Small Kennel Training Part 2: Exercise to Stimulate, Not Annihilate

Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate.  Set small goals and build upon them.

Lee Haney

If you recall our June peak was 1 hour ten minutes.  We did this four times from the 23^rd thru the 26^th with two runs each in long and short harnesses.  Twenty-two days later we peaked again.  

July peak week has come and gone.  Our weather continues to be cool and conducive to effective dog training. The morning of the 14^th the thermometer read 32 degrees and it was accurate as the four wheeler seat was frosted.  A few days later I had four days scheduled to “peak” the dogs at 1 hour 20 minutes.  The first day of this period we had 35 degrees so we went for it.  Instead of the normal ten dogs, I hooked up twelve and we marched in second gear for 45 minutes, third gear for 30 minutes and finished the last 8 minutes in fourth gear. My intention was not to stop but my bladder had other ideas.  The following morning it was 37 degrees and I took twelve dogs and once again my bladder prevented us from running non-stop again.  This run’s length was 1:25.  Norbert and Trek, the two young dogs, went twice. Red, a dog we just got from Sonny, and Kermit were doubled up on. My plan was to take twelve again on the third day, but 47 degrees did not seem a wise temperature to march dogs again at, so I switched over to short harnesses and let ten dogs roll for a little over an hour in neutral. No need to annihilate the dogs, only stimulate.

These long/slow runs are done at less than 8 mph. The dogs are practically walking; it is more like a power trot. This is the pace they will run the majority of the Iditarod. This is a low impact, energy conserving pace that should keep the team intact. We march away from the kennel slowly as if we are leaving White Mountain after our mandatory 8 hour break and return 45 minutes later within 200 yards of the kennel and then march away again. It is a good test for their heads.  In January the dogs will use this same trail after leaving the Chistochina checkpoint 50 miles into the Copper Basin 300. Trek was the only dog to raise her head after the turnaround near the kennel. This was on her second day in a row.  I kept my mouth shut. She looked over at Red who was grinding away and she reengaged.

Red has been with us three weeks.  Sonny dropped him at White Mountain this year with a broken toe.  He finished in 2013. Red is a special dog.  He is especially big, weighing in over seventy pounds. I remember him well from my time in Two Rivers last fall. I doubt he was run much this spring with his injury, but he has been able to step right in here due to his muscle memory from putting on big miles in his life.  He is a well trained dog; no bad habits.  Dogs that have finished a 1000 miles can get back into shape quickly.  Red stepped in after our last peak and went through our progression and had no problem with our peak runs. Red gives us ten 1000 mile finishers in our kennel.

Red LOVES to play with bowls. It provides endless hours of entertainment for both dogs an humans alike.

Red is 75 pounds of pure love....and goofiness.

Trek, on the other hand, is a work in progress. Her three sisters have finished races: Glacier finished the Quest as a two year old and has multiple mid distance finishes; Boo finished the Kobuk 440 this year and is becoming the go to leader, and Jackie finished the CB 300 this year. All three finished the Top of the World 350 as two year olds and all three run lead. Trek made it back to Chicken at 270 miles into the Top of The World but she needed to be dropped. Last year she was with some friends and took the year off from “race” training. She has come back looking much stronger. It is her head that needs to be worked on. Trek needs to be stimulated, not annihilated.

Trek is telling stories from her awesome run she just did.

I have been able to maintain fidelity to the training program.  After each “peak” I sit down with the calendar and plan out the next three weeks progressions. During July I was only one day off.   For August I am going to tinker a little bit with both the multi-variable and interval runs.  The first six weeks of the summer I was doing the short harness multi-variable runs with two minutes in second gear and then calling them up into a lope for two minutes.  Now I will let them run at their pace in fifth gear for two minutes (before I was giving throttle) and then call them down if you will. Give them an “easy” and then repeat the command “walk” several times.  Same run, just a different emphasis on the slow part.  As it cools down and as our days shorten the dogs will want to run faster. Our intended skill is now reversed to slowing the team down from their natural pace. The other multiple-variable run will have the same format 3 minutes fast trotting with a quick call up.  I also call the team up when the sand pipers on the river distract us from their nests. 

The interval runs in short harnesses will be changed to a longer period of running with the same 3 minute rest.  We will lope away from the kennel 1.75 miles, rest then lope back to the kennel.  I will throw the dogs snacks let them rest at 5 minutes and then head out again 1.75 miles, rest then come back to the kennel. It remains to be seen if they will lope on the second out and back. This is checkpoint training. The Copper Basin’s new format of having Tolsona as a double checkpoint is a reason to practice running though the kennel this early.  The dogs and Heidi were one of five teams that ran through this checkpoint twice without stopping last year and they were able to do the last 85 miles in 10:30 hours. I was left with tears of joy when Heidi verbally directed Siscu over straw to run out of Tolsona the second time. Siscu was the runt of her litter, but is an incredible go to gee/haw leader.  Not much speed but plenty of heart. She led me out of Whitehorse, broke trail on the Yukon when the wind blew it in, and took me over Eagle Summit.  Her mom, Pilot, led the second place Quest team over Eagle Summit and to the finish in 2001. I love Siscu like I loved Pilot.

Kermit (left) and Siscu (right) in lead on a wet morning run.

The final ingredient to add to the training recipe is diet. The dogs get watered in the morning with 5 pounds of PUP mix, and cooked salmon with some rice.  Upon returning from the run the runners get 2 cups of Redpaw 38k followed by water.  At the evening feeding the 20 dogs get 10 pounds of PUP mix, at 10 pounds of cooked salmon/rice, 4 gallons of Redpaw 32k, 1 gallon of dried eggs, ½ gallon of poultry meal, 2 cups energy pack, and 2 cups of fish oil.  This combined with exercise is making for muscled up lively dogs with round bottoms and shiny coats. In September we will switch over to 100% 38k for kibble and double the meat ration.  A variety of fats will be added as the temperatures drop throughout the fall.

Finally a Norbert report: He is running in every position in the team, has gee and haw figured out but is still learning how to line out as a leader.  His biggest issue right now is he is a punk.   That is right, a teen age dog know-it-all punk.  When I informed him that five of his cousins are coming in September to compete with him to make the race team, he looked at me and said, “Bring it!”  That will make six yearlings that will be training here this winter.   As I look at Facebook pages of other kennels I see the ubiquitous puppy pictures.  Sure puppies are cute, adorable and fun. Plus they up the “like” count on the page and we all strive for that, right? But to me the real joy of training dogs happens when they are yearlings. That is when they transition from the cute puppy into the well-trained adult race dog ready to run a hundred miles at a time while efficiently consuming and digesting thousands of calories and when given straw, sleep immediately. Presented with broth, they stand to drink it, beg for more and wait patiently for their musher to boot, hook up and head down the trail. Norbert knows the basics, has a great conditioning base but this is the year that he and other yearlings will become race dogs.  If he only knew what his future holds maybe he would be more humble. For now he is a punk who prances around his circle acting like he knows-it -all.  

Norbert likes to get up in your face...such a punk.

Norbert striking his "I'm tough!" pose after his morning run.