Introducing Guest Blogger, CindyK

Hello everyone. I’m CindyK. Jan has invited me to be a guest blogger while she is on her way to Nome (Go, Jan!!! Go dogs!!!) and has suggested I practice blogging before she leaves by introducing myself. So here goes:


Jan and I have been friends for about 20 years. We share a passion for sled dogs and for the outdoors, although Jan takes these things to the extreme in comparison. I love hiking and snowshoeing with dogs, but don’t really even enjoy car camping, much less packing all my stuff onto a sled and heading off into the extremes of Alaska’s winter weather for a two week trip! Many years before we met, I sat down and made a list of all the things I could think of that I wanted to experience during my lifetime. That list has directed my life in amazing ways! Number 86 (of 164) on my list was “travel to Alaska for the Iditarod.” Little did I know I would fulfill my dream in 2012, while watching my friend Jan fulfill her dream of actually racing the Iditarod! The universe is generous like that. So many of these “dreams” have come true for me that I highly recommend you make your own “bucket list” and then by all means live it!

So what is there to do for an Iditarod spectator the week before the race? TONS of stuff. The Iditarod comes at the tail end of a week long winter festival affectionately called Fur Rondy. Hockey, dog sled races, footraces, photo contests, snow sculpture carving…it’s a fun-packed week! They even have a carnival going down along the waterfront. I couldn’t quite wrap my mind around riding a Ferris wheel when the temperatures were hovering below 20 degrees in the daytime. And who would eat a snow cone at those temperatures?! Alaskans, apparently! I guess it’s all about wearing the appropriate clothing.

One thing I did last year with my travel buddies Kathleen and Patti was drive from Anchorage to Willow for a visit with Jan and her dogs. Mushers Jan and Bob generously spent most of one day entertaining us, feeding us lunch, and answering all 1037+ of our questions about dogs, mushing, Alaska in winter, etc. I found out that snowshoers and cross country skiers actually like each other and share trails in Alaska - not so here in Washington! There was a record amount of snowfall last year, so much that the dog houses were completely buried and the dogs had to scramble down into their warm straw-filled dens. We had planned a sled ride, but there was a mama moose and baby in the neighborhood, so it really wasn’t safe to just mush on down the driveway. That left us with more time for snacking the dogs and taking pictures. One of my favorites is of me on the sled runners, which brings me to the main point of today’s blog entry. Do you have any idea what it is like to stand on the runners of a moving sled?

It feels to me a bit like water skiing in the wake of a boat in choppy water, except the skis are much much narrower. Similar balance issues. Similar “handle” out front. Similar unpredictable bumps and twists and turns. But imagine water skiing for 1000 miles! At sub-zero temperatures! And there is no one in the sled ready to turn it around if you fall off. Emphasis on the sub-zero temperatures if you fall off and the sled runs away with the dogs. Not exactly a nursery rhyme out there! No thank you! I will forever remain a spectator in THIS race! Until tomorrow…..



Kathleen, Patti (in a perfect Fur Rondy hat), CindyK, Jan,
and Bob pose for the camera





CindyK on the runners of Jan's sled - see all those bumps of
snow in the background? There are dog houses under there!





The team is eager to meet us



Jan snacking the dogs