 |
| | Our Race Season by Kim & Kelly Berg - Kelim Siberians Here in New Hampsire, 50 degree temps & mud season make us realize - our race season is over. We are always sad to see winter leave, but we are very happy with our race results this season and wanted to share them with the group! We ran 4 races this season, many races were against all kinds of teams (Alaskans, Siberians, Malamute/Inuits, Hounds). The only race we ran with a total Siberian field was Eden. This winter we had a few new team members to work with. Last May, NorthWapiti's Skor joined us, along with NorthWapiti's Rainy.
With so many young dogs coming onto the team our goal for the season was to put together one older, more experienced team (we call them the "A" team) and one team of "rookies/yearlings". We split them up in those categories to more evenly match the dogs training experience, age and physical ability. Our snow arrived late - but at least it arrived this year! We decided from training that the "A" Team was going to consist of - NorthWapiti's Skor - (NorthWapiti's Super Grover x Northomes Visa)
NorthWapiti's Rainy - (Chlout's Moses of Velikaya x Chuchinka's San Antonio Rose)
Race Results (23 teams Total) - Our 2nd race was a sprint race (we prefer longer races than sprints - but it was 25 minutes away). We decided to just race the A Team here. The team ran great and we were in first place by ONE second on Saturday. Sunday the second place hound team made some time on us, so we missed first place by 29 seconds. We also ran the 4 dog class to give some of the younger dogs more race experience. A Team - 1st place by 16 minutes Rookie Team - 8th place Race Results (7 teams Total) - Our 3rd race was a 24 mile race on Bear Notch Road in Bartlett NH. The trail was in the best shape we have ever seen it, but the temps were in the 40's, warm for our dogs. We decided this time to give Myst a shot at running on the "A"team and a break from the pressure of lead on the "rookie" team as she is the youngest member of our kennel this year at 15 months. Dodge ran lead with Rainy to give that team a 'seasoned' leader for a change. The A Team had a great run, and I was happy with how they performed given how hot they were. The "rookie" team had it's flattest run of the year. A Team - 2nd place (29 seconds out of 1st) Race Results (14 teams Total) - Our 4th and final race for the season was a two day 10 mile race up at Eden Mountain Lodge. Temps were decent at below freezing each day and it snowed the WHOLE time we were there, sometimes making for quick white-out conditions and hard to find trails. With over a foot of new snow on Friday it was a very slow going, punchy, soft trail both days. It was the type of trail that a dog could easily strain a muscle. The A Team had another great run, and the "rookie" team was starting to look like a veteran team. We had multiple head on passes which the dogs handled well! I should also note that the "Rookie" team had two 'borrowed' additions from Sibersong kennels due to Togo having a strained shoulder muscle and Decal being in standing heat - Weyekin (Linc daughter) and Dawson (Smiley x Lyra son). A Team - 5th place Rookie Team - 11th place Race Results (11 teams Total) - This race season left us very proud of the dogs and ecstatic about next season! A team - 1st place by 13 minutes Rookie Team - 4th place A few quick notes -
- Rainy also lead the "rookie" team in every race. We did a training run yesterday and she was fabulous. Made us realize just how far she has come this season as a leader. She is a very cool dog :) - Viper was the only yearling to make the A Team in every race, something we didn't plan on, but he just ended up there! - Myst was the youngest member of our team, but ran two races in lead - again something we didn't plan on, but she just earned her way there! - Quest lead his first race in Bear Notch and did very well! He is now considered a leader on the team instead of a leader in training (although leaders are always in training in one way or another!) - We had the fastest Siberian team at every race Many thanks to Karen & Mark Ramstead for sharing their incredible dogs and knowledge with us! Their line of dogs never cease to amaze, awe and impress us. We wouldn't be where we are today without their friendship and wonderful dogs!  Kim - Karen - Kelly http://kel-im.com/kelimsiberians/race2007.html Kim & Kelly Berg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No comments:
Post a Comment