Iditarod Insider has been highlighting two Iditarod mushers each week in a short video clip. This week, the Iditarod Insider featured Ryno Kennel! Check it out!
http://iditarod.com/insider-features-ryne-olson-and-ryan-redington/
If you haven't subscribed to the Iditarod Insider yet, now would be a great time! The Insider allows you to track all the mushers during the Iditarod as well as watch short clips of various teams and interviews of the mushers.
Panorama View
Sunset on the trapline
While Maliko, the race dogs, and I have been busy training for Copper Basin, the trapline crew of Derek, Chagga, Earl, and Frosty have been enjoying the beautiful views of the trapline. Frosty grew up with Matt Hall outside of the small community of Eagle, Alaska, so for Frosty, life on the trapline is heaven. He spends his free-time exploring the forest around the cabin then leads the yearlings when it's time to "work." For Earl and Chagga, it's a great learning experience and gets them in touch with their roots. They get to explore untouched wilderness, breaking trail, moving slow and pulling heavier loads with lots of stopping to set and check traps. In addition to learning patience, they receive lots of one-on-one interaction and quickly learn that if they don't pull hard, the sled doesn't move. When not running the line, Earl and Chagga get to romp and play around the cabin. Oh, and I forgot to mention the final member of the trapline crew- Jezzy! Jezzy gets to run in front and scout the trail. She even caught a marten! Good dog!
I spy Frosty the trapline dog in his favorite sleeping spot. Can you?
Occasionally Derek finds remnants of the trappers of old. Here are a couple videos of rundown trapper cabins that Derek stumbled upon. Interestingly, the majority of their gear and belongings are still left in the cabins. The video on the right is particularly unique because the cabin is located underground!
Here's a video of Derek, Frosty, Earl, Chagga, and Jezzy in action!
With the Copper Basin 300 just a short 11 days away, we've been going out on our final big training runs and campouts before crunch time. Known for big climbs, open water, and rugged trail conditions, the Copper Basin will be a major test. We've been preparing by training in similar conditions. Here is a photo and video from a couple days ago of the main team breaking trail up to the top of one of the highest points in Two Rivers. We were racing the sun in an effort to reach the top during daylight, and boy, was the view worth it.
This is an exciting year for me in particular because for the first time ever, there are options for the main team. Ryno Kennel is still relatively new (3 years old), and my team has always been comprised of the 12 available dogs. Occasionally, 12 Ryno Kennel adults were not ready to race, so I borrowed dogs from fellow mushers and kennels to help fill out the team. This year, we're training 26 athletes (5 returning from Amanda Gecas at Boundary Kennel), of which all are 2-years-old or older. Picking the final 12 for my Copper Basin team will be a challenge, but one for which I'm thrilled! Depth is important for any sports team, and we're finally getting to a point in our growth that Ryno Kennel has enough athletes to choose the best 12 for each race and situation. Bring on the Copper Basin!
I couldn't be more proud of the athletes as they rocked their second race of the season- the Solstice 50. Ham, Cartel, and Katy alternated running lead for me and kept a fast pace all the way through the hilly course. Niagra and Fire led the way for Maliko and did a fantastic job navigating the 2-year-olds through frozen overflow, tight trails, steep inclines, and lots of team passing!
A big thank you to all the volunteers and the trail boss Abbie for putting in an INCREDIBLE trail. Loads of fun all around. Here are some photos taken by Sebastian Schnuelle during the race.
To see all of the results, check out the Two Rivers Dog Mushers Facebook page. Also, if you haven't like Ryno Sled Dog Kennel on Facebook yet- you're missing out on lots of fun updates!
Today Ryno Kennel partakes in our second race of the season- the Solstice 50! This is a race organized by our local Two Rivers Club that begins in “downtown” Two Rivers at Pleasant Valley Store. From there, it heads north where we’ll spend about 2/3 of the race traversing the steep hills of the firebreak (time to see how fit the musher is). The remaining 1/3 of the race will be winding through the spiderweb of trails in the Chena Valley until we return to finish at Pleasant Valley Store. Time to celebrate the 3 hours and 42 minutes of sunlight- it’s Solstice!
Ryne’s Team
1. Boone
2. Cartel
3. Drummer
4. Fez
5. Ham
6. Jana
7. Katy
8. Lefty
9. Perm
10. Pirate
11. Rucu
12. Supai
Maliko’s Team
1. Belle
2. Brant
3. CJ
4. Charley
5. Coot
6. Drake
7. Eider
8. Fenton
9. Fire
10. Kindi
11. Niagra
12. Sally
Packed up and ready to go- 3:15 PM sunset
Recently, two teams of Ryno Kennel athletes headed to the White Mountain Recreation Area for a camping trip. The majority of the trip was in darkness, which makes for spectacular Aurora Borealis viewing but not so great for pictures. We managed to snap a shot of the truck on our way to the White Mountains with the sun setting. It was around 3:00-3:15 in the afternoon.
Most of the time running dogs, I let my mind wander, gazing at the northern lights and mesmerizing motion of the dogs effortlessly gliding down the trail. However last night, just as I was getting lulled into the rhythm of dog mushing, I was jolted awake by a sudden burst of speed from the dogs. They could all smell or see something that I could not. Looking around, I noticed deep moose tracks, so my first thought was that a moose was in close proximity to the team. Moose can be extremely dangerous for a dog team, so I was on high alert, searching for any sign of movement. Just then, a burst of motion came flying from the left. I jumped, reaching for my ax thinking a moose was about to trample the team. You can imagine my surprise when Drake (running in the wheel position directly in front of the sled) catapulted into the air and snatched a thrashing grouse right from mid-flight. I had a front row seat to Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. SO COOL. And as you can see from the picture, Drake was quite proud of himself too. Grouse is on the menu for dinner tonight!
Drake proudly shows off his grouse.
Just in time for the holidays- we have puppy posters for sale! Check out the Gear page and get your very own Ryno Kennel Puppy Poster!
As promised, here's a video of the incredible scenery of the Alaska Range. Five moose, beautiful views, rugged peaks, rejuvenating sunshine- doesn't get much better!
We had a blast at the Alpine Creek Excursion Race this weekend cruising down the pristine Denali Highway through the incredible Alaska Range. Ryne and Team covered the 51-mile race in 4:57 placing 6th and averaging 10.2 miles per hour! Maliko and Team weren't far behind, placing 18th with a time of 5:32. It was a fun, successful weekend with lots of great training. Thanks to Alpine Creek Lodge for organizing the race! Video of the incredible views and a herd of moose coming soon!
Cartel and Katy- Snack time?
Perm and Kindi
A picture from last year's race
Today we kick off the 2015-2016 race season with the Alpine Creek Excursion Race! This is a great early season event that races 50 miles down the Denali Highway to Alpine Creek Lodge. From there, teams can mush out at their leisure or stay and continue to train on the Denali Highway. Last we heard, 54 teams were signed up for the race! Every two-year-old and older will be racing from Ryno Kennel. Check out the teams!
Ryne’s Team
1. Boone
2. Cartel
3. Fez
4. Fire
5. Ham
6. Katy
7. Kindi
8. Pirate
9. Perm
10. Rucu
11. Sally
12. Supai
13. Jana
14. Drummer
Maliko’s Team
1. Amy
2. Belle
3. Brant
4. CJ
5. Coot
6. Derby
7. Drake
8. Eider
9. Fenton
10. Lefty
11. Niagra
12. Rockwell
13. Charley
The saying for Alaskan winters is "it's never easy." Whether it's a simple task like starting your car or a perfectly planned trip to the Denali Highway, Mother Nature has the final say. While most initial reactions to a frozen pipe, non-starting car, snowed in driveway, an open creek crossing that should have been frozen, overflow, or any other obstacle is cursing and flopping over, it's these very challenges that make life exciting. It's the "well....crud" moments that create an adventure worth telling about.
We had big plans for Thanksgiving. My brother Nick and sister-in-law Cass were visiting for the holiday, and this was Cass's first time to Alaska. Since they were braving the cold and dark of an Alaskan winter to come up and visit, I wanted to show them a good time. The plan- take 27 dogs, 2 snowmachines, and 5 people the 65 miles down the unmaintained Denali Highway to Alpine Creek Lodge for Thanksgiving. It sounded simple enough. On Tuesday we loaded up the two trucks with everything we could think of and drove the four hours down to the start of the highway in Cantwell. Reading the Winter Weather Advisories and seeing the drifted over Parks Highway should have been a hint, but dogs and snowmachines are the ultimate trail breakers, so we didn't think about the 25-30 inches of snow falling around us. Our next hint was the parking area at the start of the highway. It was nonexistent. Or rather, a field of deep powder. No problem though, with five people we just shoveled out two large parking spots and a tent site.
Toasty warm in the Arctic Oven Tent.
The next morning we awoke to two more feet of fresh powder. Derek unloaded the snowmachines and quickly realized they can't make it in these conditions. Big mountain machines probably could, but his Tundras were not equipped for such deep snow. My next thought was perhaps the dogs could break trail and the snowmachines could follow behind? Ok, for 65 miles that's a little unrealistic.
Claude's machine bursting into flames.
I called Jennifer Bondy at Alpine Creek Lodge and described the situation at our end of the Highway. Her husband Claude and Andy Pace from Hey Moose! Kennel decided to take snowmachines from the Lodge to the start of highway to break open a trail for everyone. Several other snowmachiners were also planning on spending Thanksgiving at the Lodge, so between Claude, Andy, and the rest of the snowmachines, there should be a good trail. Well, the pictures do a pretty good job of illustrating what happened. Claude's machine burst into flames just 20 miles from us. Andy and Claude were forced to return to Alpine Creek Lodge (check out Alpine Creek Lodge's Facebook page for some funny videos of Claude describing what happened and giving the machine it's own eulogy).
Claude with his snowmachine after it burst into flames.
Kristin from Hey Moose! Kennel and Jennifer Bondy called with the news of Claude and Andy's predicament. But even though they didn't make it all the way to us, a family (who we deemed the Super Family) was coming from our direction and has big mountain machines to put in a trail. They were driving up from Anchorage and would be there in an hour or two. We decided to wait a little longer.
Ryne and Nick relaxing in the tent.
An hour later, Kristin called back- the Super Family would be late. They were delayed by an avalanche across the Parks Highway. More waiting. In the meantime, I decided to take out the dogs and break open a little bit of the trail by dog team. The snow was so deep that we tried out the loose leader technique. Lefty ran free in front of the dog team to put in a trail unencumbered by a tug line. Amazingly, Lefty did fantastically well even though we've never practiced or trained for loose leading. He stayed just a short distance in front of the team and ran in a straight line down the trail. When I'd whoa the team to catch my breath (I was peddling and running behind the team), Lefty would stop and look back, waiting for the go cue. Then, I'd holler, "ready, alright!" and off we'd go with Lefty breaking the trail. While this was all good and fun, I realized we were traveling at around 1 mile per hour. Breaking open 20 miles of trail was extremely unrealistic at this pace. So we decided to turn around and head back to camp to wait for the Super Family.
Derby and Coot posing with the Arctic Oven
By the time we arrived back at camp it was 6:30 PM, and we realized making it to Alpine Creek Lodge for Thanksgiving just wasn't going to happen. By 10:00 PM, we heard a revving engine outside our tent. The Super Family had arrived but were stuck in the deep snow. A little creativity and lots of digging later, their truck and trailer were free and headed back down to find a better place to park. Fast forward to the next morning (Thanksgiving morning) as we were packing up to leave. The Super Family had slept in their truck without sleeping bags or pillows and were boldly going to still try and make it to Alpine Creek Lodge. They buzzed by our camp on snowmachines and just before they got out of sight, we could hear the revving of an engine. They were stuck. A couple hours later, they came back by our camp. In barely 400 yards, they'd already burned up a belt on the machine and were headed home.
We'd all come to the same conclusion- you win Mother Nature.
We drove home to Two Rivers laughing about our "failure" and knowing that this would be a Thanksgiving story for a lifetime. And don't worry- we didn't just eat peanut butter sandwiches and sit in a tent for Thanksgiving. We arrived home just in time to eat Thanksgiving dinner with all our friends in Two Rivers, making me feel so thankful for all the adventures, friends, family, and incredible dogs that make life complete.
Ryno Kennel is home to Iditarod and Yukon Quest veteran, Ryne Olson and her growing sled dog racing kennel in Two Rivers, Alaska.
All Photos Taken by: Scott Chesney, Julien Schroder, Kalyn Holl, or other Ryno Crew. All rights reserved. Please contact prior to using any photos.
BIG THANKS TO THE RYNO TEAM
Big Dan’s Trucking
Rick and Sue Patton
All Dog Sponsors
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