mi outdoors: January 2012

1/29/12

Fun Sled Dog Ride with Emelia

Took Emelia for her first longer distance sled dog ride in the sled basket today. She had lots of fun and helped take care of the dogs before and after the run.

1/28/12

Half-Fat Bike Experiment - Success

Finally got a chance to try out my new studded rear tire from 45NRTH. Part of the goal my half-fat bike experiment was to come up with a solution that would allow me to train sled dogs when trail conditions deteriorated. This is exactly what we had over the last week. Lost most of our snow, trails where a mix of ice and bare spots with a little fresh accumulation added this AM. I took three dogs out with the goal of a 12-14mph run. The bike performed really well, especially on the straight aways. I was still a little overly cautious on the tighter turns, but I stayed upright for the entire ride. The rear tire handled really well with little to no slipping. These conditions (where a sled and especially skis aren't possible) is exactly the void I was hopping to fill with the bike....and as of today I think it is a success!

1/22/12

2012 MUSH Clear Lake State Park Sled Dog Race: Videos and Results

13th Overall 5-dog team. Borrowed three dogs. Kenai and Cello in lead on day 1. Cello in single lead day 2 w/ Kenai in point, seemed to solve the issues Kenai was having.

1/14/12

Half-Fat Bike Experiment: Dog Trial Run #1

Went out for my first dog powered run on my newly modified half-fat bike. Pretty mixed results. My existing back tire, isn't made for any type of sandy or snowy surface, so this resulted in a nearly unrideable first run. I don't think I traveled in a straight line for more than a few hundered yards over the 6 miles. And I was litrealy standing still, spinning the back tire when trying go up hill. So I need a more aggressive tire for the back. I knew that, but wasn't sure if I should go with a studded tire or not. Still not sure, but am leaning towards studded .

Next step, upgrade the back tire. This will hopefully give me enough traction to stay safely upright. I took one big spill, but was able to adhere to the first rule of mushing - never let go of the sled, or in this case bike.

1/13/12

Half-fat Bike

Turned my Mtn. Bike into a half-fat snow bike with help from Ted at Ada bike shop. Test runs have been promising. Maiden dog powered voyage to come tomorrow hopefully! Surly Pugsley Fork and Surly "Nate" tire up front at a whopping 5psi. Back tire still needs some work. More to come...