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Teacher Workshop Field Trip

“Dog team coming in!”

by June Price

03/01/2006

That was a cry few of the teachers gathered at Lynda Plettner’s kennel on Wednesday afternoon had expected to hear. Despite their busy schedules, however, Plettner and one of her mushing students, Katrina Pawlaczyk, a rookie in this year’s race, arranged this special treat.

Despite having spent much of her morning at Iditarod Headquarters for vet check, Pawlaczyk harnessed up a team after arriving back at the kennel and timed it perfectly to arrive as the teachers’ visit was winding down. Led by Grasshopper and Scout, Pawlaczyk's team entered the kennel smoothly and came to a stop in a perfect spot for photos.

Prior to this picture perfect ending, the teachers had already had a busy day. After spending much of the day inside yesterday, capped off by a visit to Jon VanZyle, they began their day early on Wednesday, attending vet check at Iditarod Headquarters. There, they were able to snap photos and meet mushers while the mushers’ dogs were being checked over one more time by the veterinary staff. The teachers then had lunch and it was on to Plettner Kennel.

A veteran of the Iditarod and a Top Twenty finisher, Plettner has recently made almost as much of a reputation for herself as a “musher teacher” as musher, so her participation in the Iditarod’s education program is a natural. The tour began with a brief introduction from Plettner, who garnered laugher as she recounted some trail tales, then went on to show and demonstrate how her sled and other race gear works.

“Look, no hands,” she laughed at one point, illustrating how this particular sled model could be guided simply by a shifting of musher weight on the pull down seat available.

Using her race-ready sled, she pulled items out one at a time, telling teachers what they were and their use. Dog coats and booties were perhaps the most familiar items shown, though the chance to actually touch and examine even these items made this a special experience for all in attendance.

Teachers were allowed to ask questions during the presentation and, in fact, were encouraged to do so. Thus, we learned about the weight of Lynda’s sled along the trail – averages about 100 pounds, depending on the mileage between checkpoints – and the difference, say, between a beaver hat and those of other materials. The beaver is for warmth, said Plettner, not show, going on to demonstrate how her headlamp attaches to this particular hat. Laughter and questions were common sounds during this portion of the visit.

After that, it was on to the most anticipated moment, a visit with the dogs of Plettner Kennel. I found myself doing a double-take briefly as I spied some obviously Siberian Husky faces residing in the kennel, but they turned out to be just guests. For the most part, the teachers were free to wander amongst the dogs, scratch doggie ears and rears, and take photos to their hearts’ content. Plettner mingled with the crowd, answering questions and stopping periodically to point out what the teachers were actually seeing, such as the frozen, ready-for-the-trail meat sitting in buckets in one area.

Then, we heard the call, “Dog team coming in!”

A former teacher myself, whose Iditarod origins included this exact workshop, it seemed a fitting ending to the day. After all, I though, as I watched Grasshopper and Scout soak up the attention of the teachers, it’s the dogs that are the stars of this show.