Training Disasters

• Continued training dogs - listened to advices of sprint mushers.
• Said dogs only fed grain products - keep system clean, and built wheelbarrow rigs - for sprint practice.
• Sprint practice - only speed, no endurance/strength.
• The sprint mushers didn't understand the real strength/toughness of sled dogs.
• Napoleon said morale - important in troops.
• Same with sled dogs - gains strength, confidence, knowledge with practice, know the rewards of running well.
• Diff. between trained and untrained dog - great.
• With light gear sled - 4 to 5 dogs is good, on heavier ones 7 to 8 is good, if more dogs, musher have no control.
• Dogs: Typhoon, Cookie, Yogi, Max, Storm, Steven, Bill, Devil, Murphy, Ortho, Big Mac, Raven, Byron.
• After new dogs added to original seven, team lost gentleness, during first twenty runs, team extremely hard to control, wife said Paulsen look like "A big doggie toy" (75).
• Packed supplies - harnessed dogs to rig, went for a run, dogs flew like the wind, but made turns good. Paulsen forgot to lean in, thrown upside down with rig, clothes ripped, supplies flew off. Stayed upside down for four miles.
• Female dog in heat - all males fighting, worst run ever, but wife said it was the best.
• The next few runs all like that, rig broke everytime.
• Dragged on the ground again, with matches in pocket, they lit, wife laughed hard.
• Saw in newspaper - dogs pulling car - got idea - went to junkyard, got old English Ford - heavier than the 120 pound rig.
• Went well, had more control, did fall off anymore, all was good until ran into a skunk.
• Skunk attack lead dog Cookie, Devil try to pry it off her, Paulsen try to stop fight, got sprayed in face.
• Hit second skunk a mile later, got sprayed again.
• Third skunk a mile later.
• Six skunks that night, sprayed by 5
• Wife said he stank too much, sleep with dogs in kennel.
• Slept beside Devil, tail wagged, dogs started growling and howling - a song, Paulsen joins.
• Stayed with dogs for a few nights, when moved back to house, dogs cry, wanted him to stay.
• Next run - first snow, dogs - acted like team. Devil trips, almost ran over by sled until Murphy bit his harness and haul him up.
• Sled tripped over ditch, Paulsen's leg hooked on sled, dragged for miles, bruised ribs, got cuts, didn't stop until team almost crashed into a deer.
• Dogs never got tired, wife jokes - biggest trouble is to stop them at the finish line in Nome.