Lease my dog team for Iditarod or Quest

I’m looking for the right individual who wants to participate in one of life’s most gratifying and soul-stretching experiences. I’ve
wondered for quite a while what it would be like to train and help someone achieve their dream of running — and finishing — one of the 1,000-mile sled dog marathons. This coming year is setting up to be ideal from my end of things.

What I offer is some well qualified dogs, some of whom have finished both Quest and Iditarod on top 5 teams; sleds and other necessary supplies for the trail; my knowledge of the trails, packing food drops, scheduling a race and working with dogs. I’ve spent the past decade training inexperienced but enthusiastic handlers each winter; I know what it takes to get someone the basic skills to run a first race (such as the Sheep Mountain 150), and build on that with each training run until they can handle a longer race. I also can recognize when a new musher is, or is not, ready for these tests.

What I’m seeking: Someone with the time, desire, heart for sled dogs and money to take on the challenge of learning the ropes. They have to be prepared to spend their down time in my simple, but clean and warm, 12-by-16 cabin. And they’ve got to be ready to put in a full winter with the team and with me on the trails. Relationship with the dogs is one of the keys to a successful Quest or Iditarod run. The repetition of training runs is also critical for dog and human alike. I will NOT be training a newcomer to the sport who thinks he or she can finish in the Iditarod’s top 20 as a rookie with a leased team. More than likely, you would be running a team with a large contingent of yearlings, which means running at a yearling pace: 12 to 14 days.

The going rate for a leased dog team is $50,000, and that’s what I would charge. I would use that money to cover dog-related expenses, such as race entry fees, booties, dog food, etc. So a massive chunk of that money is simply pass-through. The client would cover his or her own expenses, such as their clothing and living expenses.

If someone is in the market for a patient but demanding teacher, and has the desire and ability to spend long hours on the trail, and the time and money to dedicate to this awesome experience, now is the time to go for it!

A couple of real studs

The headline reads like a joke, but I’m not kidding. I have two dogs in the kennel that I consider worthy enough to offer out to stud. Click on the thumbnails of these two dogs — Solomon and Panther — to see a larger image. You can also see more descriptions and their faces here.

Dogs for sale

I have four dogs for sale this year, all with real racing experience and some capable of running in lead. I don’t ask a lot of money for my dogs, generally. E-mail me with any questions. Click on the thumbnail images of these guys to see a full-size photo, and you can find photos of their faces and descriptions of them here.

March is the ’sweet spot’

That’s what a friend of mine called this time of winter in Alaska, when you’ve got 12 hours of daylight and the snow is hard-packed and the daytime temperatures are warm.

And the race goes on…

Contrary to popular belief, the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race does not end when the nose of the first dog crosses the finish line. There’s 35 other teams out there still “racing” at that point.

Another Iditarod dynasty

Lance Mackey’s 15 dogs looked so good coming to the finish line that it was almost inconceivable that they’d just raced nearly 1,000 miles through some of harshest weather the Bering Sea coast can dish out.

Quick fourth place poll

The big poll has ended, since they’re starting to make their way onto the trail. Seavey already passed Burmeister in the first few miles, but mushers need to be careful in this run. If they go out too fast early, they can really slow down once they’ve passed Safety. It is an art.

Official Iditarod restart moved to Shaktoolik

And Unalakleet, and Kaltag, and Eagle Island and Grayling. Finally, They’re just about all moving again.

Dallas makes a move

Young Dallas Seavey was among the first out of Shaktoolik this morning, accoring to the green blip that shows his movements on the Iditarod’s GPS tracker. My wife, Brandi, quickly guessed that Dallas, the dutiful son,  was selflessly bringing food, straw and supplies to his father, Mitch, and to Aaron Burmeister, who’ve been parked almost 24 hours at the shelter cabin just 12 miles beyond Shaktoolik. She called Danny Seavey to find out. Danny laughed.

Grinding to a painful standstill

The 2009 Iditarod is getting curiouser and curiouser, and there suddenly is no certainty about who will win, or who’s vying for second or third. High wind and cold temperatures hammered front-running dog teams today, causing most of the top 10 to shut down much longer than they normally would. And in stranger places.