Race To The Sky 200
Race to the Sky is an amazing race that has been running for many years in and around beautiful Lincoln, Montana. This year Laura and her mentor Rick Larson entered the 200 mile class (there is a 300 mile class) to get the dogs warmed up for the Iditarod. Laura started the race with 12 of her 16 dogs in team and finished 2nd place with 11 of her team members, all happy and healthy.
For those of you not familiar with how a race works I will explain. Every race has a set amount of dogs each team may contain at the start of the race. During the race there are many checkpoints along the trail. These points are manned by race officials, volunteers, and race veterinarians. As the musher enters the checkpoint they will “check in” with a race official or race volunteer and then with the race vets. The mushers carry a vet log in their sled which will be given to the race vet. It contains detailed medical history on each dog plus notes from other race vets at previous checkpoints. At any checkpoint the musher can “drop” a dog out of the team and leave it with the vets. There are many reasons for a musher to drop a dog and although, as with all sports, injury can occur, most dogs are dropped as a preventative measure. I would compare it to “benching “an athlete for the game. It is never beneficial for a musher to chance an injury on a team member. Not only are these dogs part of that mushers “family, they are very costly assets to a well managed dog team.
Here is just as a small example of what goes into these amazing animals. Sled dogs are trained and treated as the star athletes they are. They have an excellent diet tailored specifically for each dog and part of season (i.e. Training, racing, resting…). They get stretched before, during and after workouts. Let’s not forget the massages and supplements. They even get chiropractic care along with their vet care. All this to say, these athletes are in no way disposable. The amount of time, energy and money that go into the years of preparing a dog for competition is staggering when added up.
I explain all of this for a reason. It is impressive for a musher to start and finish a race, especially a long distance race, with only one less dog then at the start. This takes excellent training before the race, knowing exactly the right pace for the dog team, and the ability to control that speed under the pressure of competition. It also takes great attention to every detail of care on the race trail.
Laura not only achieved finishing with all of her team during Race to the Sky but also managed a very competitive 2nd place; 1st place going to her mentor Rick Larson. Perhaps the most honorable achievement of the race came at the Race Banquet as the awards were being presented. Laura was the recipient of this year’s Best Kept Team Award, also known as Vet’s Choice Award. This most coveted award is voted on by all the race vets and goes to the musher showing the most exemplary care of their team. I don’t know if you can tell, I am very proud of my sister. I know that her dogs mean the world to her and it is wonderful to see others recognize that too.
As I write this update Laura is racing in the Canadian Challenge. It is a 300 mile race in Saskatchewan, Canada. I will keep all of you posted on how she does. Then, just on the horizon looms, the last great race, The Iditarod. Stay tuned for more adventures!
written by Laura's amazing sister~ Corrie (Daugereau) Tienhaara