TOM

This morning's skijor had a mix of fast & fun skijoring along with a set of Team Organization Meetings...

"Wanna play!" bows silly Rudy.
"No back down here!" replies Jack.

A Team Organization Meeting (or TOM), you ask? Well, a few times a season, I have to stop the team and discuss the objective of skijoring and remind everyone what is not allowed. Not allowed? Provoking, pouncing, dorking and wrestling on the trail. As you see above, we had an outbreak leading to a TOM discussion.

Ok, the discussion went well. Here's a great cornering shot!

Flying around a corner. But, wait, my knee rarely shows on  the camera.
I must be in a serious skiing tuck!

Sometimes skijoring requires some real skiing from me! Come along for a fun wild ride as Jack & Rudy are propelling me along this winding stretch of trail. Anytime you see this much of my skis (or my knees) and/or see Jack & Rudy disappear briefly from the camera, that means I am in a serious tuck trying my hardest to keep upright and in pace with the fun kids! Phew, I made it through this wild stretch upright!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Given that nice video, it seems the TOM went well, right? Well, a little further along and POW from Jack.

Time for another Team Organization Meeting.
But, nice left hook Jack :)

The second meeting went well. Here we are restarted again. Three nice things in this photo: 1) Jack & Rudy are behaving :) 2) the skies have clouded over; 3) it started snowing lightly (notice the snowflake hitting the camera up and left of Rudy).

Yay for a successful TOM!
Yay for snow!

Back to the trailhead and Jack & Rudy were very proud of their antics this morning :)

"I think those meeting went very well!" says innocent Rudy.
"Yea, good discussions!" adds innocent Jack.

A lot of fast & wild skijoring in between two Team Organization Meetings: 9.1 miles traveled with 700 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2022/2023 Season to Date: 16 days on the trails covering 120.2 miles with 9850 feet of elevation climbed.

Share

Beautiful morning for a mid-April fresh tracks skijor!!!

It's not a lot of new snow; but enough to open the throttle and
lay fresh tracks for miles and miles! Wheeee!

Rudy was in a particularly goofy mood at home this morning. Yes, "goofy Rudy" has "exceptionally goofy" days!!! I should have known his silliness would carry over onto the trails. Oh that silly Rudy :)

For example, we were cruising along the trail when a stick became visible. Usually if Jack & Rudy are moving, they will ignore and cruise right on by any sticks. But, remember, today was "goofy Rudy" day, so the silly kid decided to pick up the stick to carry along. He barely even broke stride and suddenly he had this large stick in his mouth as he continued to jog. Of course, goofiness is contagious between Jack & Rudy and Jack was quick to notice Rudy's stick :)

"Hey little bro, nice stick! Can we share?" Jack asks Rudy.
Notice Rudy is still jogging with the big stick in his mouth!
Goofy, but talented!

Of course, once Jack noticed, the kids had to stop to share the stick. Sometimes a stick results in a tug of war and sometimes it results in a polite, brotherly share. Today was "share the stick" day:

"Nice find! Thanks for sharing!" says stick chewing Jack.
"Happy to share!" adds polite Rudy.

Ok, stick sharing episode over, back to skijoring. Come along for a fun video clip as we are on a nice backcountry trail following a set of wildlife tracks along the way. We never found the source of the tracks, but they sure were fun to follow! The snow walls you see on & off to our left are wind blown drifts. Jack & Rudy are perfect at navigating through wind blown terrain. Wheeee!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

The stick and wildlife tracks provided some nice entertainment along the outing. But, we spent the majority of the outing laying fresh tracks in the morning's new & untouched snow. Great day!

Laying fresh tracks again!

Done for the day, let's celebrate with retired mentor Zorro:

"Front & center for that bag of 'end of run' treats!" says focused Zorro.
"Don't drop them!!!" declares Jack.
"Glad everyone enjoyed my extra entertainment today!" adds goofball
of the day Rudy.

Another wonderful outing amidst this nice multi-day mid-April snowstorm: 8.9 miles traveled with 700 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 21 MPH.

2021/2022 Season to Date: 135 days on the trails covering 1145.5 miles with 106,600 feet of elevation climbed.

Play and Run

Stopped to...

"Stopped to take in the nice views of Breckenridge Ski Resort." I said.
"Stopped? Ok, 'stop, drop & roll'!" adds the goofy kids.

Stopped to play 'tag, tackle & roll' - oh those silly 4 year olds!!!!

"Tag, you're it!" laughs Jack.
"Come back on the trail and I'll tag you back!" responds frisky Rudy.

Ok, so stopping on this morning's skijor clearly brought out the silliness in Jack & Rudy. With that in mind, we better not stop the rest of the day :)

Nice skijoring a mini groomed side trail - wheeee!

Mini groomer tracks down the middle with lots of side powder to
use for speed control on the shoulders.

Flooring it on freshly groomed wide trails - zoom!

xx

Then, single tracks side trail again - catching air on the fast track!

Going, going, going!!!

Finally, topping 25 MPH skijoring another freshly groomed wide trail. Come along for a video highlight of the fast, fast fun!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Silly kids playing at any stop on the trail. Impressive kids zooming whenever we were moving on the trail :)

"I taught them to zoom, not play!" mentor Zorro is telling me.
"You stop, we play! Guess you should never stop!" explains goofy Jack & Rudy.

A very impressive skijor from Jack & Rudy today (when we were moving :) - 10.5 miles traveled with 800 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 25 MPH.

2021/2022 Season to Date: 88 days on the trails covering 728.1 miles with 68,200 feet of elevation climbed.

Kids

 Great shot of Jack & Rudy FLYING along the freshly groomed trail!

Love the "snow poofs" behind Jack and Rudy as the FLY along. Zoom!

Every once in a while, Jack & Rudy need to remind us that they are only 3 and 2 years old. Today's reminder started as follows when we paused for a moment on the trail:

"Tag! You're it!" performs Jack interrupting Rudy's snow angel to tag him :)

Well, you can imagine what this impromptu tag from Jack lead to from Rudy....

"Oh my! Here we go..." was all I could think as the play bows and
then subsequent wrestle broke out after Jack's tag :)

Oh those silly young kids!

In between the impromptu play session, we found ourselves on PERFECT conditions at Breckenridge Nordic Center this morning. The trails had been groomed just minutes before we got out and we found ourselves first or second tracks on the perfect trail all morning long! In the first photo above, we are second tracks to ourselves. The ski track you see to the left of Jack is from my skis when we came the other direction on this trail. (you can also see Jack & Rudy's footprints on each side of my track). What beautiful conditions:

Zooming along again with more "snow poofs" coming off the fast kids.

Come along for some of the fast, fast, fast fun as we top 24 MPH skijoring by the Kathy's Viewpoint warming hut. Wheeee

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

What a fun morning, let's go tell elder Zorro all about it:

"Jack started it!" declares Rudy.
"Hehe, I won the game of tag!" adds Jack.
"Kids, such kids!" concludes Zorro :)

A fast day on beautiful trails with comical reminder that Jack & Rudy really are still only 3 and 2 years old :)  9.1 miles traveled with 800 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 24 MPH.

2020/2021 Season to Date: 38 days on the trails covering 296.1 miles with 27,400 feet of elevation climbed.

Play

Such a happy pair of young sled dogs at our turnaround point on the trails this morning!

"We are having a GREAT time!" exclaims the happy pair!

Zorro joined us for a "long Zorro run" yesterday, so he got most of today off. I took the youngsters, Jack & Rudy, on a fun tour on the trails around and on Prospect Hill. We started the day on a soft snowmobile trail to open up the throttle:

Airborne kids hovering over the trail as we open up the skijoring engine. Wheeee!

A little further along and the reality that Jack & Rudy are still goofy 2 year olds came to show itself. As we were going along, Jack gave Rudy a little bump with his left shoulder and then threw himself off trail into a snow angel as if saying, "Tag, you're it - come and get me!" Well, you do not have to tag Rudy more than once to get a response from him. He quickly launched himself towards Jack showing he can do rodent dives to play with his brother in addition to hunting for rodents :)

"Come and get me - I dare you!" says goofy Jack to Rudy.
"Incoming, I'm going to tag you too!" demonstrates Rudy in a beautiful "dive into Jack".

Oh those silly kids. I separated the two and put a stop to the game of tag. We then had a team organization meeting to review the concept of skijoring (e.g., it does not involve wrestling :)

The team meeting went well and we were able to restart and explore the mining relics on Prospect Hill. Here is a fun old mining cabin that Jack & Rudy took time to evaluate for us to use as a second home :)

"Roof looks strong & intact!" says roof inspector Jack.
"Walls look strong and the front door is open inviting us in!" adds building inspector Rudy.

We did an "out & back" route this morning, the "back direction" always has pretty views of Breckenridge Ski Resort across the valley:

Jack & Rudy cruising along in a snowmobile track as Breckenridge
Ski Resort is in view across the valley. Nice views!

Eventually we made it back near the trailhead and added Zorro in the team for a short run to the finish as a full team. Ok, Zorro, take us to the finish!

Power Zorro leading the way for the trio to tow me to the end of the day's run.

Finally, as we end every day - some well-earned 'end of run' pork treats!

"All eyes on you!" says the focused trio :)

A fun day cruising around Prospect Hill with Jack & Rudy with a short moment of unapproved trail wrestling and then a fun run to the finish with Zorro: 8.1 miles traveled with 800 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2019/2020 Season to Date: 115 days on the trails covering 779.2 miles with 71,400 feet of elevation climbed.

Consistent

A beautiful bluebird morning with great snow atop Rabbit Ears Pass!

Flying Zorro alongside sprinting Jack and Rudy.
Flying Z!!!!!

It makes us so happy to see photos like the prior with 11.5 year old Zorro. Beautiful shot of the elder Flying Z!

I had a slight problem getting my boots into the ski bindings at the trailhead. This meant the youngsters were DYING waiting to get going - impatient little kids! As a result, today's video clip is a "take off start" to the day. Watch closely at the start of the video and see polite Zorro is starting gently with me while the monster kids are shot out of a cannon! Zorro quickly gets in the group as I get going and OFF we go!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

We followed snowmobile tracks out & back going fast, fast, fast all morning long. There is one stretch of this trail where we have seen moose three times. Although it has been years since our last moose sighting on this trail (with Max & Zorro, before Jack & Rudy were even born), I can always feel Zorro kick it into overdrive along this moose stretch.

Flying Z again as he is getting the kids to join in and pick up the pace along moose alley :)

Third day in a row with Jack & Rudy doing their new antic: rodent dives & dunks. They are still rolling snow angels at any pause on the trail but they have now added rodent dives/dunks to their repertoire of silly antics. They may be silly; but they are consistent :)

Headless Jack searching for rodents in the snow.
"Here I come!!!!" adds Rudy with his third straight rodent swan dive on a skijor outing.
"Oh jeez, what will they add next?" says Zorro unable to watch.

At least one of my partners listens to the "turnaround" command. Thanks Zorro!

"I'm coming, I don't know about those strange kids!" says happy Zorro.
"Hold on. Still diving, still dunking!" demonstrate the goofball twins.

Finally, some well earned treats after a fast day on great trails!

"Ready!" says the happy & focused trio.

Beautiful morning for a 6.3 mile run with 700 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 21 MPH.

2019/2020 Season to Date: 30 days on the trails covering 193.8 miles with 20,050 feet of elevation climbed.

Comedy

Nice "shot from the front" as we arrive at the trailhead to end this morning's fun skijor.

Happy boys! Yes, I am snowplowing pretty aggressively as the trail ends just a few
feet in front of us!

We had a fast & fun run on the groomed trails at Breckenridge Nordic Center. Most of the day looked like the following photo:

Catching air as we fly along the fast trail!

While most of the day looked like the prior photo, we had a few comical diversions. Come along for the comedy...

At our turnaround point of the outing and guess what everyone did :)

"Rub a dub dub - I'm a headless snow angel!" demonstrates goofy Jack.
"He's at it AGAIN!" states Zorro.
"Cooling my belly!" adds funny Rudy.

And then it is Rudy's turn...

"Ahhh, rolling in Jack's angel imprint!" demonstrates goofy Rudy.
"Not him TOO?!?!?" states Zorro.
"Hey, snowcones are almost as much fun as snow angels!" adds funny Jack snacking on snow.

Here is an interesting shot from the day:

"Hi dad - you are funny!" says silly Rudy.

How on earth did I get that previous photo with my ski sideways? Well, come watch the video comedy of the day. We are just about to enter an extremely steep piece of trail. I had stopped to get myself together before entering the steep section. But, as I start to go, my ski tips cross and I topple over. You can hear me utter "wait" once to get everyone to stop; but I quickly realize the trail is to steep for me to stop! So, I don't try to enforce the wait and simply slide down the trail on my butt instead. Buttjoring at its best :)

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Like I said earlier, a primarily fast & fun outing on groomed trails with a little comedy mixed in: 5.2 miles traveled with 500 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 22 MPH.

2018/2019 Season to Date: 46 days on the trails covering 249.6 miles with 22,350 feet of elevation climbed.

Firsts

The skijoring trio catching air as we skijor the fast trails at Breckenridge Nordic Center!

Hover huskies floating above the trail :)

We had 2 firsts today for young Rudy. First, it was his first time on the trails at Breckenridge Nordic Center. Second, it was his first time skijoring two days in a row! We are still keeping his outings short & easy; but 2 days in a row is a nice milestone.

How did it go? Well, just watch this 30 second glimpse from the day's outing. It looked like this pretty much all day. Fast & fun! Wheeee!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

We stepped off the groomed track and into the side snow for our midpoint break. Look at these happy and goofy guys:

"Fun, fun, fun!" states happy Zorro.
"Wheee - cooling my belly in the deep snow!" adds happy little Rudy.
"Rolling, smiling, loving life!" contributes goofy Jack :)

A quick stop to pickup someone's deposit - you don't get much happier than Jack!

"I'm a giddy giddy Jack!" exclaims super happy Jack.
"I didn't go, I'm not stopping!" declares 'always going' Rudy.
"Oops, I wouldn't have gone number 2 if I'd known you would stop!" states Zorro.

2 days in a row for young Rudy - how did he like it.... guess :)

"These 2 youngsters are coming along nicely." says happy Zorro.
"End of run treats - dish them out!" states happy Jack.
"Are we going out again tomorrow? Pleeeeease!!!!" adds happy Rudy.

Fast & fun on the easy groomed trails at Breckenridge Nordic Center: 4.5 miles traveled with 450 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2018/2019 Season to Date: 32 days on the trails covering 169.9 miles with 15,100 feet of elevation climbed.

Friskies

Max & Zorro had a "case of the friskies" on the trails this morning. Silly Siberians :)

"Hey bro - wanna play 'tag & tackle'?!?" says Max & Zorro simultaneously to each other.

Anyone with a Siberian Husky knows what happens after two sibes exchange a look like the one shown in the prior photo.... Tag & Tackle!

"Coming in for the tag!" declares 'coming low' Zorro.
"Back at you with a tackle!" declares 'coming high' Max.

The "friskies" were out between these two most of the morning. Usually this means they are going to break out into a wrestlefest as we are sprinting along the trails. Amazingly, though, I was able to 'catch and correct' all imminent wrestlefests! Watch today's short video clip for an example of what I was seeing all day long... Partway along the fast terrain and I see unapproved glances starting so call out "Forward" to remind everyone what we are supposed to be doing. Then a "Hey, Hey" to keep everyone focused and finally a "Good" compliment once they abandon this attempted wrestlefest. It was all morning long - it's a wonder I didn't lose my voice :)

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Of course, all sibes are proud of their frisky behaviors...

"What?!? We are having a great frisky day!" say my innocent & happy partners at our turnaround
point of the outing.

Frisky run out & back in French Gulch: 8.4 miles traveled with 900 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 23 MPH.

2016/2017 Season to Date: 81 days on the trails covering 660.2 miles with 71,400 feet of elevation climbed.

Silly Max

Most of the day was "perfect skijoring" as shown below. Most.....

Perfect form as we sprint along the fast packed trail.

Okay, "most of the day" was perfect; so what was "not perfect"? Well, Max lost it. A few times each season either Max, Zorro or both "lose it" on the trail and decide we are playing "tag & tackle" instead of "skijoring". Today was one such day as Max got the wild idea that tag & tackle at 15-20 MPH was a fun idea. Here we go with excerpts from the silly Max incident:

"Hey little bro - want to play 'tag & tackle'?" yells Max to Zorro.

"Apparently you did not hear me, I'll come a little closer... Do you want to play 'tag & tackle'?"
asks Max again after moving closer to Zorro.
"No - go away, I'm skijoring!" responds Zorro the adult.

"Tag - you're it!" performs Max the silly puppy brain!

Put the previous photos together and you get the following video showcasing "puppy brain Max". I see it starting and call an "ah ah" which usually corrects any thoughts of tag & tackle. The "ah ah" doesn't work so I try calling Max out by name - failed again. Last resort as I call out "forward, forward" trying to interrupt Max's silliness. Well, failed again as Max proceeds to tag and toss Zorro off the trail and into the shoulder snow. Tag done and Max (& Zorro) realign and start skijoring again. Silly Max!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Done with the day's run, look who is perfectly happy with his performance this morning :)

"Who me? What are you talking about - I had a PERFECT day!" declares happy & satisfied Max.

A mostly perfect skijor with one case of Max the maximum puppy thrown in for comedy: 8.8 miles traveled with 800 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 22 MPH.

2016/2017 Season to Date: 45 days on the trails covering 344.7 miles with 35,250 feet of elevation climbed.