Preparing for Race Weekend

Hey, everyone! Dirty dog is almost here! But first, some updates from the week.

Last week, we told you that Pence had lightly tweaked her shoulder. She had a small limp for about 36 hours at most, then has been back to her normal self. She was on house rest and playing in the yard the first few days after her tweak. We eased her in to a couple walks after that, and she did fine.

A few days ago, I took the dogs to my dad’s house to free run and she did her zoomies and scampered all over the yard, perfectly fine. The funny thing was, right when we arrived at my dad’s, I let her out of the car and she immediately ran over to his neighbor’s house and did a number two right in their driveway! I went over to pick it up and the owner was standing near the doorway, watching me walk around trying to find it and pick it up lol.

It was too hot to run the dogs this week, so even if Pence had not injured herself last week, we still would not have been able to run. So, let’s hope our previous fall training was enough!

Pence should be fine to race this weekend. We’ve talked with Q a little bit about various potential dog team combinations for the races this weekend and a back up plan if Pence isn’t able to, but we are very optimistic.

We spent a chunk of yesterday getting everything packed up for the race this weekend. If you hadn’t heard, we will be racing at Redpaw’s Dirty Dog Dryland Race in Pearson, Wisconsin! We raced here a couple years ago and are excited to go back. Right now Saturday looks about perfect weather-wise. Sunday may be a little iffy with rain moving in. I’m really hoping it holds off until after my races because the scooter does not handle well on wet grass, and especially not well on downhills on wet grass!

So, what does packing up for a weekend race look like? It takes a LOT of planning and packing. And we only have two dogs! I can’t imagine what full teams go through!

Luckily, I had a hitch put on my Jeep last year so we are able to tow the bike and scooter behind the vehicle and save room on top/inside.

A new addition this year, we bought a hard case cargo rooftop carrier! We had to purchase one super last minute last year because we didn’t have room and it was soft sided and not very big, so this is a big upgrade. We will use this to carry most of the human luggage, and we have A LOT of it.

With lows around freezing, highs in the mid 50s, and rain in the forecast, we have to pack clothes for multiple “seasons”. We also have to pack clothes to actually race in, which are less bulky, but more aerodynamic, lighter weight, and not as warm. This also means we have to have multiple pairs of shoes, like rain boots, regular shoes, shoes to race in, etc.

The dogs even have their own bag (or, box?)! This is new as well. We realized this fall that when we travel with the dogs to run at other locations, we had just been throwing the gear on the floorboard of the car and had it scattered all about. Well, now we have one place to store it all - dog harnesses, leashes, tug lines, neck lines, helmets, bike tools, clippers, goggles, bowls, brushes, towels, medicine, etc.

We also had to pack meals for the dogs. I separated out their usual portions into Tupperware containers. We’ll buy meat and water once we get up to Wisconsin.

I also have emergency preparedness stuff like a spare tire, tire pump, first aid kit, jumper cables, tool set, etc in the car, because you never know what you’ll need! Is it a little overboard? Maybe.

The dogs definitely know something is up. They’ve been pacing around the house, sniffing all the gear laid out in the dining room. This morning, Boo was running around screaming, trying to get into the car. I think he knows what is going on! Pence on the other hand seems a little nervous like she thinks we may be dropping her off at someone’s house again or something.

We’re excited to see old friends and meet some new ones as well! Stay tuned this weekend for updates on how the races go!

Talk to you soon,

-Hannah, Riley, Boo, and Pence