Hardcore Huskies Fan Blog.
This is where you can check for updates and status reports from our adventures. Frequent updates are made so make sure to check back often! | Hardcore Huskies Newsletters
Download the newest Hardcore Huskies Newsletter.
Hardcore Huskies Newsletter 08 Race Edition.pdf [ Archive ] |
| Mushing Basics | Fri, Jan. 11th, 2008 | |
When I visited schools in North Dakota last summer, I was asked a lot of questions about what it is like to be a musher and about the dogs. I have also received many questions from students in other States who were doing projects for class and following last years race.
I decided to take some of the most insightful questions I have received during the past year and post them on this website along with the answers. While the resulting dialog covers the simple basics, I thought that since some of my fans are probably new to the sport they might appreciate this information.
I hope you enjoy the questions and answers.
Q: What is it like to compete in the Iditarod or any sled dog race?
I find it enjoyable to be out with other musher?s and teams. The dogs thrive off each other and the competition. The dogs love to race. The Iditarod, more than most other races, takes you to places mentally and physically where most people these days never go. You get tired, sore and sometimes hurt, and yet you find that you not only can keep going but also still have fun. It gives you new perspective on the rest of life.
Q: How do weather conditions affect the race, you and the dogs?
Warm weather slows the team and you must be careful of overheating the dogs. You need to snack them appropriately to keep them hydrated. In cold weather, the team travels faster but they burn more calories so more snacking is required. You also need to have them wear coats and protect the team from frost bite.
Q: What does it take to train a puppy and prepare it for a race? At what age do you usually start training?
Harness breaking is any where from 6 months to yearlings, basically letting them have fun along with showing them the wonders of the trail, water, sounds, and other animals. When they are around a year old, you begin short runs for the first few months and then gradual increase to a short race the following year. They can race until they are 9 or 10 years old. Many live to be 15, or older.
Q: What characteristics do you look for in a dog?
The main characteristics I look for are athletes, first, and a willingness to run in harness. If a puppy has those two things going for it, it will become a sled dog. Next I look for speed. Like people, dogs are not all equal in their abilities. Some run faster than others. I want a team to be evenly matched with plenty of speed. I also want them to have good fur to withstand cold weather.
Q: On the trail, what do you need to do for the dogs to keep them going?
The most important thing in keeping the dogs going is nutrition, care, and musher`s attitude. The dogs sense everything so you need to keep the excitement level alive. You must also stop the team from time to time to let them to rest before they get too tired. The training I am doing now is what builds them up to keep them going in a race. Early in a race, I don`t have to do much to keep them going. In fact, I have to work extremely hard to slow them down and get them to stop. The early part of the Iditarod is all about pulling over, resting and feeding to keep their energy level up. If they run too fast or too long early in the race, they won`t have enough energy to finish strong late in the race, and they`ll "fade," which means they`ll run slower and slower.
Q: What does it feel like to cross the finish line and complete the Iditarod or any race?
In one word ? humbling. It is a wonderful feeling to cross under the burled arch in Nome, or the finish line in any race, but the feeling is mixed because you know it is over. Part of you wants to keep going since it is all you have known for about two weeks, and all other thoughts have been shoved aside for that time. Mainly, you feel so proud of the dogs and amazed at their ability to cross more than 1,100 miles under their own power, carrying you along for the ride. Being one with my dogs and nature is my passion.
If you have other questions that I didn?t answer here, send them to me at hardcorehuskies@aol.com and maybe I?ll do this again"
|
| |
| Hardcore Team Wins Bismarck Tribune Award 2007 | Sun, Jan. 6th, 2008 | |
Heather Siirtola and the Hardcore Team was one of four people recently honored by the Bismarck Tribune as a recipient of The 2007 Tribune Award.
Over the years the Tribune Awards have gone to a growing list of people from the Bismarck/Mandan community who have risen to act well in a crisis or have, through their efforts, served their community by example and deed.
They were nominated by Tribune readers and reporters. The criteria for nominations ask for people who volunteer, are heroic or are inspirational. Among the 2007 award winners are those who fit one of these criteria.
The Tribune Awards are a way for the community to acknowledge these people. To say, "Thank you."
Heather and the Hardcore Team were honored for meeting the challenge of the Iditarod and service to the Bismarck-Mandan community.
The essay in the January 1, 2008 edition of the Tribune read in part as follows:
“As a rookie, Heather Siirtola finished the 1,124-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 16 days, then a month later traveled almost three times that far to share her experiences with people in her hometown.
When Siirtola, 30 and a Bismarck High School graduate, came home after her inaugural Iditarod, she spoke at elementary schools in the area, plus Bismarck High School and Bismarck State College. She explained her preparations, the race start, the route and what it was like to finish. She also fielded questions. Kitty, one of her dogs, accompanied her to some of her presentations.
Because of her stick-to-it attitude in finishing the race brought a measure to pride to Bismarck-Mandan residents and because she shared her tales with her hometown, Siirtola is one of this year`s Tribune Award honorees.
But the Talkeetna, Alaska, resident and former Bismarck resident isn`t resting on her laurels. She`s preparing for her sophomore Iditarod run that starts March 1. The course goes from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska.”
Congratulations to Heather and the Hardcore Team!
|
| |
| HARDCORE HUSKIES WEBSITE IS IMPROVED | Sun, Oct. 7th, 2007 | |
In order to allow my supporters to get up-to-date information about my training and updates from my races I have updated my website. Hopefully you will find it easier to navigate and find the information you are looking for.
With the help of Will Moore of PLD Design, several new functions have been added.
First, the newest news items will appear on the front page. No more searching through updates to find out the latest. Second, photos are now set into categories to make them easier to locate. Just click onto the group of photos you want to view and there they are! Third, it is easier than ever to sign up to receive my newsletter. Just complete the information on the front page and you’ll be added to the list. During the off season we hope to send out an issue every three to four months. We’ll do it more often as the Iditarod approaches and during the race.
Finally, we have improved the display of our sponsors. Without them, none of this would be possible. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I hope you enjoy the improvements. If you have any comments or suggestions for future enhancements, please write to me at Hardcorehuskies@aol.com.
Thanks again and take care!
|
| |
| SIIRTOLA INSPIRES USDA EMPLOYEES IN NORTH DAKOTA | Aug-02-2007 | |
Heather Siirtola was back in North Dakota in this month, this time talking to USDA employees across North Dakota about her adventures during Iditarod 35. Siirtola’s visit was part of Area Meetings for employees of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and their partners the local Soil Conservation Districts.
“We’ve always brought in a traditional motivational speaker during past meetings,” said Paul King, State Administrative Officer for NRCS in Bismarck. “This time we took a slightly different approach.”
According to King, the approach was to find someone who had faced challenges and overcome obstacles. He said they wanted someone who had established goals and had met them; someone who had overcome physical and mental challenges and who had persevered; someone who knew how to work as part of a team. He said that these are attributes they want to see in their employees and they were looking for someone who had demonstrated how all they could be pulled together to accomplish something extraordinary.
“Who fit these criteria better than Heather,” said King. “She’s done all of these things and then some.”
Siirtola made three presentations, one in Fargo, Grand Forks and Minot. She talked about her Iditarod adventure, all of the preparations that went into the race, and what she went through during the 1150 miles from Anchorage to Nome through the Alaskan wilderness.
“The race was full of challenges from falling of my sled and losing my team to crossing the Alaskan range during a ground blizzard,” said Siirtola. “But through it all my dogs and I stuck together and we made it to the finish line in Nome!”
King says employees asked a lot of questions. Siirtola was asked about her equipment; bloodlines of her dogs; and the mental and physical challenges she faced during the race.
Siirtola admitted there was a time about three or four days into the race where she thought about quitting. She had dropped about half her team due to injuries and fatigue and had to return to the Rohn checkpoint because of weather.
“I thought about all the folks who had helped me and all the time and effort I had spend getting to this point,” said Siirtola. “People told me just get to the next checkpoint and I did. My spirits got better and I kept going.”
Siirtola received positive comments from those in attendance. King said their employees were truly inspired by Siirtola’s accomplishment and many plan to follow her during the 2008 race.
“She should be proud because she is truly an inspirational example of someone who faced a difficult task, developed a plan and saw it through to the end to complete this extraordinary race,” said King.
|
| |
| Heather Officially Entered In 2008 Race | Jul-02-2007 | |
Heather Siirtola joined defending champion Lance Mackey and 54 other mushers at the Iditarod Trail Committee Headquarters on Saturday June 30th to sign up for Iditarod XXXVI! Mackey will defend the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race title he won in such dramatic fashion in March.
Along with mail-in entries, the number of mushers signed up to leave downtown Anchorage for the ceremonial start on March 1, 2008, stands at 71. The sign ups were part of the 2007 Volunteer Picnic Celebration.
In addition to Heather and Mackey, the 2008 race will include such former champions as Martin Buser, Mitch Seavey, Jeff King and Rick Swenson. Notable mushers such as Dee Jonrowe and Joe Garnie, a perennial top finisher who hasn't raced since the 2004 Iditarod, also signed up.
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin dropped by the Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla as tour buses disgorged mobs to see the museum, take a sled-dog ride (behind a wheeled sled), and meet mushers.
Another musher who has overcome much to race signed up Saturday. Legally blind musher Rachael Scdoris of Bend, Ore., will run the 2008 Iditarod after taking last year off. She'll again pair with longtime Iditarod veteran Tim Osmar, who helped guide Scdoris to the finish while driving another team.
The deadline for entries is Nov. 30.
|
| |
|
|
