Cache Valley sled dogs training hard, even if only in mud, for K9 Challenge

By Justin Badger

December 10, 2007 | The fourth annual K9 Challenge dog sled race, Jan. 17-19, will begin at the Sinks at the top of Logan Canyon trail head and travel up to 100 miles along the Wasatch-Cache National Forest.

Amy Eskelsen, one of the organizers, said the race started four years ago when about five of the local mushers, including herself, thought it would be fun to have a race in Cache Valley. Over the last couple of years, she said between 10 and 15 teams from all over Utah and other Western states have competed.

Eskelsen said Cache Valley is a good place for a dog sled race because there is a good trail system at the Sinks and the county's search and rescue service and U.S. Forest Service are extremely helpful. However, Eskelsen said the No. 1 reason for holding the race in Cache Valley is that "Cache National Forest is one of the most beautiful places I've seen and I wanted to share that with people," Eskelsen said.

Eskelsen said this formerly small-town event has spread beyond its borders, bringing in mushers from all over the West. In fact last year's race served as a qualifier for the Iditaro, a 1,150-mile race across the rugged yet beautiful Alaskan wilderness from Nome to Anchorage in subzero temperatures, lasting about 10 to 17 days.

Sue Morgan of Richmond, who is training for this year's Iditarod race on March 1, said she has been interested in sled dog racing for a long time, but it wasn't till 1999 that she had the means to get dogs for a team. This will be Morgan's second time racing in the Iditarod.

Morgan lightheartedly said, "The idea of racing across Alaska sounded pretty nifty to me, but some people might question my sanity."

Eskelsen said the various breeds of sled dogs actually run better in the cold weather.

"Anything above 20 degrees Fahrenheit is warm for these guys," Eskelsen said.

Morgan said many professional mushers train about eight months out of the year and, even if there is no snow teams still have to train. To adapt to conditions where snow is sparse, mushers use ATVs or carts for the dogs to pull.

Morgan said during the Iditarod, dogs will run up to 100 miles a day at an average speed of 10 to 12 miles per hour, typically 50 miles from 6 a.m. to noon, then rest and travel another 50 miles from 5 p.m. to midnight.

"It is important that people do everything they can to keep their dogs happy. No matter what you do you can't force a dog to run," Morgan said, "But they love to run this is what they are raised and bread for, you deprive them if they can't run."

There are specific breeds of dogs for the specific type of racing that you want to do and dogs can cost anywhere from $200 to $5,000, Morgan said. A typical price, she said, is $1,200 for a good dog.

After the mushers spend two weeks alone with their dogs out in the rugged Alaskan wilderness, Morgan said you get pretty attached.

"[The dogs] are like my kids," Morgan said. "They are like teenagers, so cute and excited about life. I would be devastated if anything happened to one of my dogs."

Morgan said at this point she is not racing to win, but racing to have a good time and meet people.

"The beauty of it is spending time your dogs, it is a nice feeling to be out there with the dogs and hearing the runners," Morgan said. "It's just a nice feeling."

Morgan said she will be in Montana training for the Iditarod and will not be able to run the K9 Challenge this year, but Eskelsen said she still expects about 15 mushers to participate.

The public is also invited to come watch the teams start the race. Eskelsen said it is interesting to see all the work involved in transporting and hooking up the dog teams. Eskelsen said it is also a good way for residents to support teams from Cache Valley and educate people about this sport, and learn more about other dog sports. Eskelsen said she got involved with the sport through skijoring, which is being pulled by one or two dogs while wearing skis.

"It gets addicting once you start," Eskelsen said.

There will also be a number of opportunities for those that want to help out with the event. Volunteer opportunities will include such things as dog handlers, selling raffles to help raise funds and other opportunities. If people are interested they can contact Amy Eskelsen through the event's Web site.

"It's gonna be a fun weekend," Eskelsen said.

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