I wanna go to the Iditarod!!!

i spent this past weekend in duluth, minnesota checking out the john beargrease sled dog marathon and visiting amanda. i've had the weekend planned for quite a while and it was worth the wait. ever since spending an afternoon with a sled dog team and helping the musher train...i've been hooked. beargrease was the first race i've been to and i loved every minute of it.

saturday was vet checks...amanda and i went down and checked out the teams. mushers came from all over in the lower 48 states, canada and finland. the rest of the afternoon was spent at the cutest puppy contest and the bib draw. it was inspiring finding out that one musher was a mother of 3 grown children, a full-time nurse...and didn't start mushing until she was in her 40's...there's still hope for me!

sunday was the start of the race. if i could put the sounds of 569 dogs on my blog i would...it's a great sound. the dogs were excited...the spectators were excited...and the mushers were rather subdued and serious. the first groups of teams heading out were the mid-distance teams...only 150 miles. the second round were the long distance teams, 400 miles. the race doesn't end until the 2nd of february. next year, i would like to take more time off so that i can follow the teams up to the checkpoints. i can only imagine how cool it would be to hang out in the dark and see a team come in guided by the headlamp of the musher...all quiet except for the sound of paws hitting the snow and the sliding of the sled.

my life changes on a weekly basis it seems sometimes, but if i'm ever in a position to set up a kennel...and have the finances...this is one hobby i would love to get into. i can't imagine how great...peaceful...rewarding... it must feel to have your own team and head out into the wilderness. what a great sport.