CRAZY DOG KENNEL NEWS

| SPONSORS| IDITAROD PICKS | NOVEMBER TRAINING |
| ABOUT THOSE DOGS | RACE DATES |
|2007 IDITAROD GEAR WISH LIST |

Let’s take a look at the dogs…
The Iditarod Team: Zoya’s Iditarod Team has 22 potential members. These canine athletes are experienced, confident and work well together as a team. This team can hold pace over a distance and run steady the course. They understand every nuance of racing. The Iditarod team athlete’s are the dogs that love to race and long for new trails and new challenges. They understand the sled lines, voice trail commands, and they work hard together all the time without fail. They’ve been working, training and racing with Zoya for two, three and four years to date. The racing dogs prime racing age is generally two to seven.

There is an incredible bond between a musher and their animals. Without it, you can’t communicate and miscommunication can lead to a lack of trust and ultimately failure. When you can read your dogs as well as they can read you, they will give you “the look” and you’ll know it’s time. Time to move them into the Iditarod team or time to slow them down until they’re ready.

The focus of this second group is future race preparation. Some of this group will be training under a watchful eye; to assess the qualities favored for adoption placement at various recreational kennels.

This team will race at a somewhat lower level. This will give them the opportunity to be around other dog teams, other than their kennel mates. They will learn checkpoint routine, meet veterinarians and checkpoint staff. This is valuable training for young dogs; so they will have total confidence when it’s their time to run at a competitive level.

We have other good dogs in training and John will be working with these dogs for upcoming Iditarod and Yukon Quest Races. John’s 2006-07 team is made up of dogs that still need seasoning and work. Most of these dogs are younger dogs that still require additional conditioning and training. There will also be the newer rescues, especially those that are still learning socialization and what it takes to be part of a team.

The focus of this second group is future race preparation. Some of this group will be training under a watchful eye; to assess the qualities favored for adoption placement at various recreational kennels.

This team will race at a somewhat lower level. This will give them the opportunity to be around other dog teams, other than their kennel mates. They will learn checkpoint routine, meet veterinarians and checkpoint staff. This is valuable training for young dogs; so they will have total confidence when it’s their time to run at a competitive level.

These dogs include: Donald, Gus, Penny, Jeffy, Hunter, Naknek, Fishead, Whiskey, Naked, Bligh, Peak, Storey, Motta, Catania, Sebe.

Hunter & Sebe will run in both the Iditarod Team and the training team; young dogs who are gaining experience in the main team, while lending their ability and enthusiasm to the dogs in the second team.

The remaining 20 dogs are a mix, made up of retirees, very young pups and rescues. The rescues in this group have confidence, socialization and nutritional issues. This group of dogs will run three to four days a week, generally six to twenty miles.

The retired racing dogs in this group are 10 to 13 years old. They may be retired but they sure aren’t tired! They still love to run. The animals that once raced in days and years gone by are now team trainers. They help slow the pace for the team.

These dogs are invaluable as they know all the trail commands; they’ve “Been there, done that” and they lend the team a calm stability. The pups in this team are five to six months old and are crazy to go. Here they will learn all about lines; when to pull with them and when not to chew on them! We start harness training between five to six months of age and begin with short, fun training runs at about three miles initially, then slowly bump the number of miles over time.

November training can be summed up in three words. Cold. Dark. Windy.

The temperature reaches -15° during the “heat” of the day and drops to -25° to -35° in the evening. We are still losing five or six minutes of daylight every day; it’s dusky at 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. brings full dark.

The last few weeks have been quite windy, with 30 mph winds on average. This drop the wind chill factor down into the -60° range. Gusts blow dog pans and harnesses across the yard. We spend 12 to 16 hours a day outside working with the dogs. Crazy? Maybe. But of course our name says it all!

November is when the culmination of our most serious training period to date, ratchets up for the ultra long distance races. It is absolutely the most crucial time for the dogs to come together. The Iditarod Team must be ready, physically & mentally. We need to ensure that musher and team are all working toward the same goal.

This is the month where we start seeing which dogs can hold the pace on the longer training runs. We do 30 to 75 mile runs at average racing speeds. Our objective is to have total team balance by the time we step on the runners for our first race of the season.

During this time, we start placing dogs into appropriate teams. We’ve been training, testing and working with all 36 dogs to prepare for these races. Long, cold runs through the dark with moose, wolves and wind. Days are shorter and the temperatures colder.

Zoya is training 22 dogs, from those 22, she’ll choose her final Iditarod Team Line Up. While right now they seem to be the dogs to take… it’s the tough training that will give us a better determination of their true potential. The dogs and their musher are logging long miles and many of the dogs are well into the high miles.

When Zoya’s not running dogs, she is home taking care of them. When you race sled dogs, it’s a teamwork job, it takes all hands on deck to get the job done right. Training takes place 365 days of the year. Thirty six dogs in race training equals three very busy humans! The dogs love to run. They live for it. Just ask them. As Zoya walks from dog to dog with harnesses in hand, the whole yard goes wild with excitement.

All the dogs raise a ruckus barking and jumping on their houses and running in circles. Some are lunging forward as hard as they can and Phoebe is doing her usual back flips. They’re all saying, “Pick me, pick me!” “I want to go!” The dogs have to have fun, if it’s not fun for them, it’s not fun for us!

John will be making his decision in early December for the final determination about running the Yukon Quest. This race takes place in February. This will be his 17th running if goes! Crazy Dog Kennels! will then run separate teams for each of these 1,100 mile races.

About those dogs...

All the dogs are eating four to five times a day now, 4,500 calories per dog, per day. Their meals are comprised of soaked Eagle Pack dog food with beef and pork fat snacks twice a day, and one piece of salmon a day. Each dog has a different metabolism, much like people and things can change in a hurry. Some dogs hold their weight well and others can lose it fast in cold weather.

Long training runs, ranging in miles of 25 to 75 miles while some may be longer reaching 100 to 200 miles. During which, there are designated rest areas for feeding and dog/foot care. These training runs are done day or night everyday. We pay very close attention to dog feet and nutrition at all times, in the yard and on the trail.

Dogs wear bog booties with Velcro fasteners to protect their pads and we check them every 20 miles or so when running and then replace them if needs be. Enough spares are carried for the entire team. We also apply Zinc Oxide ointment to the dog’s feet if it’s needed.

Other Important Race schedule and Information:

The Second Annual Gin Gin 120 ~ December 10th & 11th, 2006 The Gin Gin 120 covers 120 miles of backcountry Alaska near Paxson. The Gin Gin is the only mid-distance race exclusively for women. Zoya organized this event in 2005 as an avenue for more women to be introduced to the sport of dog racing. You can read more about it on our website.

The Sheep Mountain 150 Race ~ December 16th & 17th, 2006 This race will be our first race of the season. Zoya will be taking a competitive group from the Iditarod Team. Whereas John will be utilizing the race for training and experience for some of the young dogs and some rescues.

The Yukon Quest ~ February 10th, 2007

The Iditarod Trail Race ~ March 3rd, 2007


Zoya’s Iditarod Wish List

Dog Health

We give our canine athletes Algyval daily, and the cost is now $655 per case. Any financial help toward this cost would be greatly appreciated. It is essential for our Iditarod Team. If you'd like to help with the costs, just let usd know that you'd like your donation to go specifically for the Algyval for the Iditarod Team.

Safety Requirement

Zoya needs 11 sets of D-size Lithium Batteries for the Iditarod. It’s crucial to have bright headlights to see the dogs, trail and trail markers, as most of the running is done in the dark.

Zoya’s seeking a Pizza Sponsor!

Iditarod meals need to be simple, nutritious and easy to heat. Pizza is Zoya’s favorite food and it meets all her Iditarod Trail requirements!

Dog Care & Comfort On The Trail

Dog Booties: Our dog’s feet are one of our main concerns. 1500 booties are needed for the Iditarod Trail Race alone! We use dog booties for races in December through March. There are also special creams and salves that are used in addition to the use of booties, but are just as important.

Dog Blankets - Sun Reflecting

These coats are white and made from a special material to keep the dogs cool while running in the sun, This is especailly important for the Idiarod, as daylight temeratures warm up to 35 to 45 degrees. For a running canine athelete, it would be the equivalant of a person running about a 100 mile marathon in 70 degree weather!

Currently, Zoya’s Wish List is small, but items may be added as the time nears.

Any help you may choose to give is greatly appreciated!

Happy & Safe Sledding!

Zoya & John & all of the Crazy Dogs!