Mongrel Hordes - a feast for all senses!

In addition to the delights and adrenaline rush of dashing down twisting wooded trails behind happy-to-be-racing-in-summer canines, the Chocolate Claim is sending Jocelyn ZeeWhite with gluten free cookies, coffee, tea,  chocolate cake and carrot cake! She's also bringing three teams! So, can everyone please fill up on delicious cake just prior to their races, eat your fill, it's delicious...except me, I'll wait till we've finished...what? competitive? me? noooo...

and of course that is in addition to Eagle Pack's most excellent Dog Food; the Wharfe on 4th's delicious hot smoked Sockeye; Icy Waters Ltd delicious Arctic Charr; Yukon Brewing's most thirst quenching specially brewed chilled T-shirts; and the Chiropractic Dazhaw Du Clinic's ointments to relieve race wear for Dogs and monkeys alike!

And that big yellow thing in the sky, now what's it called again, has reappeared! Race is good to go!

Icy Waters Ltd "Open House"

CHT/Dryland Sponsor Icy Waters Ltd, producers, processors, and purveyors of Fine Arctic Charr are holding an open afternoon on Sunday 31st August, 1pm - 6pm. km 4.2 Fish Lake Rd.

Tour the facility, see the fish, processing demonstration, and enjoy fresh Arctic Charr burgers and shade grown coffee courtesy of Starbucks.

Just in - Chiropractic Dazhaw Du Clinic Prizes

For the Monkeys - "Medistick" anti-inflammatory warming creams, as used by the Toronto Argonauts;

For the Dogs - "Traumeel" homeopathic anti-inflammatory ointments.

You can't win prizes like these at any other Dryland event in the Yukon! The CHT has it all!

Mongrel Hordes Race Details

Race Date - Saturday August 30th, 6pm

Location: On Gentian Lane, 3km South of Carcross Corner on the Alaska Highway. Susie Rogan (hosting the event - thanks Susie!) will be putting out signs from the highway to her lot. If you get lost, or need better directions give Susie a call at 668 2703, or email gattsled@hotmail.com 

Mushers Meeting at 6pm

Race Officials: 

Laura Jane Lucas, Gene Ennis, Mel Bedard (no comparisons with MacBeth, thank you very much)

Race 1

1 mile 1 pet dog - race on a scooter, on foot, on a bike, or anything else unpowered with a pet dog attached to you.

Asha the Racing Rottweillor will be back, reminding Jon that 1 mile is quite far enough, thank you!

Race 2

1 mile 1 sled dog - again anything goes, but this time you are racing with a sled dog. Usually faster than Race 1.

We hear that Hans Gatt will be back out with "Big Teeth" Tundra to defend his 2 second lead over Janet Keller and "Pretty Boy" Ringo from the last race.

Race 3

2 mile 2 sled dog - any mode of unpowered transport. Faster than Race 2, and with more chance of spills - ask Martin Jahr if you wonder why a helmet is really necessary.

After victory in the earlier Phillipe's Bike Repair Hot Hounds, Assman and Emma may well ditch dead-weight Jon at the earliest opportunity to ensure victory over monster freight-puller Baby Jesus with Susie Rogan at the helm, whilst Earl Shaw with two of the Drag N Fly Dogs is looking to improve by just a few seconds to get ahead of those semi-feral beasts Jack n Harris leading out in front of Stacie Zaychuk.

Race 4

Formula 1: Powered Quad - 4 to 8 dogs; Unpowered Quad - 8-16 dogs. 2 miles. Mass Start, trail narrows to ten feet wide after 800m so getting into pole position early is important, and no chance of a slingshot until the final straight.

An icy chilled Yukon Brewing T shirt to the Quad with the best (or any) decoration - c'mon, use your imagination.

Potluck BBQ all evening.

Entry fee $10 for each race. All proceeds to CHT Org funds for redistribution as prizes in races for the 2008-9 snow season. 

Helmets Mandatory for Races 1-3. Body armour, as always, helps prevent gravel rash, stops rocks cutting into body tissue, and protects from willow whiplash amongst other more unfortunate injuries. What price a shattered forearm just before the snow flies? You have been warned and have to sign the disclaimer anyway

Prizes! (Goodies)

Eagle Pack Dog Food and money saving vouchers from Hans Gatt and Eagle Pack

Chilled T shirts from Yukon Brewing

Hot Smoked Sockeye from Wharfe on 4th

Frozen BBQ size Arctic Charr from Icy Waters Ltd

Stuff - we're still not quite sure what stuff - but certainly prizes have been pledged from Dr. JF Latour's Chiropractic Dazhaw Du Clinic

The organisers are planning for a fun controversy-free event...this time. If you need to come in a cab, please make sure the debit machine is working before you get in, even if it isn't a Premier Cab. 

Mongrel Hordes Sat Aug 30th, 6 pm

KCIBR donates Snow Fencing to CHT

Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay kindly donated all its snow fencing recently to the C HT Organisation. No longer will volunteers struggle with freezing fingertips at -25'C (and lower) setting out fraying and splitting marker tape on the course, and no longer will teams be able to rip through it (well, not easily anyway, I'm sure some will try...). The new snow fencing will make the trail easier to follow, and require less volunteers suffering mild hypothermia out on the course! Thank you KCIBR!!

Jean Francois Latour's Chiropractic Practice sponsors Mongrel Hordes!

Newsflash - JF's Chiropracty will be donating some prizes to the four race "Mongrel Hordes" meet, Sat Aug 30th, and is also on board to swell the prizes for the coming Yukon Brewing Copper Haul Twister League!! Thank you JF! 

Syntax Error

The editors would like to apologise for any embarrassment caused by the unfortunate random insertion of an extra "r" in a previous article whilst describing the problems Hans and Jon were having in handling Stacie Zaychuk's semi-feral beasts Jack and Harris.

We are assured this was a computer syntax error - which just goes to show how useless "spellcheck" can be.

NEWSFLASH: Mongrel Hordes Classic - Dryland at Golden Horn

Next Dryland Races:

Saturday Aug 30th, 6pm, Potluck BBQ - Susie Rogan's place out at Golden Horn - all details to follow, but we know the Formula 1 will be a mass start on the airfield - prize for most stylish (or brash) team and quad: Powered quads with 4-8 dogs, unpowered quads 8-16 dogs, 2 mile loop.

Prizes so far pledged - Eagle Pak dog food and vouchers from Hans Gatt, Chilled T shirts from Yukon Brewing, Arctic Charr from Icy Waters Ltd...and counting.

More Details to follow

Phillipe's Bike Repair Hot Hounds - photos Stacie Zaychuk

Stacie Zaychuk waits relaxed at the start, whilst handlers Jon and Hans desperately work to control her semi-feral breasts Jack and Harris. Finishing 3rd in the 2 sled dog 2 mile, Stacie commented that it was good fun, but she was definitely doing freight pull again after her Ripper came second in the Lightweights and took home about $120 worth of First Mate's Extreme Dog Food as the prize
Asha the Rottie bursts out of the start chute to win the 1 mile, before going on the win the Freight Pull with a weight of 565lb - not too shabby for a Mae Bachur rescue! Jon has thought about entering the Iditarod with Asha as wheel dog, but she told him she wasn't a poodle and to forget it!
Catherine Wallis runs down lone Canicrosser Chrissy Murray in the Pet-Dog. Finishing second and elated by this success, Catherine plans to be the first to bikejourer on the Yukon Quest (allegedly, so someone else said).Sebastian Schnuelle returns from a fun run, vowing to get a scooter and thinking "..now why can't the Alaska side of the Yukon Quest trail be as smooth as that?"

Catherine takes her dog for her first race, and returns to take Pet-Dog second place

"But Hans" complains Tundra "The food is back in the truck" as Race Marshall Mel Bedard drags the reluctant champ-to-be back to the start line.

CHT Sponsors Return!!

The Yukon Brewing Copper Haul Twister enters its 3rd Season, November 2009, with Yukon Brewing at the helm! Paying an awful lot of money as League Sponsor, we need YOU to buy their beer so they can afford a 4th Season! Remember the 5% rewards programme when you buy from the Brewery (now you don't get that at the Liquor Store) - you also don't get the draught Growler (slightly more than 6 pack) beers at the liquor store - Chocolate Brown, IPA, Euro Pilsner, and my (waking up on the sofa at 4.30am) favourite Yukon Birch Sap Ale.

Also back for the Race Days are Oscar's Electric (Installation, Repair, they do it all, and keep going when the Duracell Bunny has long since lost all spark); Icy Waters Ltd - Health Food in fish form - Omega 3s and Vitamin D in abundance; Duffy's Pets and Tanzilla Harness Supply - Dog Gear, Dog Food, as well as a superb pet store; Alpine Vet, with a sled dog kennel discount and 24 hour service.

the Copper Haul Twister...where all the cool dogs go

Discussion Point - Should Dog Kennels be classed as Farms?

(uh oh, The blog goes serious)

No seriously, the Yukon Agriculture Association's (YAA) newsletter "The Ploughboy" recently ran an article regarding animals that are used to provide an income for their owner. Horses are regarded as farming here by YTG and Federal Agriculture, but Dogs aren't. Therefore Dog Kennels are excluded from the benefits of Agricultural Programmes.

Initial discussion with YTG Agriculture was very short, about two letters long actually - "no". The Feds felt classing Dog Operations as agriculture wasn't a good idea "given the number of sled dog operations in the Yukon" - which is no basis for a system of democratic government: there's too many, so the answer's "no", if there were just a few it'd be ok.

The article sums up the pros and cons very nicely I believe (probably because I wrote it) however, if you are interested in furthering the "sled dog voice" in the Yukon, please email Rick Tone (Executive Director YAA: admin@yukonag.ca ) and ask for an electronic copy, then please send your comments back to Rick. As a Board member of YAA I am bringing this to the next YAA Board Meeting, and I need support from dog mushers. If I get support we can take it back to the Government

Bringing Dog Kennels into Agriculture will more than triple the number of active farms in the Yukon, boost Agriculture's standing in Government, and give financial and political support to Sled-dog operations - we might actually be recognised for the economic benefit we bring the Yukon, as well as our cultural and heritage benefits.

Jonathan Lucas, Board Member YAA, Board member ACAAF, Vice-President Dog Powered Sports Association of the Yukon, Vice President, Aquaculture, Icy Waters Ltd

What Really Happened!

So, why did a nice policeman grab Suzie Rogan at the Phillipe's Bike Repair Hot Hounds races? This is the real story:

A couple and their dog, whilst travelling from California to Alaska heard about the races via CKRW "The Rush", but their car was in for repair. Calling a taxi company they asked if they could pay by debit and were assured all the cars were fitted with debit machines. Upon arrival at Drag n Fly kennel they were informed by the driver that his machine was broken, and where was the cash? Negotiations ensued, the young lady got out, the dog slipped its collar and whilst she was getting the dog under control, it appears the driver lost his control and shot off with his other passenger's feet dragging on the road with the door open. Cries of "Help Help! I'm being kidnapped! Call the cops" echoed down the road as the soles of the passengers shoes wore away and quickly heated up. All this in front of a rather stunned twenty-odd Drylanders and volunteers (and their dogs).

Whilst the taxi company and the RCMP were being called, the taxi driver returned (minus a passenger - bundled out somewhere further down the highway) and started to swear at and generally verbally abuse Race Marshall Melanie Bedard. Melanie listened for as long as it took to draw breath  and replied with a steady flow of characteristically controlled francophone invective which drove the taxi away (literally).

Everybody was agreeing that Dryland racing really had a lot of excitement going for it when the taxi re-appeared (like something out of a '60s bad B-movie) with the RCMP, which became something else again.

By now the young lady's partner has walked back from where he was dumped, having put out the fire out on the soles of his shoes, and is ......upset....annoyed...angry (I'm sure Mel could put it very well)  and proceeds to "talk" to the RCMP, at which point 20 witnesses also want to point out that it ...  "...looked a lot like kidnapping, bloody dangerous driving, the driver's an idiot, never using that taxi company..." At this  point Mr RCMP apparently sticks out his chest, points at everyone and bellows "Be quiet, or I'll arrest all of you" (shades of Monty Python and the Holy Grail there) - which doesn't go down too well, especially with independently minded people who risk death and mutilation by mother nature every winter. And the dogs were even less impressed - I know 'cos they told me later at the watering hole. Although I do believe everyone did go quiet..... except Susie. I'm not sure what was said, but it caused a lunge, and a grab, and something about drinking alcohol in public - which was again unfortunate as Susie's can was a highly non-toxicating <0.5

At this point (thank goodness) Crown Prosecutor Lee Kirkpatrick and RCMP (Retd) Jim Hajash appear and begin interceding proceedings (erm, legal speak for "calming"); Adam, our male visitor from California is led away to race after telling the RCMP officer "I want to talk to the police, not you, you're an idiot". Adam goes on to take 3rd in the Pet Dog and received a Yukon Agriculture Association T shirt (no, it really was a T-shirt, YAA aren't a brewery).

Mr Taxi left, presumably to terrorise more clients; Mr RCMP also left, alone - I don't think he could have got twenty people and their dogs in his car anyway; and we all got down to the fun business of dog racing.

Which Taxi company was it? Well, we shall wait and see if they wish to make amends by providing the CHT Org a few prizes, before we name and shame :)