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OUR
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"ROSEMARY"
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"DiJon"
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"ROM"
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"JEWELS"
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"DUKAT"
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"BASIL"
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"DASH"
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"SISCO"
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"KEIKO"
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A Rookies Journey
August 25, 2005
Balu of the pale blue eyes |
What a week this has been. We did run
Friday, fairly uneventful and the dogs are performing well. The four
yearlings out of Jeff King’s kennel are well above expectations.
Then we did the Saturday Market with Balu. Balu has those beautiful
pale blue eyes that people love, and he is a very friendly happy dog.
He is not the sharpest dog in the pack – poor guy only has two
neurons. One is for eating and the other for running and he can only
use one at a time. But he is a sweet dog that likes people, is eager
to please, and that is easy to train because he isn’t trying
to think of a better way to do things. He’s been my backup leader
for 4 years and when people ask how he can do that, I get to remind
them that knowing where to go and when to rest is supposed to be my
job. The leader’s job is to back me up and go where and when
I tell him. Balu was a big hit, drawing people into the booth, and
this will be great training for him when we see the crazy crowds on
4th Avenue for the start.
Jim Foster making Crepes |
On Sunday we had the crepe party fund
raiser. The rainy season in Anchorage pretty much starts in late July
and runs until we freeze sometime in October. Scheduling an outside
activity this time of year is an even bet that we will get wet, but
the weather had been holding pretty well, so why not. Jim and Bonnie
Foster, the hosts, are very good friends and Bonnie has been helping
me train for the last two years. Jim is from the Cayman Islands and
brings a Caribbean flavor to his cooking. To say that the Crepes were
unique and outstanding would be an understatement. I had an orange
orange crepe that included Grand Marnier in the ingredients!
My granddaughter
Catharine
supervising the setup for the Party. |
Sunday dawned with heavy rains and we
changed plans to use Jim’s garage for the party. As time rolled
on the rains quit, the sun came out and it looked like the storm was
over so we set up in the lawn. As you can see in the picture that
was basically just a sucker move. Shortly after the photo was taken
the clouds opened up and we moved back inside. We got 1 ½ inches
of rain on Sunday, highly unusual to see so much in one storm. All
in all we had a good time with fine food and good friends. It would
have been a complete success if we hadn’t raised a dime, but
we actually did very well.
I was supposed to run the dogs
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning this week, but it was after
11PM when I got home, watered dogs, cleaned up and finally got to
bed. I’m sure you can sympathize when I say that I just didn’t
have it in me to get up at 4 am Monday to run dogs. I did have second
thoughts when I got up at 6 and it was a beautiful sunny day and 43º
F. We’ve been pushing the temperature running in the mid-upper
50’s so this would have been so nice! However Tuesday is another
day and if we ran Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday we wouldn’t
miss any training.
"Dash"
& "Sisco" |
Tuesday was a totally different day.
It dawned windy and rainy. While Monday would have been more pleasant,
this is actually very good training. If you train tough enough, then
the race seems easy by comparison and nothing phases you or the dogs,
if not then you have to figure out how to cope with all this when
it’s for real rather than just practice.
Now I have very strict rules for all the girls. At the first sign
that they are coming into heat they are to notify me so that when
they feel the need to breed I’m not taken by surprise. And just
in case any of the girls forget, they guys are all supposed to back
me up. Imagine my surprise then when Sisco informed me that Dash was
not only in heat, but absolutely the most lovely thing he had ever
seen. I had the first team all hooked up and ready to run, was just
adding the last dog when they tied. I was 5 seconds too late to break
up the tie and had to wait 40 minutes for the two love birds to finish.
Of course the other 8 dogs just wanted to run and could not for any
reason figure out why we couldn’t go. This is another example
of good training, teaching the dogs to wait patiently, and for a half
asleep and not quite up to speed musher to stay on top of things better.
Hole in Platinum's dog house after I removed
the 3 1/2 inch diameter branch |
When I got home the wind and rain was
much stronger (I live 500 feet up the hillside and this is not uncommon)
and the power was out. This kind of storm is common in October, but
not in August – very interesting weather for sure. As I was
unloading the dogs I heard a loud thump and when I went into the dog
lot there was a 3 ½ inch diameter branch sticking out from
the top of Platinum’s dog house. Now that is a scary thought.
If I had been 20 minutes faster Platinum would have either been inside
the house or sleeping on top of it. So let’s look at the string
of events that saved him. First I came home tired from the crepe party
and didn’t run on Monday. If I had we wouldn’t have run
Tuesday. Then Dash and Sisco tied. Without that 40 minute delay Platinum
would have been in or on his house resting for 30 minutes when the
branch came down. They say that God watches out for fools, drunks,
and the United States of America. I was cold sober and, while an American,
hardly think I classify as a national icon. That only leaves one category,
but God is certainly watching out for me. ?
Java, the up and coming leader |
While I like Dash and Sisco, late October
is the wrong time to have pups so I’m putting Dash on a DES
protocol. I think she is early enough in heat that the odds are small,
but don’t want to take unnecessary chances. The rest of the
day poor Sisco kept mooning over Dash, and she just ignored him.
Finally we ran again Wednesday. Very anticlimactic after everything
else that had happened. Except that I ran Java, the year old pup,
in lead with Lycos. Lexi Hill, my coach and mentor, had run Java in
lead in the puppy team last year, but I hadn’t had the opportunity.
This guy is a real comer and a big dog in that little package. I’ve
yet to see anything phase him – even the crowd at the Bear Paw
festival. Lycos held the line out and Java focused intently on the
trail ahead of him. When I called “hike” there was an
impressive burst of energy. This guy has real potential.
Until next week.
Keep ‘em Northbound
Eric
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OUR
2008 RACE
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8025 Schoon Street
Anchorage, AK 99518 |
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Northern
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Dale & Patricia Keefe
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Mary
E Curtis
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| Knights
of Columbus |
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Have
you ever wanted to be part of the Iditarod adventure
but didn't
know how? Help support Eric Rogers Iditarod team
by joining the
2006-2007 season Rogers Rangers. Just $30 buys you
a bootie worn by the
team, a 2005-2006 Rookie season musher card, and
a signed certificate of
membership. All funds go to support Eric's 2007
Iditarod. For your
convenience we now take credit cards through PayPal.
All donations
gratefully accepted.
Thank
you for your support.
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| SPONSOR
INFO |
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OUR
2008 DOG
SPONSORS
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"THROTTLE"
Sponsored by
Bob & Connie
Hendershott
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"THYME"
Sponsored by
Penny, Dennis,
& Adam Sputh
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"PLATINUM"
Sponsored by
Pat Ford
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"MOCHA"
Sponsored by
Pat Schue
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"LYCOS"
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"BALU"
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"BASS"
sponsored by
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"WORF"
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"PICARD"
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