Thursday I took Iris in for a dental and just as we got home it started to snow...and snow...and snow. By midnight we had about a foot of new snow. I am not kidding! I went out with a tape measure...14 inches in a couple of spots and 11 inches in a couple of others. Friday was the start of a 3 day weight pull here at my place. We had people entered from all over....Seattle, Nevada, Wyoming, even BC and a handful of Montana dogs. The recent storms kept people from traveling and what could have been a very large pull turned out to be just Montana dogs. Friday night brought us another 5-6 inches of snow. Tomorrow will wrap up the last day of the pull. Hopefully we can wrap it up early and everyone who traveled can be safely at home before the predicted next snow arrives...and I can collapse on the couch after my long hot bath.

This pull has been busy for me. I entered my two new Aussie girls, Charm and Pixie. They are pulling very well. We are not pulling hard just getting those needed legs under our belt. After I am done pulling the girls they retire to their crates where they have extra thick beds and cookies. I am not so lucky, for the remainder of the pull I am "Sled Marshal"...which is a nice title for a crummy job. After the dogs pull the cart to the end of the chute it is my job to haul it back and load it with bricks. It is hard work....the empty cart is 200 pounds which isn't much. But by the time you add bricks and get to nearly 2,000 pounds you start to feel it. We had a kid lined up to do this but once again the snow messed us up. Speaking of snow, in an attempt for sympathy, this great "Sled Marshal" gig was proceeded by hours of shoveling snow to clear walkways, driveways, and chipping the bricks out of the ice. The good news is the lasagna I ate for lunch is guilt free...and the M&Ms.

What is a weight pull? This is a competitive event where dogs pull a cart that is gradually weighted with more weight....in the form of 40 pound bricks. Dogs have to pull 8 times their weight at 3 shows to earn a Weight Pull title. Then you can go on and earn points towards becoming a WPCH (Weight Pull Champion) and if you still like it you can earn a WPCHX (Weight Pull Champion Excellent). For the upper level titles you have to pull more weight and more times. It is a long haul to those upper titles but I have accomplished this on several of my crew. I should have been working with Run...she is such a hoot I am sure she would have been game. I wonder how many greyhounds have earned weight pull titles. Next pull is in November....hmmm.