Brent's Blog

That is the only way to discribe my last run, it was totally amazing the dogs were the the best they have been all season. The best part is that it is the last of a 8 day 340 mile stretch of runs in which the dogs only got stronger with every run. This is really good with the race opener just around the corner. I also got word today from a friend in Minto that the trail to Nenanna is in good shape. So after a few days off I will probablly head there for another run with some new scenery. Overall things are looking really going well. I am getting pretty pumped up about the Copper Basin less then two weeks away. Tom Douglas and company made it up tonight so over the new year we are going to go scouting some new trails with the snow Machines, should be a great time. Better get to bed big day tomarrow. Happy New Year

Bwildanfree

It is amazing how a new trail can really get the dogs fired up again. We trucked to Manley and left out of The Redingtons place the other day and I saw a new life in the dogs. My friend Zack is up right now running with me so we got both teams out on a nice 60 miler. The trail Is really nice for the first 15 miles, after that it gets a little rough but overall the run was a good change of scenery for the dogs. A little more snow and we will be able to go all the way to The village of Tannana. It tried to snow here yesterday, we got a dusting, but that is about it, keep praying for snow. The trail to Rampart is still our best trail the snow just keeps piling up out there. We are headed back to Manley today for 30 mile run before Zack takes off for Fairbanks. thanks to everyone who replyed to my Music request, escpiecally Ryan Walker his 50 gigs of music has totally spiced up my entertainment out there, Especially the Russian Punk!!! Puppy training is also in full swing right now and they are looking good. They are very eger group, it is total pandamonium when hooking them up, it is great to see all the excitment in future race dogs. Kyla is running 6 dog terams everyday and I run with her a few times a week, so they are geting lots of good miles on them. ok gotta run get the dogs loaded. Hope all is well

Bwildandfree

Where do I begin, it has been a while since I have made to town. The cold tempetures that interior Alaska is known for finally hit us. we had 3 days of -40 with a low of -48, everything froze up including our heater, I had to constantly blow out the line and clean the fliter on the tank but we made it through. We had some pretty cold mornings but both Kyla and I survived. Luckly we were able to be very productive during the cold snap. Since it is not so good to run the dogs at those temps, It gave me some time to think about food drops for both the Copper Basin and the Quest and we actaully finished up the food drops for the Copper Basin. We have also had some visitors. Joe and Anna came up with joes Parents, Josh with his mom and Thom with his Brother. It was great to have these guys up. It is always fun to share my crazy way of life with people who have a totally different lifestyle. I really need to thank all of my friends and family for all of there support. This whole season would not be possible with out their help. Between my parents and my friends back in town all of my resposiblities that I cant deal with while I am out here are being taken care of by them. Joe, Josh and Thom all have been doing alot of expediting for me in town, Josh has filled in as my property manager and has found renters for my rental cabins, and my dad (from MN) has been working with Josh to keep eveything up and running properely. This has been priceless, I can not thank these guys enough, I am not in this alone that is for sure. As for the dogs, after the cold snap we were right back at it . I have had to make some cuts so that I can focus more on the stronger dogs so we are down to 23. While Thom and his Brother Ryan were around they were able to help me get a few longer runs in with all the dogs which was awesome. It is hard to ask someone who doesnt mush everyday to go on an 16 hour run but between the Walker brothers they did it. Ryan had never mushed in his life and he went 58 miles and loved every minute of it. Then Thom followed up with an all night 55 miler to finish off the 113 mile run with a bang at 830 Am. There is so much more going on but I would be here all day trying to tell all the stories. From the large burn on my hand to the jog out of Hutlinnana Hot springs in the middle of the night it has been an adventure. Thanks to everyone that has been watching our progress, it is great to see so many people interested in what we are up too. With the Coper Basin just over 2 weeks away race season is upon us, and we will be ready. Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year, Until next time Happy Trails

Bwildandfree

Hey everybody I am in desperate need of new music and audio books if anyone has time and wants to help me out a ton, you could send me some new music or audio. I listen to my ipod out there on these long runs and the 3000 songs and 10 books I have are getting really old. I listen to anything, up beat stuff is the best since I need to stay awake at all hours of the night. AS far as books go adveture life and death stories really get me sucked in and pass the time very well.
My address here is is

Brent Sass
Eureka
PO Box 62
Manley AK 99756

I always wonder if anyone is actually reading this stuff. If there is anybody out there keeping up on our progress dont be shy write me an email or a comment on this site. It would be great to know who is watching our progress. Thanks


Bwildandfree

The hundred milers are in full swing now and the dogs are responding well. Almost all 25 dogs in training have been on two hundred mile runs and are all happy and healthy. I think the runs have been harder on me then the dogs. the trip takes 15-16 hours and doing them back to back has really pushed me, but I am staying healthy and it is great training. The camp I set up is working great, being able to get in a warm tent and get a little rest is key. It has also been nice to train with Sigrid. the last few runs we have done together have been very beneficail. It is nice for me and the dogs to have some company out there. we are able to work on passing, leading and chasing. since there are no other dogs teams out here it is really important for the dogs to have some contact with other teams. Another great thing about living out here has been visting with the locals. It is great to sit down and listen to stories from the hay days of Eureka and also get alot of adviced from these very expereinced people. Ed and Willow Sulter and Joee and Pam Redington are legends in the sport of dog mushing and I am very lucky to be in there presents. They have been very welcoming to us, and seem to be very excited about the new presents of dogs. Sorry I have not gotten any pics up. I cant seem to figure it out, I think that our internet conection in manley is not fast enough to get them loaded up. So when I go in to town for the Copper Basin I am gioing to get a bunch of pics to Greg (my web Guy) to get them put on the site. We have been getting al ittle bite of snow here and there which has helped freshen up the trials and also allowed Kyla to get out on the sled. It was one hell of a first run but i have to say Kyla was great. She had six dogs and was able to keep them under control as my leaders went the wrong way, through all the caose she showed great composer. Even though you never want the first run to be that eventfull, it was all good in the end because I now have total confidence in Kyla and her mushing ablitlies. As you can see there is alot going on out here and everything is going very well. The Copper Basin is less then a month away so the next few weeks of training is extremly important. I have a great feeling about the dogs right now, my biggest concern is that i have to start fuiguring out who I am going to take and who I need to cut from the team. This is going to be hard but something I need to do so I can focus on the strongest dogs. ok I better get going I hope all is well with everybody. Have a Merry Chrstmas and A Happy New Year. Until Next time

Bwildandfree

Just got back from my second 100 miler and it went very well. all the training is really paying off now and I can see it in the dogs, they were are all happy and jumping around after the run. Everybody is eating well and staying healthy which is all a dog musher can ask from his team. gotta run until next time

Bwildandfree

Man where do I begin it has been an awesome week. It was the norweign guys (Anders, Stein, Narve) who have been living at Sigirds place for the past 2 months last few days so we partied pretty hard to see them off. I really became great friends with those guys and it was sad to see them go but I bet they are back soon. As for the dogs, they are awesome we have been going 60 miles and they are flying I still have 24 in training and just realized that I need to start cutting some dogs but at this point that is going to be hard. Caribou, Jack, and Masiah have all been cut they gave it a great run, but they now get to live the easy life running short miles with Kyla. Kyla has been doing a great job geting all the old and young dogs out. because of the low snow she is still on the fourwheeler but I know they are enjoying it. I also have added two dogs to the mix from David Monson. Gangus and Dayo are borthers of Ross and York, which I have had for a few years. they are great dogs and add alot of depth to the team. the snow is still no good right out of my place so I am still running the tobaggan sled up the mountian. but the other side is awesome. the run to Rampart has tons of snow and is great training. This Morning i set up a camp up one of the valleys out there and plan on doing my first 100 mile run tonight. Having that camp set up will be great training for me and the dogs and the arctic oven tent makes it possible to get out of the wind and warm during our breaks. We also finished the dog houses as well, I am going to try and attach a pic. they turned out just how I had imagined. Overall things are going great up here, hope all is well in your world. Until next time

Bwildandfree

Well the temps are finally starting to drop making it more like winter around here but we still don't have the snow we need. I can’t really complain I am on a sled. It is a little bite of a chore but I am making it work. The first five miles of my trail is pretty much blown clean so I rigid up one of my toboggan sleds with really thick plastic so it will survive the bare gravel. Then I strap my race sled in it and storm up over the gravel to the top of the mountain (running most of the way) where there is plenty of snow. There I switch sleds and head out into a winter wonderland. It is not ideal but it works and the plastic seems to be holding up pretty good. the dogs are all looking great, I have a few soar muscles due to the hard trail but nothing serious. It is amazing to think that I even made it to the start line last year with a full time job out at Chena. These days I get up around 6am and don't get back into the cabin until after 8pm. right now I am running two teams a day totally about 100 miles. fortunately I have a great handler and the proper setup here to really be efficient. Training like this is not only benefiting the dogs but me as well, I am going to be in really good shape, which is really going to pay off come race time. Besides the normal wear and tear from crashing every now and then I am staying healthy and uninjured, at this point if it doesn't kill me it makes me stronger. Another good thing (hahahah) about his place is the wind it is amazing it blows so hard it shakes the cabin at times. I am not a huge fan of wind but it is great training for me and the dogs and I have to say it is so strong it is impressive and I find myself wanting it to blow harder just to see how hard it can blow. I may change my tune once it drops to -20 but until then it is a great act of nature to witness. Unfortunately my camera quite working so until i can get another one i will not have any pics, I promise I wlll get some posted at some point. ok I better get going the dogs a howling and raring to go. hope all is well in your neck of the woods. until next time

Bwildandfree

Well the temps are finally starting to drop making it more like winter around here but we still don't have the snow we need. I can’t really complain I am on a sled. It is a little bite of a chore but I am making it work. The first five miles of my trail is pretty much blown clean so I rigid up one of my toboggan sleds with really thick plastic so it will survive the bare gravel. Then I strap my race sled in it and storm up over the gravel to the top of the mountain (running most of the way) where there is plenty of snow. There I switch sleds and head out into a winter wonderland. It is not ideal but it works and the plastic seems to be holding up pretty good. the dogs are all looking great, I have a few soar muscles due to the hard trail but nothing serious. It is amazing to think that I even made it to the start line last year with a full time job out at Chena. These days I get up around 6am and don't get back into the cabin until after 8pm. right now I am running two teams a day totally about 100 miles. fortunately I have a great handler and the proper setup here to really be efficient. Training like this is not only benefiting the dogs but me as well, I am going to be in really good shape, which is really going to pay off come race time. Besides the normal wear and tear from crashing every now and then I am staying healthy and uninjured, at this point if it doesn't kill me it makes me stronger. Another good thing (hahahah) about his place is the wind it is amazing it blows so hard it shakes the cabin at times. I am not a huge fan of wind but it is great training for me and the dogs and I have to say it is so strong it is impressive and I find myself wanting it to blow harder just to see how hard it can blow. I may change my tune once it drops to -20 but until then it is a great act of nature to witness. Unfortunately my camera quite working so until i can get another one i will not have any pics, I promise I wlll get some posted at some point. ok I better get going the dogs a howling and raring to go. hope all is well in your neck of the woods. until next time

Bwildandfree