Hello Boys and Girls,

It is hard to believe that December is almost over! This is a very busy time of year. Not only is it a holiday season, but it is mushing season. Many sled dog races take place over the next few months. Some of the Iditarod mushers, both rookie and veterans enter those races to give them practice in racing their team. Some of the races are considered ‘qualifiers’ for Iditarod.

In order to race in Iditarod, mushers have to have met certain standards or qualifications. You can learn more about that at the website by going to the menu tab, For Mushers, and clicking on “Iditarod Rules”. Important information about the rules and the race can be found at that section of the website and every race fan should take a look at that section of the site to learn about the checkpoints, the gear, and everything mushers need to know.

Speaking of gear, have you ever heard of a snowhook? K-9 Journalist, Libby filed a report that I know you’ll find interesting.

Happy Holidays!

Lots of Tail Wags,

Zuma

Libby Here!

Running is something that sled dogs, as well as a lot of other kinds of dogs, love to do. I’ve heard mushers say that ‘starting’ the team on a run is easy, but stopping them is not always so easy! Have you wondered how a musher gets the dog team to stay put once the team is stopped?

When mushing in snow and ice conditions, mushers use ‘snow hooks’ to hold a team in place. A snow hook, sometimes called an ice hook, is like an anchor because once it is stuck in the snow or ice, it anchors or keeps the sled in place, kind of like a boat is kept in place by an anchor. The snow hook is designed to dig into the snow, ice, or sometimes even a tree stump. The hook is used to holds the team in a parked position for a short amount of time. Snow hooks are made of metal and are of different weights. The ‘hooks’ which are sometimes called claws, come in different designs. The angle of the hook helps the hook dig deeper into the snow or ice when a team pulls on it, keeping the sled and team parked. To set the snow hook deeper, a musher can step on the snow hook, pushing it down further. When the musher is ready to leave, pulling the snow hook up is a clue to the dogs that the musher is ready to leave. The dogs are eager to leave so they don’t usually need to hear much from the musher. Off the team goes!

The snow hook is connected to the sled by a line and is stored on the sled. Sometimes the hook is in a holder or ‘holster’ on the handle bar of the sled. There are many kinds of holders and many kinds of snow hooks. If you are interested in learning about snow hooks, tell your teacher to help you find out more information about snow hooks. Sometime, if I have nothing to do, I am going to make a chart that shows different kinds of hooks, what they are made of, and how much they cost. That would be so interesting. If you make a chart, you should send me a copy so I can see what you learned! Better yet, when you are done doing some research, you should try and design a better snow hook. What fun!

Snow hooks are important ‘details’ that mushers have to know about in order to run and hold a team in a parked position.

Oh, by the way, I went on a holiday of my own not long ago and my trip to Jamaica was so incredible! I had so much fun running on the beach and enjoying the weather that by the time I remembered to track down the Jamaican sled dogs, the team was out on a training run. So, I didn’t get an interview with the team, but next time I’m there, I’ll track them down!

Running on the beach made me think about what it would be like to try and park a dog team in all that deep sand. I bet the Jamaican musher needs a ‘sandhook’ to stop the team!

Just spinning some details!

Libby Littles