Well, that didn't go very smooth....

The pictures are from yesterday when everyone was moving snow and digging out, I built snow lawn chairs in front of our porch, and the crazy afternoon that transpired today.

Today turned out to be pretty interesting. It was freezing, again, when we woke up. It slowly crawled up to -10 as we did our morning dog chores. The sun was shining and, for me, that always helps. We got water, and ate some breakfast before Mark and Rob took off for a snowmobile ride to pack down some trails. While they were gone, I did some dishes, and made some venison stew for dinner. I was hoping to get my blog done while the guys were out, but no such luck. When the guys were back, Mark said we should each take a spin on the sled. I was so excited. I've been nervous, so I figured if I jumped right in, it would shake off the nerves. Mark went over some very basic instructions, and off we went. He was pulling me behind his snowmobile on "The Titanic". "The Titanic" is the biggest sled here, and one that Mark has ridden in the Iditarod. Things started off well. I was so distracted by the smooth ride I forgot the brake. Mark slowed down to remind me about not letting the line slack, and to use the brake. Good advice. I wouldn't say I was comfortable, but it wasn't bad. About half way in, Mark stopped again. Turns out I was using a little too much brake. About two thirds of the way through the trail, mark took a left hand turn, and I didn't follow. I didn't lean enough, or maybe too much, without braking. Next thing you know, I was in the air, then in the snow face first. I jumped right up, and got ready again. Just then, I noticed I had a bloody nose. Luckily I was wearing a face mask, so it acted like a built in Kleenex. I think the fall shook any smidgen of confidence I may have had, and led to three more falls before arriving back in the dog yard. The last fall, I really caught some air. It was on a turn on the return trail. I have been dreading it since the first day I saw it. And it didn't disappoint. It's as vicious as I imagined. Damn it. The only comfort I had in today's run was that one of last years handlers fell 6 times on her first try. But other than that, there wasn't much to comfort me for tomorrows try.

When I got back, it was Robs turn. He's an experienced snowboarder, skateboarder, and wake boarder. So of course, he did awesome. Damn it. When he came back I asked how many times he crashed. None. Zero. I was secretly hoping for just one fall from him. But I'm glad things went well, and if I can swallow my pride for a little while, I might be able to take some pointers from him. We'll see.

Tomorrow Mark will run the Varsity team on a sled, and tow Rob behind him. For 30 miles. He's going first so that he can, hopefully, give me a heads up on how things go. Teamwork:) My big day will be Thursday.

I wanted to say a quick hello to The Sivets. Nice to meet you! We saw you and your awesome looking dogs last week, while we were heading into town. Mark and Mary told us about your rescued Siberians. I'm sure if we do cross paths, I'll be going as slow as I'm possibly allowed:) Thanks for the words of wisdom; "Hold on!". I'm working on it....