Hello! My name is Annika and I am a new musher. I don’t have very much experience with mushing and asked if Kristin would be my mentor and help me learn how to mush. When I first met Kristin Bacon I was really nervous but when I got there and met Kristin I knew it was going to be fine. I do love Kristin dearly.
I first went around the dog yard and met every single dog she has 25 dogs!!! Some of the dogs names are: Mr. Paws, Little Bear, Tricky Mini, Miyuki, Jesse, Fairy, Pixie, Troll, Felon, Libby, June, and Crimson of course. These are the names of some of her dogs.
That first day I learned how Kristin feeds and waters her dogs. I learned how to harness a dog. The tricky part is figuring out how to flip the harness if it is inside out in places. I learned that harnesses come in different sizes and each dog wears a certain size harness depending on their size. It is very hard to put a harness on a dog that is jumping and excited. We got to harness up 4 dogs and hook them up to a cart and go out on a run. The cart has three wheels and no engine but it has a brake. For the rest of training in the fall we used a four wheeler. Kristin taught me how to drive the ATV. There was one week where I hooked up a 16 dog team which is the size of an Iditarod team and we brought them out. One of my fall highlights was getting to personally take out six dogs on the ATV by myself.
December 8th
I went out to Kristin’s on December 8. We still don’t have enough snow in Anchorage (or Big Lake) to run dogs (on a sled). We measured the snow depth- we have 7 inches on the ground but if you step on it the snow packs down to 1.5 inches. This is not enough to keep the snow hook in the ground. I learned that your main brake for slowing and stopping a team is a claw break that you step on.
I learned that even though there’s not enough snow on the ground there still more chores to do with dogs. We put a bunch of frozen salmon into big pots and added water to the pot to cook salmon stew for the dogs to eat.
Kristin has 2 puppies that are just over 3 months old. We bring the puppies out on walks- but the puppies are not on leashes so that they can run and explore. It’s good for puppies to spend time with people so that they will want to be by people when they are older. As the puppies get older their training will change. Right now the puppies are learning their names and some basic commands as well as manners. The puppies are Widget and Wrangle and they are both so cute! I learned that when they get a little bit older the puppies will get to try on and wear a collar.
January 26, 2020
Lessons Learned by Annika (14 years old)
Don’t let go of the sled
Make sure you know how to can hold on to sled and do things (untangle dogs, put booties on and do snaps) with the gloves you choose
Make sure you know how to use a snow hook
Always have hand and toe warmers
Always have fun
Lessons Learned by Megan (Annika’s learning-to-mush buddy, not 14 years old ;) )
Put the drag mat down before leaving the yard
Don’t let go of the sled
If dogs aren’t listening, slow down or stop until they listen
Take extra gear with you
Know your dogs