Racing

Sarah’s 2016 Copper Basin 300

Sarah · January 15, 2016 ·

Before I talk about the race itself, I’d like to talk about my dogs that made my race what it was. They defined my Copper Basin race and everything they accomplished was an absolute marvel. We were not the fastest team out there but I guarantee we were one of the youngest of not the youngest. Besides my two 5 year olds, Madori and Bud, the average age of the 10 other dogs on my team was 22 months as in they were not even two years old. In that light, I think that makes everything we did miraculous. Regardless of how we placed, I believed I was driving champions. Now, for some info on my team.

Coda, 2 year old, neutered male If you had told me back in the fall of 2013 that Coda, a hellion of a pup would be leading my team in the Copper Basin 300 I would have laughed in your face unapologetically. You see, Coda was a terrible puppy. He picked fights with everyone: older dogs, younger dogs, dogs twice his size — it didn’t matter. He got his ass kicked on more than one occasion but this didn’t seem to stop him. What finally did? A trip to the vet. In May of 2015, tired of his perpetually grumpy attitude, we had Coda, as we as his brother Bensen, neutered. It completely morphed Coda. Within a few months he had gone from being a hell raiser to one of the sweetest dogs in the kennel. Instead of picking fights and trying to size himself up to other dogs, he spent his time trying to befriend as many people as possible. To be honest, Coda has stepped up more and more as the season progressed. This race, he led approximately 150 miles in lead. He took commands flawlessly and at the one instance of overflow he charged fearlessly through. His performance was more than great — it was outstanding. He was always on his feet ready to go and really thrived up front. I am so happy to see how much this dog has grown and especially love how close he and I have come. In 2013 I was ready to give Coda away I found him so obnoxious but today I don’t think I would trade him for all the money in the world.

Madori with a big grin on her face. Sled dogs love their job!

Madori, 5 year old, female Madori was the oldest and most reliable dogs on my team. When the going got tough, Madori got going — she helped rally the team behind her endless enthusiasm. On hills, she pulled unbelievably hard and her work ethic really rubbed off on her teammates. I was really impressed with how hard Midori worked and loved that I knew I always had a reliable leader and her. As my oldest and most experienced dog, I really relied on her. As a dog who is frequently had problems with muscles in her back end she also relied on me. I checkpoints are usually spent 10 to 15 minutes working on her back to make sure to alleviate any stiffness, soreness, or tightness. I was really happy to see Midori finish and to finish so strongly and so smoothly. After the race, I quickly made an appointment with the dog chiropractor because if anybody deserves a professional work down, it was her.

Dolly screaming with excitement before a fall training run.

Dolly, 2 years old, female Dolly was one of my most consistent younger dogs. She is an exceptional leader and ran about 50 miles in lead. She ran a lot and lead during the summer because she is so reliable so throughout the season I have really tried to give her a break from being upfront. Whenever I needed her, there she was. Whenever we stopped, and I told the team that it was time to get going, she was one of the loudest most eager dogs. As a smaller female, she doesn’t take much food and so by comparison she was a little bit pickier than the rest of my dogs. But when she needed to eat, she did. I was really impressed with her camping skills and I’m excited about taking her on Iditarod with me this year. She had a really great performance during this race and I was really pleased by how eager, determined, happy, and tough she was throughout this race – which was her first.

Varden the sled dog with her tongue hanging out during fall sled dog training

Varden, 2 year old, female I think Varden was one of my biggest surprises on this race. It’s not that she has an impressed me during training, it’s just that she brought so much extra oomph to the team during race mode. I haven’t really seen her ever give this extra sort of effort before. Like her sister Dolly, she was very eager. Without a doubt I would say that she and Midori were kind of the team cheerleaders. Once Varden got barking and jumping the rest of the team had to follow suit. Martin ran in both swing and whell throughout the race and was. Happy to be in either position. She did a really great job eating whatever I put down in front of her. All in all, Varden went from being a dog I really hadn’t considered for my Iditarod team to one that I don’t think I would dare leave behind.

Athena during Fall Training 2015-2016 sled dog racing season

Athena, 15 months, female At the start of the race, I was definitely worried about how young Athena was. There were times when should stop pulling and get distracted. I talked to her and she’d start pulling again. If you’d asked me at the second checkpoint if I thought she’d finish, I would have said probably not. But Athena has a heart of a champion and she definitely proved me wrong. Despite her age, the further we went the stronger that she became. Even though my team got a little sick, and I knew Athena wasn’t feeling the best, she was always eager not only to pull, but also to eat. At the start of the race I had determined that taking such a young dog on Iditarod might be fool hardy. Her performance on this race however, definitely has me reconsidering. I will be keeping a close eye on the stellar little lady in the weeks to come because she shines exceptionally bright on this particular race. I am extremely proud of how well she did on her first race.

Lena, 1.5 year old, female At the kennel, Linda is one of those small meek females who might be easy to overlook. I had real doubts about taking her but her brothers who I had really consider taking, both came up a little sore when it was time to load dogs so I took Lena. To say she did great would be an understatement. Lena was a dog I never really worried about – which is very surprising considering how young she is. This really surprised me. She had an effortless gate, A voracious appetite, and a love of running that I would’ve expected to see in a much older more experienced dog. Although she definitely got tired a time or two, she always kept working. She had a great attitude and part of the reason I decided to add so much extra rest to my race was because of how hard-working she and my other 15 month old dogs were: I wanted the race to stay fun. Lena is another dog who will definitely be contending for a spot on my Iditarod team. I was really happy with how well she did. She surprised me, and to be honest, I think she surprised herself. Well done, Lena!

Crazy, 15 months, female I was really on the fence with crazy for the early part of fall training. She was kind of a pain in the butt. She frequently got tangled, ended up on the wrong side of the gangline, and loved to lean into her partner – traits that are pretty annoying when you are out on the trail. Midway through the fall however, things seemed to click. Her gate really smooth out and she started pulling harder. When she ended up on the wrong side of the game line, talking to her quickly remedied the situation and she would talk back under. Crazy did not feel well on this race. She ended up pretty dehydrated coming into the second checkpoint. The vet said I should probably drop her but given that I was taking a six hour layover I delayed the decision. I got three solid waterings into her. By the time we we’re ready to go, she was much more hydrated and the vet said that they thought she could make the 40 mile run without difficulty. She worked her butt off. Although Quiet and meek, crazies power could really be felt throughout the team. I was really happy with how well she ate and how hard she worked. The vets were really impressed with how she bounced back and gave me some pretty big compliments on my vet care – stuff that is always really nice to hear. Crazy did well. At times I considered putting her in lead, but never did. I will probably be going to work with her upfront in the next few weeks as another potential leader for when I’m out on the trail. She had a very strong performance and I was really happy with how she did. Hoover, 2 years old, female Gosh. Hoover had a great performance. But man, was she annoying. Hoover seemed to get tangled or wrap herself up at any available opportunity. I frequently had to stop because somehow she would manage to get her legs through her partners harness, or wrapped around the neckline, or who knows what else. I’ve never seen a more awkward dog. Despite that, she was extraordinarily hard working. During the toughest runs she ran and swing right behind the leaders and help the team Summit the big hills that we had to climb. She was definitely the strength of the team, especially once I dropped Bud. All in all I was really happy with her performance, but in the coming weeks we are definitely going to have to work on her ability to stay detangled because it is going to be a long 1000 miles to Nome if she keeps getting herself wrapped up.

Penny I was surprised by Penny. She started off strong and ran in lead and did very well upfront running for about 150 miles as a leader with Madori. I put her in wheel when she wasn’t upfront and for the most part I was really pleased with how she did. She had a very smooth gait. Or energy level, more than any other dog and my team, really seemed to wax and wane. I haven’t really been able to determine why that was, if it’s just because she’s young and this was her first real race experience. Unlike the rest of the dogs in our kennel, she ran a lot less this summer because she ended up needing stitches in one of her legs after somehow managing to cut her wrist badly open. I honestly don’t know if this it was a contributing factor to her fatigue or not but every other dog was consistently run throughout the summer. Despite feeling tired, Penny was always willing to get up and run. She always held her tight tug and ate well for the most part. At home, she’s generally one of the loudest most eager dogs I have. It was surprising to me that on this particular race, she was fairly quiet. She ate OK but not as well as she normally does at home. I’m going to watch her carefully in the weeks to come she had been a real sure but for my Iditarod team but I will be monitoring her closely to see how she recovers, how she eats, and how she performs on the rest of the races we have slated for the season. Pippa, 15 months, female The smallest dog on my team, Pippa was one of the dogs I was most eager to see finish. Unfortunately, due to a wrist injury, I ended up having to drop her at the last checkpoint. She was a huge part of the reason we traveled a little slower. This was her first season training and her very first race, like many of my dogs, and I wanted it to be a very positive experience. She did have quite the miles that from the other dogs and my team did so like Penny, she got a little tired at times. It was a fantastic eater and did really well running in wheel. I think her age, and her maturity of sort of knocked her out of contention for my Iditarod team though if I do end up taking her I won’t be disappointed. She is a fun, Peppy little dog to have around and always seems to make me laugh. Last year, she spent the first 10 weeks of her life living inside she was the only dog in her litter. Despite not finishing, I was really proud of Pippa and how hard she worked. Check, 15 months, male Check was one of those dogs I thought for sure would finish. His body, however, had other plans. Check ended up getting pretty sick and had a lot of diarrhea – enough that he wasn’t really able to maintain a good level of hydration and I dropped him out of an over abundance of caution. I think he’s going to make my Iditarod team regardless so I didn’t want to push him and force him into having a bad racing experience. For their first race, it’s always very important that the dogs have fun and come off of it feeling good. While Check was in the team,he had a strong drive and really helped propel the team up the big hills. He’s a fun dog to watch because of his smooth trot. I expect some really big things out of him in the years to come. He made it about 150 miles into the race and I was happy with that. I was really excited about his great attitude and his willingness to get up and go. If it had been up to him, he would’ve stayed on the team. But that is why, we as mushers, are in charge and not the dogs.

Bud, 5 years old, male But is known at our kennel as the tour dog. He is one of the strongest pulling, hardest working, best eating dogs in our entire kennel. The problem is, but doesn’t have a lazy bone and him and, unfortunately to really succeed as a distance dog, he needs to work a little less hard. But had a phenomenal race despite not finishing yet again. On the truly vertical pitches going over top dome, Bud was the reason we made it up at all. That dog, knows how to work. In the summer, we joke that you don’t need any dog and your team but Bud because he can pull an 800 pound cart and 9 people by himself. Once again, blood work himself too hard and ended up with a slight shoulder injury. I am hoping we can sort Bud out and figure out a way so that he can become a true race dog because he really adds a lot to the team. He has a flawless gate, a great appetite, and a fun happy-go-lucky attitude. Even though you didn’t finish Bud, I really appreciate your hard work. I’m not sure we would’ve made it to the summit if we hadn’t had you working so damn hard. In review. This team finished in 37th place with a total time of 57 hours and 7 minutes. Given their age and inexperience, we think this was very successful. In the following posts, we will write a recap on Justin and Wyatt’s team. I am also working on a blog post about the race itself, not just the dogs!

If you are able, please consider donating to my Iditarod fundraiser: www.crowdrise.com/sarahstokeys2016idt/fundraiser/sarahstokey

Travis Is Signed Up For The 2015 Knik 200

Sarah · January 27, 2015 ·

I sleep on the couch and wake covered in animals. Max jams himself in between me and the backrest, sprawling halfway on top of me. He is a heavy sleeper and, unlike most dogs, doesn’t fidget during the night and keeps me warm when the fire in the wood stove goes out. On my chest Snowball, one of our three cats, sits on top of me. When I wake, he stares at me the look on his face is blank: What of it? he appears to be saying. He is old and lame on one of his front legs. I carry him most places and spoil him terribly so, when I’m home, he is often by my side. Wrapped around my head is Mama, another cat, her tail flicks my cheek occasionally but otherwise she sits around me like a big black scarf. On the floor I can hear Betty breathing. She sleeps with her head near my hand — in case I should want to pet her in the middle of the night.

My phone rings frequently during the night. If I hear it, I usually answer. Sometimes it is a tourist trying to plan a summer trip and they don’t understand the time change. But more often than not it is Travis calling. He lives with such strange hours now that his days are no longer defined by the movement of the sun. The more you travel with dogs, the more you adopt their way of life. He eats when they eat and sleeps when they do. They have become his reference for all things.

So when he calls at 3:00am I am never surprised. I try, my best, to take it in stride even when it wakes me from deep slumber — a rarity for me. He tells me how the dogs are doing and what is going well.

“I signed up for the Knik 200,” he tells me tonight. “But I was thinking if you wanted you could run it instead.”

So bleary eyed and foggy-minded we talk. The race just announced a change in route due to lack of snow. It will now go from Deshka Landing to Yentna Station back to Deshka Landing, where a 6 hours layover is required back to Yentna station and, finally, back to Deshka landing for the finish. One section trail, run 4 different times. I applaud the Knik 200 for doing what they need in order to run a race and allow many rookie mushers to qualify — and in many ways, I think it will allow for some great passing training but the trail certainly doesn’t sound quite as exciting as the normal course.

We go back and forth. “You’ll run the team more conservatively,” Travis says — and I can’t deny because it is true. I will go slow and take my time. I will have fun but we will not race the way Travis would race.

“But you haven’t run some of these dogs before,” I tell him. I think race experience where you are actively pushing your dogs to their full potential is important. “Droopy, Thunder, Jimbo, Teddy, and Mongoose,” I tell him “have never run in a race with you. You may see something different.” And I believe that. Some dogs are mediocre in training and all-stars on the race trail. You never know until you run them hard.

“But you should do this one,” he says.

I listen. He tells me I should run it and that I’ve done a lot to deserve it but, for whatever reason, it doesn’t pull at me.

“I’d rather watch,” I finally tell him. I have too many concerns to jockey the team he has been carefully sculpting all season.

“Ok,” he says.

He hangs up and I struggle to fall back asleep. I look at the stars and watch as the light behind the mountain fades from black to pink. I spend today writing and sitting by the fire, frequently struggling to stay awake. I bought the dogs a new dog bed but they sleep on the couch so I take it and sleep for an hour on it curled by the fire with the cat and think of all the stories I will have to write in a week’s time and that makes me very happy.

2015 Copper Basin 300 Race Overview

Sarah · January 10, 2015 ·

So first of all, we should put it out there that we are NOT racing the Copper Basin 300. We went back and forth on this throughout the fall and ended up on the waiting list. Sometimes, that’s just how it goes. Travis had a stellar performance in the 2014 Copper Basin 300 earning himself the coveted Humanitarian Award for Best Dog Care. He started and finished the race will all 12 dogs.

Asking Travis about the race he said, “Ya my team was on fire. But one of the things I really took away from that race was that they were ready to go and it was only January. There were still another two months between the Copper Basin 300 and Iditarod.”

This year, we are trying to shift focus away from the smaller races and onto the bigger ones. We have no idea if it will work or not. Most mushers our age start out handling for other racing kennels, where they learn the tricks of the trade, before going and starting their own kennel. Not us! So a lot of the tricky decisions about how to train and race early on in the season has been something we have had to carefully navigate. I’m not sure we’ve dialed anything in yet. Although we now are much more mobile than before, the biggest hiccup for us being really successful is trail access. When it comes down to it, we really need to buy property in mushing country: Willow, Fairbanks, Healy, Eureka…here’s to hoping we can do that sometime in the near future. We tried this year but kept having issues pop up. It’s been the biggest roadblock.

That being said, the Copper Basin 300 is a very big race. Besides the Kusko 300, it is one of the most challenging races out there. It’s a notoriously tough and physically demanding.

So let’s take a Look at the CB300.

Copper Basin 300 Overview

Long considered the toughest 300 mile dog sled race, The Copper Basin 300 is a challenge for both the musher running the race and their handler, who offers support. Although Copper Basin is considered a qualifier for running the Iditarod, many mushers have often remarked “that running Iditarod should be a qualifier for the Copper Basin.”

The circular race trail allows mushers along new trail during each leg of the race. Each checkpoint is at some sort of lodge. The Copper Basin 300 is known for its notorious trail conditions and bone chilling weather. Temperatures are routinely -30 and -40 below. Because the course crests numerous hills, teams also have to contend with blown in trails.

In 2013 when Travis first ran the race, nearly every team had to go over a windblown summit. Due to the severe winds, each team had to break out trail. Later in the race, warm temperatures and freezing rain made for an interesting mixture.

The Copper Basin 2015 Race Route

The Copper Basin 300 begins in Glennallen, AK and runs counter clockwise. The CB300 has 18 hours of mandatory rest built into the race. There is one One (1) mandatory layover of six (6) hours plus start differential at any checkpoint. An additional accumulation of twelve (12) hours at any of the checkpoints. IN 30 MINUTE INCREMENTS. You can learn more about the Race Route here.

Race History

The race has been running since 1990 and has only had to cancel the event twice. The first cancellation was in 1996 due to extremely cold weather. The second cancellation came in 2012 during the middle of the race when cold weather and poor trail conditions prevented mushers from being able to make it to the next checkpoint. Many, at this point, thought the Copper Basin would be finished. Under the new direction of race manager Zack Steer, the 2013 Copper Basin was was widely considered to be one of the best put on races of that year.

Our Past Experiences With The Copper Basin 300

In 2013 Travis entered the Copper Basin 300 as a way to introduce his team to tough terrain. He had no intention of running competitively, rather he used it a learning experience for both him and his dogs. Sarah handled for him in this race. The handlers of the Copper Basin 300 are responsible for picking up after their musher and taking care of any dropped dogs. To do this, handlers must drive the entire race route. By the time handlers finish picking up after their musher, they often have to “race” to beat their musher to the next check point.

In 2014, Travis finished 5^th in the Copper Basin and received the Humanitarian award for best vet care.

This year, we are sitting out. We’re disappointed but are also interested in seeing how a season with fewer races impacts our team.

2015 Copper Basin 300 Resources

Copper Basin 300 Facebook Page

Copper Basin 300 Website

Mushers We Are Keeping a Close Eye On In This Race:

Wade Marrs – Stump Jumpin Kennel

We always have to root for Wade and like to think we are some of his biggest fans. We’ll be training out of his kennel and watching the dogs that didn’t make the race team. Wade runs primarily smaller dogs. He finished 8th in the CB300 last year and 8th in the Gin Gin 200 last week.

Nicolas Petit

Nic finished 2nd in the 2014 Copper Basin but this year is driving a completely different group of dogs. Last year, he drove a team that primarily consisted of Raymie and Barb Redington’s dogs. This year, he is driving some dogs of his own breeding. There are four former THK dogs in his team.We have no idea what to expect from Nic although we do know he has been spending lots of time training in Glenallen on the Copper Basin 300 trails. His team has lots of young dogs and this will be their first real (and one of their biggest) tests.

Kristin & Andy Pace – Hey Moose! Kennel

Kristin & Andy have a small kennel out of Healy, AK. One of the things that impressed us the last time we ran with them was the size of their dogs. They’re massive! Kristen is training for the Yukon Quest. I don’t know how each of them plans to race but I sure am looking forward to their post-race write up. These guys are great writers!

Paige Drobny – Squid Acres Kennel

Paige had an impressive performance in the Gin Gin 200. She and her husband Cody Strathe are quickly making a name for themselves in the mushing world. They have some really nice dogs and are very well organized. It will be interesting to see how Paige and her team performs.

Ray Redington Jr. – Team Redington

We love Ray. He’s always been a really great friend to us and has been quick to offer us helpful mushing advice. Ray is also signed up for the Kuskokwim 300 which has an impressively large purse. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ray race hard but I also wouldn’t be surprised to see him hold back a little too. He’s got a busy race schedule ahead of him as he has also signed up for the 1,000 mile YUkon Quest. Regardless, he will be up at the front of the pack!

Aliy Zirkle – SP Kennel

Aliy, in all likelihood, will be running the B-team out of SP Kennel. We’re excited to see how she performs. She should have a more relaxed run than her husband, Allen, who will be trying to win the Copper Basin.

Allen Moore – SP Kennel

The CB300 favorite, Allen Moore has dominated this race for the last couple of years. I expect him to win the CB300 or do incredible well. He will be driving SP Kennel’s A-team

Robert Redington

Robert is another friend of ours. He is working on getting qualified for Iditarod. He did really well in the Aurora 50/50 this year. We are hoping he has a great race and are excited to watch him race. He’s got some incredible dogs that he has been training over the last few seasons.

Spencer Egbert – SP Kennel

Spencer is a long time friend of ours and is now working for Aliy and Allen. This is his first 300 mile race and we couldn’t be more excited for him!

Following the 2015 Copper Basin 300

For live race tracking check out: http://www.cb300.com/racecentral.aspx as well as liking the Copper Basin 300 facebook page.

SP Kennel usually does a fantastic job of posting live updates. I’ve always been impressed by the large crew they bring to the race to help with social media. You can count on them having 2-3 quality updates.

The 2015 Gin Gin 200

Sarah · January 2, 2015 ·

2015 Gin Gin 200

The 2015 Mid-Distance Race season officially kicks off this weekend with the start of the Gin Gin 200. The Gin Gin is a 200 mile dog sled race that will be run along parts of the Denali Highway (closed in the winter time) from Cantwell to Paxson and beyond. It sounds like it will be a great race. Although it had been put on in years past, it has not been run recently. The race organizer, Zoya Denure & John Schandlemeier, have been busy raising their family and training their own competitive kennel.

The race has a lot of new names signed up – looks like a lot of people are either trying to qualify for Iditarod 2016 as many of the same mushers are signed up for other races.

The trail should be relatively fast and it will be interesting to see the speeds mushers like Joar Ulfsom, Ken Anderson, Wade Marrs, Paul Gebhardt, and Brent Sass post. I expect these mushers will make up the top 5. The first race is always fun as it gives us an early glimpse at this years coming racing season. Wish we were headed to the starting line!

Follow the Gin-Gin 200 on their facebook page:

We are wishing all our friends out on the trail a great race — especially friend Wade Marrs!

Our Wishes for 2015

Sarah · January 2, 2015 ·

The end of 2014 has been tough on dog training. We’ve seen so much rain recently that it’s been hard to get in the spirit of “winter training” and racing. Unlike last year, we have been based solely out of Seward for the early part of the season. Last year, we spent a good month and a half renting a house in Knik to better train our dogs out of. The comfort & ease that gave us has been sorely missed. It was so much fun waking up to cold weather and snow!

We hope that 2015 brings colder temperatures our way. 2014 marked the first year that Anchorage never saw temperatures drop below zero. Here in Seward, we have hardly had any snow! Although elevation has seen quite a significant amount of snow, we have struggled to find a thin layer of ice to run our sleds on!

Here are some things we are hoping 2015 will bring us:

Colder weather
Snow!!!
Happiness
Health
Gratitude

We are looking forward to the mid-distance races we are running this year: the Knik 200 and the Tustumena 200. Unfortunately this year we did not do as good a job signing up for races as we have in the past. I’m disappointed we won’t be going to The Copper Basin 300 this year after Travis’ excellent 5th place finish last year with his entire team.