Southern California Urban Mushing

Cooler weather in recent days was a nice motivator to get us and the dogs out on the trails for some decent runs at local parks. On Sunday, we met with 7 other scooter teams for a 6-mile run at Aliso Creek Trail in south Orange County. It had been awhile since I ran my three puppies by themselves and it was good to see them working well together. If only our clownboy Silver would rise up to his potential and carry his weight for the entire run.

For updates on our runs, please see the calendar or the Yahoo! Group at www.urbanmushing.com

New date for 4th annual (not so) Great Serum Run

After getting feedback from the registered participants and reviewing the viable options, we have rescheduled the 4th Annual (not so) Great Serum Run to Saturday, January 9, 2010.

This is the soonest date that will work out for most participants. If you've already registered and cannot make that date, we will refund your entry fee (contact our group through info@urbanmushing.com). Of course, this also gives a chance for new dog teams to register for the races!

We'll send out a reminder again in a couple of weeks but everything else remains the same - venue, race classes, barbecue potluck, raffle and t-shirts. Oh yeah, we will once again be raffling off a grand prize --- a brand new Diggler Dirt Dawg courtesy of Diggler Scooters!!!

The Mud Factor

Winter has finally arrived in southern California!
The local mountains received plenty of snow and coastal areas had a few days of measurable rain and cooler temperatures.
Since our "(not so) Great Serum Run" had to be postponed, our "Urban Mushing" group hit the trails around Newport Beach's Back Bay for a run in the rain.
The dogs loved it and made sure to find a mud puddle at every break for extra comfort.




Speaking of mud, we recently shipped our first "mud cart":



By customer request, we added wider tires in the rear, mud guards for the back wheels and footboards that won't allow for mud to build up.
Combined with the bright metallic orange powdercoat paint job for better visibility, this cart is ready for action.

Huskies in need of good homes

We were contacted by a friend about 2 Huskies/Husky Mixes that are in need of a good forever home.

They are:


Violet: 1 year old found running on the I-5 in Sun Valley, CA. She is very sweet and gentle. Loves to be outside, house-trained and crate-trained. She is good with kids and other dogs but doesn't like the cats and feels it is her responsibility to make sure the squirrels stay out of the year. Very typical Husky! She also loves to play "chase me".





and:



Collette: 4 months old. House-trained and very smart. We didn't get one good application from our TV spot Monday. She is playful and loves her chew toys! We think Husky/Shepherd mix



If you are interested in any of these dogs, please contact Pryor's Planet
- by phone (818) 288-0241
- E-Mail admin@pryorsplanet.com
- or on the web www.pryorsplanet.com

We are not in any way affiliated with Pryor's Planet, but always like to help find a great home for a Husky in need.

Remember to check the other rescue sites on the right side of this blog for more available dogs.

4th annual (not so) Great Serum Run Postponed!

Our 4th Annual (not so) Great Serum, originally slated for this Saturday, December 12th, at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa, has been postponed.

Everything is all set --- medals, t-shirts, racing bibs, sponsors, raffle items, barbecue potluck, etc. And on top of that, we are experiencing unusually cold temperatures for this area and it would have been a wonderful and fun opportunity to run the dogs.

The City of Costa Mesa, to which we had to get permission and pay special events and usage fees to, contacted our group an hour ago and has revoked the permit for this weekend. They have determined that due to the soaking the park has received from the heavy rains this past Monday, coupled with the forecast for additional wet weather starting tomorrow (though possibly only showers/light rain), that the trails will be subject to a lot damage IF a large number of scooters and bikes were allowed on it. (FYI, they recently set up new trail systems and are continuing to do so together with a general beautification of the park).

And believe me, this is VERY disappointing as we've made all these preparations and spent all this money to get this set up but there is nothing we can do. It's not being postponed due to the weather but rather the effect past weather has had on the trails.

What are our options? I think there are only two of them at the moment: 1) move the date to Sunday, December 20th (the park is already reserved by the Boy Scouts for December 19), or 2) move the date to sometime in January, probably the January 10th. We have between 60 - 70 entries signed up so far and all will be contacted individually to get their suggestions for a new date.

Let it snow!

It's that time of the year when our friends in the northern states and higher elevations are getting their first taste of snow. Come December, the first snow races are being held in Alaska, with more states to join in the weeks after. Pretty soon, we'll be off to snow country in the Sierra Nevada to get our own fix of snow sledding.

On the weekend of December 10-12, the West Yellowstone Sled Dog Races are being held in West Yellowstone, MT.
Our friends from Jaraw Siberians (CA), R&R Huskies (CA) and Wulik Siberians (WA) will compete in this year's races and we wish them all the best!

For more information about the race, please see their website here.



In the meantime, remember that dryland season is almost year round and if you're in search for a great dryland cart for training or racing, feel free to check us out and send us an e-mail with any questions you may have.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The 4th Annual (not so) Great Serum Run, Dec 12th 2009

It is time to go racing!
Our local southern California mushing group is hosting its 4th annual (not so) Great Serum Run on December 12th at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa CA.

Races will be held in a fun and friendly atmosphere in the following classes:

1-Dog / 1-Mile Junior Scooter Race
1-Dog / 1-Mile Scooter Race
2-Dog / 2-Mile Scooter Race
3-Dog / 3-Mile Scooter Race
1-Dog / 2-Mile Bikejoring Race
1-Dog / 3-Km Canicross Race

For more information, registration forms and rules, please see UrbanMushing.com
Registration deadline is December 5th!

After the races, we will have a potluck bbq, raffle and carting demonstrations with 4- 6- and 8-dog teams.

We will have some of our Arctis Carts available for test runs as well.

Fairview Park is located in the city of Costa Mesa on Placentia Ave, between Adams Ave & Victoria St. within minutes of I-405, Hwy 55 and Pacific Coast Hwy

For driving directions, see map here