The dogs and I had a hell of a weekend out in the forest! We attended the PSDC’s Tug Hill Challenge race, which is held about 20 minutes north in the Winona State Forest. Here’s the play by play, from what I can remember.
Friday
I took off work to give myself ample time to prepare our gear and the house for the weekend. My sister, Brianna, and her fiancé, Seth made their way up from New Jersey to help me out at the race, so that also meant picking up some groceries and making sure the guest room was tidy. There was also about 3” of snow on the driveway to clear, laundry to wash, and other weekend chores I wouldn’t have time for. Everything got done and we were ready for an anxious night of sleep around midnight.
Saturday
On day one, conditions were basically perfect for a race. I believe the truck temperature gauge read about -2°F as we made our way to CCC Camp, where the race was being held. I had prepared a giant thermos full of coffee, which I poured out into one of my Best Made camp mugs. Within a few minutes it was frozen solid, so that was a short-lived plan. Thankfully my gear did its job and I stayed mostly warm.
First up was the 8 AM driver’s meeting, where the club went over rules and what to expect out on the trail. I peaked around the room and saw lots of familiar faces, which is really one of the main reasons to attend these races. There aren’t many people doing this weird hobby, especially in the northeast, so it’s invigorating to have others around who are as passionate about the sport as I am. I’m especially grateful for the group of women mushers I’ve found, the support they give one another, and the caliber of care they provide their dogs. Truly an inspiring bunch and I’m honored to call them friends.
After the driver’s meeting, I collected my bib. We were number 30, first out the chute in the 6-dog class. My class (along with 8-dog and skijor) would run a 6.4 mile course each day of the race, the longest trail out of all the classes, but still considered a sprint distance. The class itself was broken up into three other classes: registered breed (purebred dogs with papers), all breed, and sportsman/woman (lower entry fee/no prize money). Five out of my six (Denali, Willow, Blitz, Hubble, and Laika) are registered purebred Siberian Huskies, but Knox is a rescue with no papers, so we ran in all breed. This has pros and cons—we’re up against the super speedy Eurohound mixes, which we really have no chance of beating. However, in this race, there were only three teams in the all breed, so we were guaranteed placement. In total, there were 15 entries between the three classes within 6-dog. A really awesome turnout!
Our chute time was 10:45 AM and it was in the teens, which tends to be my dogs’ favorite temperature. My “handlers” (Brianna and Seth), along with other mushers and spectating friends made sure we got to the starting chute right on time. First out meant we weren’t chasing anybody, but the dogs could definitely smell the previous class and were amped regardless.
Photo by Wendy
The trail was hard and fast, and the dogs exploded out the chute. I had a professional team of hounds starting a minute behind me, and my first goal was to get the dogs through the first leg of trail (which culminates in a downhill into a sharp turn—right where spectators can see the action) before the other team caught us. It took longer than I anticipated for the hounds to reach us, and when they did, my gang handled the pass very well. The only thing they could’ve improved was moving to the right of the trail a bit more, but they all had good manners as the other dogs made their way by. After the pass, we chased the speedy team a bit, which definitely contributed to the dogs’ speed for the day. I looked down at our speedometer and the dogs were clocking 14-16 MPH for the first four or five miles, which is spectacular for them.
We got passed by another speedy team, and the dogs were fairly amped up until the last mile or so. We hit a wide trail that was exposed to the sun, and I could tell they were getting warm. Laika got her neckline wrapped around her leg, so I stopped to untangle her, which the team seemed to appreciate and took the opportunity to eat snow. I let them go slow, knowing the last bit of trail had some uphills that they’d need energy for.
Photo by John Knittel
By the last half mile, Knox was definitely running out of steam and Denali was trotting, which caused Laika to tangle in her tugline. I let the dogs pause in a shady spot and soaked up the moment with them, knowing in a few minutes they’d be running towards a crowded finish line.
Our first day finish wasn’t the cleanest, as Laika got spooked by the crowd. In her defense, there were kids spilling into the trail that shouldn’t have been there, which caused her to go over the center line and shove Knox over. Despite her shyness, we made it through, into the crowd, and back to the truck without any problems.
Photo by Melissa
We completed the 6.4 mile trail in 27 minutes, 55 seconds on day one. This put us in 7th out of 15 teams, a very respectable run for the gang.
The rest of the day was a blur of helping other mushers, talking to friends who came to spectate, shoveling a hot dog into my face, and tending to the dogs. Later, we met up with a wonderful crew at the Ponderosa for dinner, and reveled in our successful runs.
Sunday
Stepping outside the morning of day two was like stepping into an entirely different season. Temperatures were already nearing 30 degrees before dawn, which would mean softer trail and slower dogs. My main concern was Knox. If he was sore from day one, or if temperatures were too warm for him to enjoy himself, I was prepared to drop him. Luckily, the day remained overcast and snowy, which kept things feeling fairly cold. Our chute time was 40 minutes earlier than the previous day, which helped us get out while things were still below freezing.
Knox seemed excited and didn’t show any signs of soreness, so he stayed on the team for day two. The only change I made was to swap Laika and Denali, since Laika is faster and could use the experience leading in a race. She’s also unlikely to tangle in lead with Willow. My only concern was whether she’d be confident enough to run through the crowded finish line.
We were the seventh team out this time, since our starting order was the order we placed on day one. The speedy hounds were down the trail long before us, and we were nestled among other mostly Siberian teams from what I could tell. My strategy for day two was to keep the dogs at a slower pace, not wanting them to get too warm or to expel all their energy too early. They still went fast—my speedometer read about 12-14 MPH—but I didn’t let them go all out. We caught up to the team ahead of us a few miles in, and I decided not to try and overtake them. We’d have to maintain a faster speed to stay ahead of them, and I figured the dogs would benefit from a team to chase.
Photo by Christine
Midway through the race, another team came up and passed us, which the dogs handled perfectly. Laika kept the team pinned to the right of the trail, which gave the other team plenty of room to get by us. We watched the two teams ahead leap frog each other a few times, but we didn’t get close enough to pass them at any point. They also appeared to get in a small tangle, so we kept a healthy distance to avoid adding to the problem.
The last leg of the trail went similarly to the previous day. The snow was softer and the uphills were tough, but Laika and Willow kept us moving forward. Again, I paused a few times to take in our surroundings and to thank the dogs for being perfect. Knox and Denali, despite turning nine later this year, kept up with the youngsters. Blitz and Willow were flawless. Laika, though nervous, shines in harness. Hubble, who I worried about being reactive with other dogs, watched three teams pass, and even stop alongside us briefly, without batting an eye. They did exactly what they were supposed to do and I couldn’t be happier with their performance.
Little Laika powered through her shyness and brought us into the finish line with Willow, 31 minutes and 27 seconds after we started. In total, we ran 12.8 miles in 59 minutes, 22 seconds and placed 8th out of 15 teams. We received third in all breed and even a bit of prize money (basically earning back our entry fee). But it’s not about money or the ranking, it’s about putting my trust in these dogs, their heritage, and our training.
My goal this weekend was to give the dogs race experience, both on the trail and at the truck. I hoped for clean runs and finishing each day in under 40 minutes, which we managed to smash. Compared to other teams comprised of purebred Siberians, we held our own. I can’t wait to see what next season brings and what we’ll be accomplishing a year from now.
