The Week at a Glance

I know everyone is starting their Monday and planning the week ahead, but we wanted to share some photos and videos from last week! The weather here remains unseasonably warm. It even rained a little! It felt so strange to wake up to 33F and see photos from my family in Birmingham, Alabama after a fresh snow storm!

Even though it's warm, the Ryno athletes covered lots of miles. Tyler has been running the yearling team for the most part this season, but I hopped on the runners for a day of hauling supplies to our hillside yurt on Trapline Mountain. Nile and King Louie both took turns running in lead with Fire and did great! Cooke, Vanessa, Flash, Amelia, and Blitz all helped haul up supplies as well. Elmer and Badger ran to the staging area at our new property, but I opted not to run them to the top of the mountain because I was worried I'd have too much power on the way down and find myself hurtling down the hill out of control on the return trip. As you can see from the photo and video, the view at the yurt site is incredible! This winter, the Last Frontier Mushing Co-op will be leading overnight aurora viewing trips to the yurt for a nice unobstructed view of the northern skies.

The adult teams (and myself and Liz) went on a field trip to Minto Flats to run with Paige and Cody and the other Squidos. We had a blast running on new trails and and camping with friends. The two-year-olds are all starting to figure out the camping rountine, with the exception of Yuker and Gringa. Gringa will play with anyone close by, and if they insist they won't play with her, then she chews on the line for entertainment. Because of this, she's goes to "time out" and is tied to a tree or the sled by herself with as few distractions as possible. Maybe she just never gets tired? Yuker is just an ultra-cocky teenager and likes to posture and show his toughness, even if everyone around him is sleeping. So like Gringa, Yuker had a "time out" spot to himself. A few more campouts, and I think they'll learn the routine. Ewok, Crunch, and Wingman have all been taking turns in lead. I love seeing confident youngsters running up front! Fish and Uno have non-stop energy. Even when they return home after a run, they're immediately running in circles. Blitz is a little behind in miles because he missed some training for a vet visit this fall (as the Farside comic said, "He went to get tutored!") Blitz is catching up fast though. It's looking like a great group of two-year-olds!

Louise knitted this beautiful beanie made out of soft qiviut yarn. I don't know how she did it, but the Ryno logo and huskies are all knitted into the sides. Incredible! Thank you Louise! We've also been receiving lots of delicious doggie treats from our canine sponsors. I'll be posting photos of the athletes enjoying their treats in the near future! A big thank you to all the Ryno followers- you've been so generous!