Camp Rimini To Deerlodge

Saturday morning was the start of the race with a timed leg from Camp Rimini, historic WWII war dog training camp, to Deerlodge, 50 miles away. Years ago, the race included a ceremonial run out of Camp Rimini, but this was the first year that we would go to the community of Deerlodge. The race started without a hitch. ATVs were fastened behind each team to bring them safely up to the starting line. I started 19th out of 24 teams, so I was near the back of the pack. The first mile was completely flat with a thin layer of ice to run on. I was nervous about running 12 dogs for the first time this season, but it went okay. Here we are near the end of the first mile.

My super leader Fresca (black dog) is in front, and next to her is Switch, my fastest dog. I knew the team would be moving pretty fast on this first leg, so I needed a leader who could keep them strung out, and I thought Switch would fill the bill. My other experienced command leaders, Ghost and Luna, are right behind the leaders. They are nine and eight years old, respectively, and you can see that Ghost is already having trouble with the speed. Luna is doing fine here but would start to struggle later. Behind them are Current and Charge. Current is on the wrong side of the gangline because she is afraid of the photographer. The rest of the dogs are Coconut, Gravity, Raisin, Almond, Phase, and Breaker.

At the end of the first mile, the dogs took the sharp right hand turn like a charm and started heading up the mountain.