather do whatever it wants to do.
• As soon as the rivers froze and trails set up (some time in December) I'd start with the long runs. We'd begin with 45 milers to Snake Lake and back and 50 milers to Manokotak and back. We'd do back to backs using both trails and could do 95 mile runs by combining them. Before you knew it you'd be at 1600 miles and ready to race.
• If I were doing more then just the Kusko I'd again get the dogs back to running traps, maybe some camping trips and trips to different villages, haul a few loads of wood. I'd just keep them honest, keep them working.

Eric and Ryan were an enormous help this year. It taught me how important it is to have a good crew. This year was the first year the dogs and I really miled up and I didn't want to miss any of it. I wasn't sure how they would respond to it. I put the miles on the dogs with help from Eric and Ryan. In the future who ever (I hope it would be Eric and Ryan) was helping me would do some of the runs on their own. Even the 50 mile runs are pretty straight forward. Not much can go wrong. For time's sake, I'd also do a bunch of runs with a pile of dogs in front of a snowmachine. A person wouldn't have to be a master sled driver to take the dogs on a safe 50 mile run.

Nutrition is also something I've thought about a lot. We have access to great meat sources in Bristol Bay. I'd get more fish (salmon and whitefish), more beaver, and more other stuff. Then I'd add that meat to a top shelf commercial food. The food I had was good, but the top mushers have all agreed on 3 or 4 brands that work the best for high striss situations. This food would be an expense, but I'd have to be ready for that going into it.

And the race? I wouldn't change a thing. I'd go into it with a basic plan early and then read the dogs and run their schedule. It's exactly what Lance Mackey does. He doesn't have a strict racing schedule, he just does what the dogs are capable of. I'd prepare them, feed them well, and then race them at their ability level.

The race would be run with a new sled however. I'd build a sit-down sled on Matrix runners. I've talked with Roger and we figure a guy could build a nice hand-tied birch sled on the Matrix runners. The sit-down sled is a must. More then anything, it allows you to comfortably get out of the wind. Changing plastics on the Matrix runners is a cinch. Pull a pin, slide the plastic off, slide new plastics on, and put the pin back in. It takes hours to change the plastic on the runners I have now. I'm also not sure about the Seavey Harnesses for distance racing. I like them for everyday mushing and I still think anyone hauling loads, especially with small teams, should be using those harnesses. They really do rub on the thighs. Also, they're so darn tough to get ahold of. The company that makes them can't keep them in stock. This is a major issue when you need some new ones. I'm not sure what other type of harness I might use, but I do like the set-ups without necklines. There are the ManMat harnesses Jeff King and others use, but there's also a nice harness that Alpine Outfitters makes, and an interesting looking harness called the "buggy harness" that virtually eliminates any possibility of harness rub. I still don't like the typical x-back harnesses. If you get down and look at the pressure put on dogs hips you can see why folks have tried getting away from them in recent years. They're good for sprint racing where the dogs aren't really pulling any weight and for ski-joring where the angle on the tug line is pointed straight back or slightly up, but I still don't like them for pulling big loads or running long distances.

And most importantly, family would be more involved. The main reason distance racing is on hold is because of family. Five years down the road, the kids could be involved in most aspects of the training schedule. They wouldn't be doing back to back 80 mile runs at 20 below, but they could do a lot of it. Having other guys doing some of the runs would help too. I'd also bring them to the race with me. That was such a great experience and I wished Jo and the kids were there the entire time.

Those are my thoughts at the moment and I reserve the right to change my mind about any of it at any time. Racing with my working dogs was a unique experience and has not led me away from traditional working dogs, but brought me closer. It's those unique rugged values of the old working dogs that a musher comes to lean on when a race gets tough. I've got the right kind of dogs for anything I want to do. That has been the biggest lesson I've learned and the one I'm the happiest about.