Improvements

A Tale Of Two Trailers

Sarah · January 13, 2015 ·

So this year we’ve made some major changes to the way we travel and we’re pretty excited about them. Our mobile setup is an important part of our success — especially given that our kennel is not located on a good trail system. Although we are hoping to buy property up near Willow or Talkeetna in the near future, for now, we live out of our trucks.

This year we have added a 24ft enclosed trailer capable of towing 23 sled dogs to our trainings arsenal. The trailer is set up so we can bring our ATVs or sleds — or both if necessary early on in the year or in years like this where parts of Alaska still hurt for snow. The trailer also has a separate living quarters “away” from the dogs that we can use while training.

Although we haven’t finished it yet, when we are done it will have a small wood stove to help keep us warm and dry out our gear as well as two bunks. This trailer will be primarily used for longer trips to the Denali Highway, Fairbanks, or Eureka, Ak when we plan to set up and stay some place for awhile.

What’s really nice is that the trailer has lights inside so we can operate without headlamps. We are hoping to add an outlet for charging our phones or cameras too — if we can do a little wiring.

We also just built two dog boxes for a 2-place snowmachine trailer. This will comfortably hold 10 dogs and has space to haul an atv or dogsled. This will be great for getting to and from races where we don’t need something quite as bulky. It also allows Travis and I to go train in different parts of the state. Here’s a quick video I took of my trailer recently in Turnagain Pass, about 1.5 hours North of Seward. In 2012 the snow was so high on either side of the highway it was like driving through a snow tunnel…not this year!

Each trailer has spots where we can “drop” the dogs — which is really just a fancy way of saying we’ve stuck a bunch of eyebolt into the trailer to tie dogs off too so they don’t run around and create chaos. We have had lots of success loose dropping our dogs in the past — meaning we open the doors and let the whole gang run around but mushers get uneasy if you do it around their teams. After last year’s Copper Basin, we loosed dropped the dogs because that’s what we’d been doing all season without any problems. It’s a lot easier with 12 dogs, however, than with 30 or 40!

Dropping dogs is important because the dogs need to be let out every 4-6 hours to pee, stretch their legs, eat or go for a run. In addition we also have an 8 hole dog box for Travis’ truck and are working on a small, 6 hole dog box for my truck. I’m not sure how much we will use the 6 hole box but if we need it, we will have it.

Mobility is import for us not just for training but also is an important part of our emergency planning and natural disaster preparedness. We love our home and kennel in Seward but are unfortunately situated in the middle of a flood zone. When we first moved in to our home in 2012 we were completely caught off guard when our home and kennel flooded, forcing us to evacuate the dogs. We watched the water level rise by the hour and at one point, after the dogs were out of the yard, had to go out and secure our dog houses so they wouldn’t float away. It wasn’t a fun time for us, that’s for sure!

Today, we have completed a few years of hard work to make sure we are ready in the event we flood again!

In total, we can now move 47 dogs without double boxing or using crates. Travis said, “seeing as we’ve had one flood and a couple close calls, I’m really grateful not to have to worry about how to transport our dogs anymore.”

We’re really excited about the freedom our two different trailers will give us moving forward! It’s currently raining in Seward (gross!) so Travis is living out of his trailer with his dogs and so you can bet I will be packing up and moving out shortly!

If you are interested in helping out our kennel and promoting your business, learn about our business sponsorship opportunities and learn how you can get your company’s logo on our big trailer!

My First Dog Sled

Sarah · January 10, 2015 ·

I remember – it seems like a lifetime ago now – standing in Travis’ old dog lot at his mom’s house four years ago. The leaves were just starting to fall off the trees and the wind would come along every now and then ruffling them up out of their loose piles in the dog lot and driveway. Travis spent his days working construction for a local builder. We spent our evenings together running dogs and dreaming of a future where we were self sufficient and making names for ourselves as racers.

That September for his birthday, I’d gotten Travis two new beefy snow hooks. Our first “date” months beforehand he had taken me mushing on the historic Iditarod trail in Seward and once, when we stopped to rest the pups, they eagerly pulled his snow hook. He had a rag-tag set up which included his hook being on a bungy line. When the hook popped, the line stretched forward and then snapped back, the hook almost hitting me square in the face. My goalkeeping reflexes kicked in and somehow I managed to either deflect it down or catch it.

He apologized profusely. “Ya I shouldn’t have it on that buts it’s the only rope I have.”
I laughed. I was having a blast.

We still joke about it. Those first runs we did together will always hold a special place in my heart. Our gear was often broken or pieced together. On one run, we had a stanchion snap, our brake bar fall off and we somehow managed to lose our drag.

We wouldn’t bring tools or sled repair kits. Often we were woefully underprepared but our logic was that we weren’t far from home — always less then seven miles. Nothing that bad could ever happen.

When things broke we’d take necklines and tug lines, splicing together spruce trees, duct tape — anything we could find and deem usable — to help us repair our sled and get back to the yard. We always managed. We smiled. We learned.

Looking back, we were a minor disaster but it never mattered. We had fun and we were training the puppies — now the core of our race team — and there was no stress.

We learned to fix what we needed to fix and we had fun doing it. At times I’d get annoyed we sure spend a lot of time fixing things I’d think and occasionally vocalize.

Travis’ response was always the same. “I’m a broke dog musher. I can’t afford new stuff.”

So we were resourceful.

But that fall day in 2012 when we were gearing up for our first full season of running dogs together, I can remember shivering from the wind. It was howling. We were hooking the dogs up to the four wheeler when Travis casually mentioned he’d bought me a present.

I was thinking maybe he’d bought me a new pair of gloves or a better rain jacket when he told me he bought me a sled my jaw dropped and I looked at him in disbelief.

“Where on earth did you get that kind of money?!”

He’d saved his tips from work that summer and slowly saved up. “It’s not like brand new or anything,” he said sheepishly “but it should hold together pretty good.”

From the moment we got it, it was a beautiful sled albeit well-loved and trail-worn. Made by “prairie built” it was incredibly light and fun to drive. It sported a bicycle seat on back and was the first “sit down” sled we owned.

The first time we took it out we had a blast, switching teams so we could both take turns driving it.

“You’re really good on that thing!” He said beaming at me.

We drove that sled everyday we had enough snow. It had sleek aluminum stanchions and a bright blue and yellow sled bag. Driving it, we felt like rock stars — not that we shared trails with anyone.

But then, of course the inevitable eventually happened: the aluminum stanchion snapped coming around an icy corner the following spring . We took necklines and a hair tie and part of an alder and made a quick trail repair that got us home. A local welder fixed it for us and before we could order a replacement stanchion the second one snapped.

Life happened. And what should have been a simple fix went untouched and sat in our garage waiting to be fixed. We started doing tours and business life soon took over. Suddenly it seemed we hardly had time for each other, let alone sled repairs!

A year went by and we still hadn’t fixed it. We’d acquired other sleds and drove those lamenting our lack of time and energy to fix my first sled.

Until yesterday.

Yesterday I came back from a meeting to find Travis tinkering in the basement. I could hear the saw running and heard the occasionally tap tap. I opened the basement door to see what on earth he could be working on.

“No! You’re not allowed down here!” He said.
“Why?” I asked.
“It’s a secret.”
“Ok.” I said.

The new single stanchion dog sled Travis built me

He worked well into the night, not coming up for bed until 3am. And the secret he’d been working on was my dog sled — Except it wasn’t my dog sled at all. Travis had seen me eyeing our friend Wade’s homemade single stanchion sled and had apparently overheard me asking for advice on building one. Travis had taken the runners off my old dog sled and made a completely new creation.

Travis Beals lifting up the new dog sled he just built. It's made out of hockey sticks and is pretty light weight. — Travis Beals lifting up the new dog sled he just built. It’s made out of hockey sticks and is pretty light weight.

To say I’m excited to drive it is an understatement.

Isn’t it a thing of beauty? We can’t wait to try it out.

Travis Beals sitting on the seat he built for his first homemade dog sled

The New Dog Barn

Sarah · November 21, 2013 ·

By now it’s no secret, but we recently built a new 10-dog indoor box (picture 10 cubby holes big enough for dogs) so that our dogs could come inside on less-than-favorable days. While I can’t say I am an exceptionally good wood worker, I will say I have certainly enjoyed the process.

What started off as a way to distract myself from Travis’ absence grew into a fun project that now has me, I will admit, somewhat obsessed with building things whenever I can seem to find the time. (which is never)

The process itself was somewhat bizarre. Two years ago we had started a 15-hole dog box for a small one-axle trailer that Travis had spent the summer living in. Although no gem, we were excited to have a way to transport our dogs. Well, long story short, although we built the box it was actually too heavy for our small trailer and we never finished it. There was no top piece and none of the “boxes” actually had sides.

So, for the last two years it has sat in our garage collecting dust, power tools, and any other object that needed a temporary (or even less-than-temporary) home. Well, all that, changed. With the help of a friend, I cut the top row off using a sawzall and now had the parts to what would be a new 10-hole dog box, to go in our basement, as well as a 5 hole dog box, also to go in the basement.

I know what you are thinking: But you have SLED DOGS…why do they need to come inside?

Believe it or not, there are several reasons mushers bring dogs inside during the winter. One of the biggest reasons is to work on the dogs — maybe we have a dog with a foot problem and we need to keep applying ointment or maybe one of our dogs has an ongoing sore muscle — regardless of what the problem is, being able to bring them into a warm environment is very beneficial for the healing process. Another reason is if dogs get sick — we recently had several sick dogs in the kennel which really rushed me to finish the box. Perhaps the least “practical” reason but perhaps the most important, was the simple fact that we like bringing our dogs inside to hang out — not just with us but also with each other. We believe it’s important for a team to have good camaraderie both on and off the trail. Plus, the whole reason we have dogs is because we love dogs…the more time we get to spend with them, in our eyes, the better!

So after cutting the the top part off, I moved the 10 whole piece inside. I then had to cut side pieces, a top, and make clips to ensure that the dogs stayed in their cubby hole…we need to maintain some sense of order after all 🙂

Here is a picture of it being put to use:

It’s been especially having fun all the puppies inside…the one thing I forgot about however was there need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night so usually when they come in I have to get up every four hours because they have tiny bladders. Well worth the extra effort in my opinion 🙂

This picture was taken after many of the dogs had been inside for awhile (at like 3am) and were tuckered out from playing. Faraday, the big grey and white siberian husky in the middle of the picture was not feeling 100% because she got into an open bag of kibble, gorged herself and had a rather full stomach. On the top from left to right we have Kip, Odin, Meena, & Faraday (sorry I can’t remember who the last dog in the right hand most hole is and I can’t tell from just the leg!). On the bottom we have Gracie, Coda, & Chesney.

Some of you may be thinking…”Wait…none of your puppy names go together?”

Yeah…so what! While I am not completely opposed to “themes” I would rather find a name that fits the dog even if it means waiting a little longer. We have had themes in the past but only if the theme really and I mean really fits the dogs.

Ok well hope you enjoyed the update!

P.S. As you can see, our dogs enjoy their blankets. If you have old fleece blankets, sheets or towels and live in the Seward area our dogs would certainly appreciate the donation. I like to change out the bedding and end up doing a LOT of laundry…someday we will have a washer and dryer just for dog blankets, harnesses, and booties. I just wish that day would get here sooner!

Fall Projects

Sarah · October 12, 2013 ·

The days go by — sometimes fast, sometimes slow. The leaves have all but disappeared off the trees in our dog lot and we are slowly preparing for winter. We spend long hours outside, splitting and cutting wood. It is a slow, monotonous task punctuated by the good friends and family who come to join us. The stack of wood ready to burn is now growing ever bigger. At night, we burn it and the house gets so hot you need to wear shorts; it isn’t even this warm in the summer. There is strange paradox of seasons for us mushers. Summer is our hibernation where we spend every waking moment at work, fall the long, bleary eyed wake up period where we prepare ourselves and then winter: fast-paced, day by day, doing what we love.

We have had family to visit too: Travis’ aunt Janell and his uncle Dwayne, who have helped us prepare for our busy season of racing. We repainted our kitchen red (see below)and have begun organizing our basement. We can’t do everything and at some point that part of the house became a collection spot for any belonging not having an official home. In our house, that means just about everything. The worst part is you can never seem to find what you need in all the chaos. But…slowly, we are improving.

My office is coming along slowly but surely and I enjoy looking out the window into the dog lot. Today, the boys are working out in it. We’ve ordered gravel and a bob cat. The dog lot is a never ending project. I think we are hoping that with enough dirt we won’t ever flood again. Travis and I both cringe when we see more than 3 days of rain in a row which is, unfortunately, all too common in Seward.

Mostly, the weather has been good and we have been fortunate to enjoy such a lovely fall.

Rebuilding

Sarah · October 3, 2012 ·

It’s amazing what water can do, even if all it is doing is slowly creeping up and up and up. First up the driveway and the dog yard, then up the basement walls into the sheetrock and insulation. It undercut fences and driveways and dog yards and all the places we loved to train. It seems so strange that time has even passed, that minutes have turned into hours, hours into days with nothing but our heads down, working. First, we worked to save the things we love: we worked to evacuate the dogs,we moved a little less than one ton of dog food not once, but twice, we built walls, we set pumps and schedules and watched and waited until the water finally left – and it did, thank goodness, so now we work more. Now we’ve been working to rebuild the things we love: our home, our dog lot, our routines, our life.

For the first few days after the water began to vanish, there was so much work inside: sheetrock to be torn down, insulation to be removed, all our gear reorganized and moved upstairs. None of the work particularly hard or demanding in itself except for the quantity of it and the weight of all that had happened, resting on our shoulders. We, of course, know we are lucky. Our home was damaged, not destroyed. Our dogs were moved, not lost. These were problems that could be fixed and yet it still seemed (seems) like so much.

As we worked inside trying to rid ourselves of the wetness we waited, trying to figure out what we do with our dogs. They were in temporary housing at the Seavey’s dog lot and we needed them back home. A few days after the flood we walked the dog yard and in some spots sank up to our knees in mud. We brought in a couple loads of gravel, but the bobcat was making a mess in soggy land and the stone simply wasn’t going far enough.

We fretted about what to do: we were supposed to be training our dogs, not letting them sit idle but we now faced difficult decisions. It was hard to look at the home we’d moved into, sink before our eyes. Where we once let our dogs run wild and loose in the back yard, there were now holes, ruts, and layers of silt. The back part of our dog lot where the water entered from was completely destroyed. In some spots, it created huge ruts. It undercut the chainlink fence in our back yard. Where the fence once connected to the earth there is a gap of some eight or nine inches. When we were removing the dogs the day of the flood, before the worst had even occurred, two people helping us sank up to their waists from holes carved by water.

Even though the rain was lessening, the ground was still saturated. Often times I’d take step, my boot sticking to the mud and when I’d finally pull it free, a small puddle would emerge in my boot-print. This wouldn’t do. This was not a place to bring dogs home to. If we brought them home, they would, we were sure, be swimming chest deep in mud: that is no way for any dog to live.

Then, it seemed, a miracle happened: We got a phone call from friends who wanted to help.

Team Zoya (Zoya D, John S, & Greg G) offered their assistance in a time that can really only be described as overwhelming and exhausting. The physical labor is tough, that’s for sure, but the tougher part are all the questions that come after the flood.: How do we do fix ___? How do we rebuild ___? Again and again and again, one question after another after another from when you wake up until you go to bed. How were we going to fix our dog lot? How were we going to bring our dogs home?

Our dogs are our friends, our family, our way of life. Looking out onto our empty dog lot was heartbreaking. At night, despite the fatigue of a full days work, we’d ask ourselves: How were we going to fix our dog lot? How were we going to bring our dogs home?

The answer is, without the help of Team Zoya, we don’t know. Because of their generosity, we were able to bring in the immense quantities of gravel needed to provide a good home for our dogs, out of the mud. We had 160 yards of gravel brought in late Friday night. We worked, continuously for the next 72 hours stopping briefly only to sleep, drink coffee, and run to the gas station so we could refill the bobcat we rented.

Once the gravel was down, we began the labor intensive task of pounding stakes into the ground — a task made more difficult because it finally decided to be sunny in Seward and it decided to be cold. At night we watched our breath rise out of us, and faced the impossible task of trying to drive stakes into frozen ground. It takes many, many, extra swings with a mallet to overcome the crunchiness of frozen, water-logged earth. But we overcame and my arms, I think, are twice as strong as they used to be!

We woke Monday morning to blue skies (again!) and went to pick up our dogs. We had spent the last two days, inbetween spreading gravel and driving posts, cleaning their houses. Several houses filled with water and were covered in silt. Others were starting to grow mold. We took our time and washed them with a dilute bleach solution and set them out in the sun.

When we finally brought the dogs back to the yard, you could see a sigh of relief in them. Many dogs we let run around the yard first and you could see their excitement at being home as they ran to pee on their favorite tree/bush/pole, smiles spread wide across their faces. In the photo above, Apache relaxes in the sun in the dog lot.

We are excited still about this winter. Snow has begun to creep down the mountains and we are excited for the things to come. We ran our first team of dogs this morning for the first time in over two weeks. It looked as if they’d never missed a day of training. We’re looking forward to seeing how our team will perform and are gearing up to enter some of the earlier races in the season.

Looking ahead at racing season, we’re trying to start filling out the paperwork and pay the entry fees. Hopefully we will both run the Sheep Mountain 150, The Knik 200, The Northern Lights 300, and then Travis will head to Iditarod.

There are a lot of people we would like to thank for helping us through the flood and their recognition should not go unnoticed. First, we’d like to thank The Seavey family for generously taking our dogs and for feeding them when we could not get to them due to high water. We’d like to thank Greg G, Zoya D, and John S, for their assistance in rebuilding our dog lot. We’d like to thank Rolf Bardersen and Ressurection Rentals for coming to our aid not only with pumps to help get the water out of our home, but with a bobcat to help make a channel to ensure that the water would drain away from our home , and for delivering a bobcat for us to rent in the middle of the night after the flood so we could finish building our doglot so we bring our four-legged friends back . We’d like to thank Cole Petersen and C.A.P. Construction for generously helping us time and time again, both during and after the flood with equipment, suggestions on repairs, and friendship. We’d like to thank Roger & Andrea Stokey who came to visit our home during the worst possible time and who rose to the occasion helping us tear down dry wall, remove insulation, clean mud out of the basement, the garage, and the fireplace, and for giving us relief at the end of all our long days in the form of good food and good company. We’d like to thank all our family and friends who stopped by, called, or emailed to make sure we were, in fact, ok and for all the well-wishes and kind thoughts sent our way.

It is always nice to know that we have a community around us both near and far who love us and want to see us succeed.

Improvements

Thank You