Ribdon and Thistle are 2 of the dogs who will be joining me on the Northern Lights 300
Or as the case may Drop Bag Wish List, as the holidays are long gone. Well except for my birthday which is Jan 23, and I plan on celebrating it this year by running the Northern Lights 300, a wonderful 300 mile race where I get to see new trails with my dogs, Happy Birthday to Me!
But on my return I will have a very important focus, acquiring and assembling all the many things that go into preparing and packing my Drop Bags for Iditarod.
The annual “wish list” started as a suggestion from friends who were wanting a way to help the kennel, but were not in a position to sponsor an entire checkpoint (which I totally understand). And drop bags provide the perfect opportunity for people who want to get involved to do so at a critical time. Traditionally the list includes items we use in large quantities and a few specialty items that would be great to have, but are not priority so we often do not have the extra funds to splurge on them.
Drop bags take days of planning and shopping and then even more time packing.
For folks not familiar with the stress causing importance of drop bags, let me tell you… It is HUGE. Everything and anything I will have access to for the entire 1000 Iditarod has to be in those bags!!! I actually did a overview on drop bags for the blog a few years back. In case you missed it you can read it here. Drop bags must be packed and turned into Iditarod officials on Feb 16th, which is right around the corner! As we prepare please know that any and all help is greatly appreciated, Mush Thanks!
So now ~ for your consideration ~ the Dew Claw 2015 Wish List
- Massage Oil for the dogs – I am really excited about this one, and it is a GREAT way for a mushing fan to support 2 women running the Iditarod this year. I plan on getting all my massage oil from Michelle Phillips at Tagish Lake Kennel. She makes a high quality all natural emu based massage oil for dogs, and was kind enough to give me a sample. It is working great, and now I am sold. She is willing to make me a bulk batch for the race, so if you would like to help with this purchase you can contact her at tagishsleddog@northwestel.net and let her know you would like to help purchase massage oil for Jodi. Your purchase will help both kennels this year, she makes a sale and I get her wonderful massage oil.
- Sams Club Gift Cards – not as glamorous as some of the other items, but one of the most useful. The list of what we purchase there is long and includes almost all of my human food; Ensure drinks, protein bars, Kashi bars, Almond Joys (I never really eat them but for some reason on the trail they taste insanely good!), smoked salmon strips, dried fruits and nuts, juices and vitamin water. Not to mention the large amounts of gallon and quart freezer bags we will need for packing.
- Sled Plastic – it comes in a variety of colors, each with different properties, and can all be purchased at our locally owned Cold Spot Feeds. Dan and I have an account with Cold Spot under the name “Dan Kaduce” and they happily accept phone orders.
- Brass Snaps – in 5/8 for neckline and 1/2 for tugs. Also available at Cold Spot. Using new hardware on the gangline for Iditarod is something we feel helps minimize the likelihood of gear failure. And when it comes to the snaps, means we are less like to have a dog get loose on the trail. Something I think we all agree is important. 20 of each will outfit the entire team and a few spares to have on the trail.
Cold Spot For Healthy Pets
(907) 457-8555 | coldspot@coldspotfeeds.com - Hot Hands, or similar chemical hand warmers- You would not believe how many sets of Hot Hands I go through on a race. My hands are my weakest point, and over the years I have developed a strategy to make sure they stay warm and dry. I always have Hot Hands inside my beaver mitts. In addition I chance my glove liners all the time! Which leads me to the next item…
- Stretchy Cotton Gloves – you know the ones that say ‘one size fits all’ and come in crazy colors. Well I love them, and change them as often as I change the dogs booties. By doing so I can keep my hands dry, which goes a long way to keeping them warm. You can find them pretty much anywhere, but here is a link to a bulk wholesale website that sells them by the case.
- AA lithium batteries – unlike regular batteries lithium batteries are not effected by the cold, and are what powers my headlamp on the trail. To avoid shipping cost you can contact one of our local suppliers to purchase them: Alaska Fire and Safety or Batteries + Bulbs.
- Insulation – This is used to line the inside of the drop bags that we pack our frozen meats in. A small step that really helps make sure our meats stay frozen solid in shipping and when waiting for our arrival out at the checkpoints.
- *UPDATE** Mush thanks to Alvina Holleyman for gifting us the new GPS!!! Garmen Foretrex 401 GPS – yeah this is the luxury item this year. Every year I try to improve by bringing something new to my training and preparation. And this year I have been working with an older model to help make sure I am pacing myself and the team correctly. But my bulkier model is not always ideal for the sled. Having talked to other mushers I trust who are using GPS in their training this model was their recommendation. We now have a REI in Fairbanks, so this is another item you can aviod the shipping costs on as we can pick it up locally.
