/ 2008 Archived Material / Ruby in the Morning

Target Iditarod Teacher on the Trail^™ Ruby in the Morning

by Jane Blaile

It's snowing. It's a soft, gently falling, beautiful and quiet snow. The one drawback is it makes flying a little more difficult. So, I might be in Ruby awhile longer. No worries, though. It was very, very quiet at the checkpoint when I arrived this morning. I took advantage of the time and called my family using my satellite phone for the first time. It sure was great to hear their voices and get caught up on the news in Phoenix. Then I walked over to offer my help to the vets at the dropped dog line. They needed help getting the dogs off the line, walked around a little, and put back on the line. Walking serves two purposes - it gives them exercise, keeping them from getting stiff and it allows them to go to the bathroom somewhere away from their beds. They were such sweet dogs. If one didn't get up with prompting from the leash, I would lift it up to a standing position and then walk with it. The dog transport plane won't be arriving until around noon, so the dogs got a chance to eat some. They gobbled their kibble mixed with hot water. And after that bite to eat, they were sitting up and singing some of their dog songs, feeling full and happy. Pretty soon they will need to be walked again before the plane ride, so I will help if I'm around. I also got the chance to be a checker for Rudi Niggemeier. The checker identifies the musher by bib number and name, counts and verifies the number of dogs on the team, asks if the musher is staying for a mandatory layover, and gets the musher's signature.