skē-jȯr

No, we haven't invested in sled dogs (yet!) but we've found a new hobby that allows us to get out in the woods on skis and enjoy the U.P. winter with Thule. Yes, we've fallen for the sport of skijoring. Skijoring comes for the Norwegian word skikjøring  which means ski driving. It originally started with reindeer and wooden skis and horses have been used but now dogs are the most common.

Still trying to get the hang of classic cross country skiing, it's been fun working with Thule on pulling as we take turns hooking up to him. It all started at the Midwest Sled Dog Symosium  when a couple of our friends gave a presentation on skijoring with your dog and how just about any medium-large dog could learn. Tracy bought a harness for Thule and started working with him on jogs during the week. This has now turned into nighttime and weekend skis several times a week. There are several trails on our property we have ventured out on and also have headed over to Munising and the Ishpeming area. The greatest successes so far have been at The Forestville Trailhead of the Noquemanon Trail Network with the Noquemanon Skijor Club where there are lots of other dogs for us to chase! Needless to say it's a rush to see the woods whizzing by on skis as Thule runs ahead having a blast at the same time.

Through the Noquemeon Skijor Club we became involved with the 1st ever Animoosh (Ojibwe word meaning 'dog') Noque Skijor Race. It was great to see almost 20 people with teams of 1 to 2 dogs participate in the 12 km race. Everyone was all smiles as they crossed the finish line--we may just have to race next year!

Coming up in a few weeks is the 5 km Barkie Birkie in Hayward, WI on Friday February 24 at 9 A.M.

We're hoping these unseasonably warm temperatures don't stick around and there will be a few more months of cooler weather with good snow so we can continue to learn more about this exciting new hobby. Who knows maybe we'll even have enough time to try some skate skis!

Happy Trails!