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2008 Iditarod Rookie Meeting |
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Written by Mike Suprenant - Rookie/reporter
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Friday, 07 December 2007 |
Another year, and another rookie meeting. Having been to the meeting before (2007) and also the Yukon Quest rookie meeting I am more than ready to jump on the runners and shake that (rookie) title.
The meeting is hosted by Mark Nordman who gave some excellent trail notes at the pre-meeting get together Friday night. Stu Nelson the Iditarod Chief Vet went over everything (medically) that can happen to the dogs and drilled into us that if you have any doubt drop the dog. He went over the various techniques to care for the dogs feet, wrists and how to assess an at risk dog. All great info to ensure the canine athletes get the care they need to accomplish a 1000 mile trek.
We then got briefed by Jeff King who reminded everyone that the eyes of
the world are on this race and we don’t want any yahoo’s to screw it
up. Only he wasn’t quite that diplomatic.
The next day was spent at Martin Buser’s house and he went over drop
bags with an itemized list of what he sends to each check point (takes
the guess work out of it). He went over dog care and the nutritional
requirements for optimal performance. We toured his kennel and he gave
a run down of the trail with a nice slide show. Of course the hills
never look as big in pictures as they do when your team drags you down
them.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 07 December 2007 )
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