Goals

Philosophy

Blue Eyes and Spitfire started as a way to exercise my dogs and spend time with them out in the woods. This sentiment remains as our core foundation, even as I expand the team and run more miles.

My dogs are pets first and sled dogs second. They are all house and crate-trained, and they sleep indoors at night. I have nothing against keeping sled dogs outside—this is just how things worked out here. It has also been a failsafe against legislation that prohibits tethering or outdoor kennel runs.

Even though these dogs take up about 99% of my brain-space, I still have a full-time job outside of being their main caretaker. I’m lucky to have a partner (Sheridan) who is willing to help out, as well as family members who are able to step in and dog-sit for us. Still, this often requires shuttling the team down to the New Jersey suburbs every few months.

To maintain this lifestyle, I strive to keep a travel-sized team of versatile, well-adjusted dogs.

RacING Ambitions

I primarily train for sprint style races, which focus more on speed rather than distance. Our races generally fall between one and six miles, though I hope to add some in the ten to fifteen mile range. Sprint races usually involve two heats over the course of two days, but some races will hold both heats in a single day.

I prefer running a 6 to 8-dog string, with the option of splitting them out into smaller teams. I keep this in mind for my pool of active running dogs. It’s a delicate balance between having enough dogs to fill out a team (with one or two extra on the “bench”) while also maintaining my small-ish kennel.