Just a few things of note for the future –

Race Plans:

Well our first race is this weekend, and we are pretty excited. Been working so hard on training and getting prepared, well…. I kinda forgot to tell y’all what we have planned. Sorry. But lets fix that right now.  For the 2013-14 race season, Dew Claw is planning (drum roll please)

• TRDMA Solstice 100 – 2 teams Dan & Jodi
• Tustumena 200 – 2 teams Dan & Jodi
• Iditarod – Dan
• and ideally Kobuk 400 – Jodi

Every year we take a realistic look at our situation and ask ourselves what do we think is in the best interest of our team. This year we focused on later races, allowing us extra time to condition and work with our team. We felt this would be wise, as many of our dogs are young; the Buggers and Monsters raced for their first time last year, and they are being joined by the Rascals for their first year of racing.  We wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to invest in the team before Iditarod.

The Solstice race is an exception. It is put on by our local club, which we are proud members of. They do such a wonderful job of hosting races, working really hard to have a good trail, we always have a great time.  We try and participate in as many TRDMA events as we can.  And it is also important for us living where we do to get our dogs into big social situations. Where we live and train we rarely see other dog teams, and this could be a disadvantage when we show up at big events if our dogs are not comfortable around other dog teams.  A race like the TRDMA Solstice is a nice way for us to get our teams out on new trails with lots of other teams.

You Can Get Involved Too:

Along with what races are most beneficial to the team, the other major consideration every musher must face is how to secure the sponsorship necessary for the race season ahead. At Dew Claw we have a Checkpoint Sponsor program that allows people to join the team by sponsoring one of the Checkpoints along the Iditarod trail, taking Dan and the team all the way from Anchorage to Nome.

But we have gotten some feedback from our friends that they would like other ways to get involved with Dew Claw. And we listened. Very excited about some new projects we are working on, and will have some exciting news for you in the near future. One in particular you might want to think about….

An Auction: Yes folks, we are planning to auction off a special Iditarod Prize package. The auction will be held in January of 2014, details to be posted on the Dew Claw Kennel blog.

The prize package is a super special Iditarod experience, that I hope will be something to remember for a lifetime. The winner will receive 2 handler armbands for both the start and re-start of the 2014 Iditarod. You will join Dan, Jodi, and the team at both the Anchorage start and Willow restart*. You can assist in holding the team and walking them right to the starting chute. This is also an excellent opportunity to take photographs and watch mushers actually packing and preparing to leave for the 1000 mile adventure ahead. As part of the Dew Claw handling team you will be working behind the scenes in the area restricted for teams, handlers, and officials only.

But wait, in order for you to really enjoy that experience we have something else planned. In the week prior to the race (based on available times for both Dew Claw and auction winner) you will have a private sled ride with Dan, Jodi and the team*. This will give you a chance to meet the individual dogs, ask questions, take photos, and learn more about what it takes to run with a team of sled dog across Alaska.

*transportation to start, restart, and sled ride are not included in prize package.

It is our hope that this auction prize package will give one lucky friend of Dew Claw the opportunity to really experience all the excitement of Iditarod while having the chance to get to meet the real heroes of the sport, the dogs.  And we wanted all our friends to know what we had planned.
STAY TUNED – The auction will be posted in Jan, right here on our blog.