See You In Two Weeks

I am about to head up north for the Canadian Challenge, so you won't hear from me for a while. It will take me two days to drive up there, and the race itself will take three or four days. I am so tired from all the training while still caring for the kennel all on my own that I am not so much looking forward to the race as looking forward to it being OVER. Hopefully I will get into the spirit once it starts, but right now I am just dreading running day and night with little or no sleep for days on end. Anyone else ever feel that way?

It is going to be pretty cold according to the forecast. If I am lucky, there won't be much wind, and I will be pretty comfortable. If there is a lot of wind, it will be like last year's race, which may have been their coldest ever. I was hoping for a warmer one this year; it just makes everything easier. It is hard to apply foot ointment in the cold, for example, and yet cold weather usually makes ointments more necessary.

This past week has been warmer, and the dogs seemed more sluggish but handled the long runs okay. We had some real picture postcard days with deep blue skies and no wind. Naturally, those were the days when I needed to rest the team. Today was sunny but cold and windy, and we did our last 50 mile run. The dogs now get to rest for four days while I pack the truck and drive, then go through vet checks and musher meetings.

See you all back here in two weeks.