There is a lot of traveling involved with the Pedigree® Stage Stop Race. And dropping dogs is a big part of that. The other day I caught up with Anny Malo ( and Elliot and Marco ) dropping their dogs at the school parking lot in Lander. There were many other dogtrucks around, and plenty of other distractions. It is impressive to see them loose dropping their team. Dogs milling all round the truck tails wagging. They could not have cared less about what was happening all round them.
Not only does loose dropping give the dogs a lot of freedom to do their business wherever they want, it gives them the opportunity to stretch out and limber up at their own pace. It is also a good chance for the mushers to watch their dogs move ( and possibly detect if a gait is off a bit ). Loading dogs, when they self load in a dog box, makes life a heck of a lot easier too.
We are waiting in Driggs for the rest of the crew to arrive. At the present time Highway 26 is closed due to an accident, so teams are a bit delayed. Good thing the Pedigree Stage Stop organization planned in a travel day for events like this.
Enjoy the video of a group of happy dogs:
