elenamarie Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 It must be pretty bad up there to cancel these races. Copper Basin 300 canceled because of 'impassible' trail conditions Read more: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Copper Basin 300 canceled because of impassible trail conditions FAIRBANKS  The Copper Basin 300 sled dog race is the latest victim of Alaska’s weird winter weather pattern as race officials canceled the event Sunday morning, less than a day after the race started. The race came to a halt when a section of trail was deemed impassible. A statement by race marshal Greg Parvin said the trail between Meier’s Lake and Sourdough had unusually deep snow conditions, with high winds and bitter cold. Two Rivers musher Allen Moore, who was one of the race leaders, told his handlers that the trail got bad about 12 miles out of Meiers Lake and snowmachines were getting stuck in attempts to break a trail for the race. Meier’s Lake is about 75 miles into the race route. Temperatures were consistently 45 to 50 below zero, according to race officials. “The decision was made in the interest of the dogs, mushers and race staff,†according to a statement the CB300 posted on its Facebook page. Mushers, handlers and race officials returned to Meier’s Lake Roadhouse on Sunday morning, where the decision was made to cancel the race. The Copper Basin 300 bills itself as “the toughest 300 miles in sled dog racing.†This year’s race started at Chistochina and follows a loop to Paxson in the Alaska Range, south to Meier’s Lake, Sourdough, Lake Louise and Glennallen. It is a qualifier for the Iditarod and Yukon Quest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 It must be real bad to cancel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MollynDiesel Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Wow it must be bad! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HuskyMom09 Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Alaska has been getting some horrible weather lately! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sutsibe Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I think a lot of the reasoning was for the sake of the volunteers, who might have to stand around or work out in extreme weather, and thus be at risk. The Alaskan Huskies often aren't as well-suited to extreme weather as our Siberians, as well, though. Even in much milder weather, they often truly need coats and booties on the trail, where the Sibes wouldn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elenamarie Posted January 19, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I think a lot of the reasoning was for the sake of the volunteers, who might have to stand around or work out in extreme weather, and thus be at risk. The Alaskan Huskies often aren't as well-suited to extreme weather as our Siberians, as well, though. Even in much milder weather, they often truly need coats and booties on the trail, where the Sibes wouldn't. Hi Gigi! I need to start a new thread to talk about racing the Alaska Huskies. I watched the Iditarod 2008 documentary and was struck by things like coats, etc. for the dogs. Part of me thinks it's almost cruel to expose dogs not suited to those extremes to that sort of thing. I mean, Sibes and Mals are by nature suited for it, which is why they pulled and ran in the far north for thousands of years. Anyway, very good points! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sutsibe Posted January 20, 2012 Report Share Posted January 20, 2012 Hi Gigi! I need to start a new thread to talk about racing the Alaska Huskies. I watched the Iditarod 2008 documentary and was struck by things like coats, etc. for the dogs. Part of me thinks it's almost cruel to expose dogs not suited to those extremes to that sort of thing. I mean, Sibes and Mals are by nature suited for it, which is why they pulled and ran in the far north for thousands of years. Anyway, very good points! Thank you! I honestly don't think that it truly is cruel, though. The Iditarod committee came up with some very specific rules in regards to what types/breeds can run in the race some years ago, when a gentleman decided he was going to enter and race with a team of Standard Poodles! I can't recall how they performed or for how long, but I seem to recall that he did have to quit fairly quickly because the dogs just weren't suited! The mushers who are breeding Alaskans do work to keep a certain amount of the Nordic traits in their lines, so that they keep the best feet and coats that they can get, and still have the faster, houndy traits. It's possible that they also like the thinner coats, at least to some extent, as given the speed of the dogs, it helps in cooling them when it's warmer out, and they have the option of putting coats on them! That is a definite disadvantage to our Sibes and Mals when it's up around freezing in the Iditarod, which it sometimes is. Both the rules and the fact that without proper care the dogs wouldn't perform act to ensure that the dogs aren't treated cruelly by having them race in the sometimes extreme weather, especially in the Iditarod, where there are regular checkpoints where they can find some amenities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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