Summertime...and the shop is busy!

Even during the hot southern California summer days, there's plenty of work to be done in the shop. It's rather odd to be working on dog sledding equipment when it's in the upper 90s outside.

We're just finishing up the last summer orders for carts that are on their way to destinations all over North America. So far this year, we've pretty much covered the entire continent, from central Mexico to Alaska, from Oregon to Newfoundland and many places in between. Once again, a big "Thank you!!!" to all our customers.

Once those carts are on their way, work is beginning on our new project which will be announced in a few weeks right here on this blog, so stay tuned for some exciting news.

In the meantime, our friends at NWSDA in Washington have announced their fall schedule:
September 29th - Fall Warm-Up at Camp K in Cle Elum WA
October 13th - Dryland Challenge at Camp K in Cle Elum WA
October 27th - Pacific Northwest Dryland Championships at Camp K in Cle Elum WA
For more information about NWSDA events, please see their website or facebook page.

Also scheduled is Sierra Nevada Dog Drivers' annual mushing clinic on
October 20th & 21st in Truckee CA
Please see their website for more information.

Last, not least: the annual Veterans Day Mushing Weekend on
November 10th - 12th in La Pine OR
For more information click here.


In other news, our friends at Alpine Outfitters have just introduced a new product to their catalog:
the "See Me Safety Vest" . Check it out here.

California Mushing Clinic & Fun Run

Sierra Nevada Dog Drivers' annual mushing clinic is coming up on the weekend of October 1st & 2nd in Truckee, CA.
They also organize a dirt fun run on September 17th & 18th in Hobart Mills, CA, just north of Truckee.

For more information about these events, please see SNDD's website here.

4th annual southern California Urban Mushing Clinic

I know this is short notice but we will be holding our 2010 Urban Mushing Clinic next weekend (yup, in 10 days) at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa. Schedules have been hard to work out but it just so happens that Carmen Rasmussen from Alpine Outfitters, who has been facilitating our clinics for the past 3 years, will be able to fly down here and spend time with us on March 27 and March 28.



The clinic will be a different format than previous ones. It will be more informal but will be more hands-on and I think, more effective.

The clinic will be split up into 2 different sessions which will cater to different levels: Saturday will be for newbies (those who have NO or little experience with dog scootering/bikejoring) while Sunday's session will be for those who are at the intermediate level.

The newbie session will cover the basics, including what equipment and gear to use, proper harness fit, how to teach your dog the basic commands (GEE, HAW, LINE OUT, EASY, WHOA), ground work training, trail etiquette, and attitude. The intermediate session will cover a little bit of what is in the newbie session but will focus more on advanced commands such as GEE OVER, HAW OVER, ON BY passing, teaching your dog to avoid distractions, speeding up on command, etc.



Both sessions will be held from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM and will be limited to probably 20 participants per session, as this will be a more "hands-on" type of clinic. Carmen will be the main facilitator but others will be on hand to help her out.

Registration fee will be $20 per session (plus $5 per family member). The registration forms will be available for download on the urbanmushing website shortly.

October Mushing Workshop, only 2 days left to register!

Registrations for this year's mushing workshop with Karen Yeargain in Big Bear CA must be received by Sept 24th. If you're interested in attending, please see information below:


October 24th & 25th - Training Workshop with Karen Yeargain - Big Bear CA

We'll be holding a weekend training workshop with Karen on October 24-25 in the
Big Bear area.

Karen has been training and racing Siberian Huskies for many years. Check out
her website www.tumnatkisiberians.com for more info on her and her wonderful
dogs.

We'll be working with individual dogs and teams and will cover command and pull
training, training your dog to work in a team, passing, good behavior in harness
and other areas. Discussion will cover equipment, harnesses and lines, and
other topics as requested by participants.

The workshop format is flexible enough to accommodate all levels, so beginners
as well as more experienced mushers are welcome.

The cost is $175 per person with $25 for extra family members. Bring as many
dogs as you are comfortable handling.

You can get more info and a registration form here (.pdf file)

Let me know if you have any questions. Those who attended last year's
workshop got a lot out of it and I'm definitely looking forward to this year's
training.