Despite still being too young to skijor, Rudy provided PLENTY of entertainment at all of the trailhead interactions on yesterday morning's skijor :)
"I'm still having trouble with this 'too young to go' concept. Explain that again. I think I am PLENTY big enough!" states perplexed Rudy who is more than convinced he is
big enough to run with the big boys :)
Despite many questions from Rudy at the start of the day's run, Zorro and I still left him (and Jack and Nancy) behind to do a quick 5.4 mile skijor before arriving back to pick up Jack...
Flying Z as we are 2nd or 3rd tracks on a freshly groomed speed track!
Done with a quick out/back with Zorro and time to pick up Jack for his turn to skijor:
"Hey little bro, ready to go?" says Zorro to Jack.
"You bet, hook me up!" declares Jack.
"Wait, wait, WHAT ABOUT ME!!! Didn't you come back for ME!?!?!?!?!" exclaims silly
Rudy trying to look as big as he can so he can run with the big boys.
As I split the gangline off Zorro to add Jack, Rudy made sure he was front and center to get my attention. Clearly the musher (me) was unaware that we had really come back for Rudy :)
"Just say it! JUST SAY IT! Say you came back for MEEEEEEE!!!!" demands silly Rudy.
"Really, this silly kid!" states happy Zorro.
Despite the question (and protests) from Rudy, we really did come back to hook up Jack and not Rudy. Zorro, Jack and I did a fun 0.4 mile skijor as we are slowly building growing Jack into more distance. If you remember years past, Max and Zorro were famous for their "hover husky" shots where they would appear to be levitating above the trail in unison. Well, we almost got our first hover husky of Zorro and Jack; but Jack was just a few toes away from a perfect shot:
Sprinting hover huskies as Jack is a couple of toes away from levitating with Zorro.
Time to call it a day and get our "end of run" pork treats:
"Serve 'em up!" declares happy Zorro.
"Don't forget about me!" states happy Jack ducking under my left arm to make sure he is in view.
"I'm still confused on this 'too young to go' thing; but I'll certainly accept the treats!" declares
silly Rudy.
Amazing how entertaining a 3 month old puppy can be when he is left behind and his only interactions are at the trailheads! Silly Rudy! Anyway, the big boys did a 5.8 mile skijor (5.4 with Zorro and then 0.4 with Zorro and Jack) with a top speed of 22 MPH and 700 feet of elevation climbed.
2017/2018 Season to Date: 42 days on the trails covering 301.8 miles with 27,100 feet of elevation climbed.
All happy faces as Jack got to participate in his first "extended" skijor yesterday morning (extended being 1/4 mile for young Jack :)
"Wow, that was FUN!!!" exclaims ecstatic Jack at our turnaround during his 1/4 mile skijor.
"I see potential, finally, REAL potential!!!" declares approving Zorro.
Three great things to talk about from yesterday morning's skijor...
First, Zorro and I had a blast FLYING around the freshly groomed trails at Breckenridge Nordic Center. It was a short outing, so Zorro kept it 'pedal to the metal' just about all morning long:
Flying Zorro on perfect "groomie zoomie" conditions!
Come along for a short highlight of Zorro's Zoomie day. We topped 23 MPH somewhere in this fast stretch of trail. Go Zorro, Go!
Second highlight of the day - growing Jack!!!! He's been wearing a "Jr Sledding Harness" the past few months when we hooked him up for his downhill 50 yard dash to finish every outing. Our approach has been, "as soon as he fills the harness, then we'll let him go farther." Well, it had been 8 days since our last skijor and, to everyone's astonishment and glee, when we slipped the jr harness on Jack yesterday morning, he filled it out!!!! Just 8 days ago, he fit the neck band of the harness but the body was loose and unfilled. 8 days later and he's filling the harness. Woo Hoo! What did this mean, Jack got to do his first real skijor. He is still young, so we still have to keep it short. But, Jack, Zorro and I did a super fun 1/4 mile skijor together. Jack had a BLAST (as did Zorro and I).
Woo Hoo, "little Jack" is now "medium Jack" and look at that great form as he is in a
synchronized sprint tuck with Zorro as we lean into a right along the trail.
Third highlight? Well sit down for this one...
Why had it been 8 days since our last skijor when we had been going out at least once and usually twice a week this season? Well, welcome little Rudy to our pack!!! Rudy is 11 weeks old today and joined our pack last Friday. With a new puppy under foot, you can understand why we have not been out on the trails for a bit. But, yesterday was the day to show Rudy what it is "all about". He got to watch Zorro and I leave/return, then watch Zorro/Jack/I leave/return and then experience "end of run" pork treats at the trailhead. Oh boy did he have fun! Here is the "end of run" treats shot:
"Hand them over! I've been working hard!" exclaims happy Zorro.
"Me too, me too, I did a 1/4 mile today!!!" declares happy Jack.
"This looks fun and sure smells DELICIOUS!" says newbie Rudy.
For those who have not seen him from the front yet, here is a great shot of little Rudy learning to "come".
Weeee, here I come!!!
What a fun day: 23 MPH with Zorro, 1/4 mile with Zorro & Jack and "end of run treats" with big Zorro, medium Jack and little Rudy: 4.6 miles traveled with 400 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 23 MPH.
2017/2018 Season to Date: 40 days on the trails covering 290.8 miles with 25,900 feet of elevation climbed.
