ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris

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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby fladogfan » Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:36 pm

"Mouth to snout" good girl, just what Toni needed. :D
All my children have four feet and fur.
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Rachael Scdoris » Wed Sep 03, 2008 1:24 pm

Thank you Marcia,
You are right, the cameras rarely show the difficulties out on the trail but tangles do happen, a lot. When you have 16 dogs, with different tendencies, attached to eachother by a total of 37 lines on unpredictable trails, tangles- some simple, some very complicated- are bound to happen. That is one of the reasons why some people have started running without necklines, to eliminate some potential tangles. Tangles can, absolutely, change the outcome of the race. Dogs may have to be carried or dropped after a serious tangle, obviously, this does have an impact on the performance of the team. Also, if one person has perfect run and another has a series of tangles, chances are, even if all the tangles are simple and the dogs can untangle themselves- which is possible- or the musher can work very quickly, the person with the perfect run will make better time.
Rachael


emwcee wrote:I loved your book. You put so much detail into it, and I'm amazed that you could remember so many details about each race. One of the things that I found interesting is that so much of a musher's time is spent undoing tangles. We don't hear much about this aspect of racing. I guess the videos always show the beautiful pictures of the race, not the mundane stuff. Is the problem of getting tangled up a big factor in the race? How often does it happen, and does it have an impact on the outcome of the race?

I'll probably have more questions later, but I wanted to start with this one.
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Rachael Scdoris » Wed Sep 03, 2008 1:26 pm

Well she was ok but that is certainly not an experience I would wish on anyone.

fladogfan wrote:"Mouth to snout" good girl, just what Toni needed. :D
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby txbennett » Wed Sep 03, 2008 1:37 pm

Thanks Rachael, for taking the time to share your experience with us Iditarod addicts. It really adds a lot to our ability to understand the race and the racers and the whole darn thing
:D :D :D

I have never even seen a dog sled, or trained mushing dogs, or a real life competitive musher -- but for well over a decade I spend a lot of February, most of March, a lot of April
and a bit of the other months obsessing over the Iditarod and other races.

TXbennett
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Rachael Scdoris » Wed Sep 03, 2008 2:52 pm

We appreciate your obsession, if it weren't for fans like yourself the race would not be what it is so thank you
Rachael

txbennett wrote:Thanks Rachael, for taking the time to share your experience with us Iditarod addicts. It really adds a lot to our ability to understand the race and the racers and the whole darn thing
:D :D :D

I have never even seen a dog sled, or trained mushing dogs, or a real life competitive musher -- but for well over a decade I spend a lot of February, most of March, a lot of April
and a bit of the other months obsessing over the Iditarod and other races.

TXbennett
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Rachael Scdoris » Wed Sep 03, 2008 3:00 pm

Well I finished the Northern route so I guess that would be my favorite.
Falling asleep happens out there. when I feel it coming on I give myself a quick snack, usually a snickers bar of some trailmix, drink some fluids then do ten deep-knee bends. If that fails I run with the dogs, for a while to try to get some endorphins flowing.
If god forbid someone should play me in a movie, I would want it to be my good friend, the amazing Emmy Rossum.

Rachael

MotorWerk wrote:What is your favorite Iditarod route, north or south? Is there a particular reason for your choice?

Lots of mushers fall asleep on the trail, do you have any special routines to keep you from dozing off?

I have a goofy question too: In a few years time, when Hollywood will discover mushing, who would you like to play you in a blockbuster movie?

All the best,

Stig Olsen/Norway
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Rachael Scdoris » Wed Sep 03, 2008 3:26 pm

I spend my off season trying to round up sponsors, fulfilling sponsorship obligations, appearances, etc. and trying not to get too fat. This summer I actually lived in town which was interesting but kind of boring, at times. I’m just glad the season has started again. We will do most of our training around Bend and Mt. Bachelor. In January we will head up to Alaska to work with Tim, match our teams and get acclimated.
Uh I don’t really have a favorite snack, I just like food.
My most “OMG what am I doing here” moment was probably in Iditarod 2006 when I came around the first corner of the Happy River steps and hit a tree. That sounds simple enough but as I caught my breath and prepared myself to pull the sled off the tree I saw that I had no team. The toeline had snapped like a piece of hair and 16 dogs were running down the steps without me. There was nothing I could do but push my sled down the steps and hope that Tim had thought of something. When I finally reached the bottom, about to pass out, with Jim Warren bearing down on me, I found Tim with 32 dogs sitting on someone’s abandoned straw bed. Jim was kind enough to help us hook my team to my sled with a makeshift line and we all went on. Everything worked out but I did think I was insane for ever wanting to run that race.
Rachael

sugarriver wrote:Rachael - Just wanted to thank you for helping us out here with our addiction. While traveling to Crater Lake and K Falls last week, we had lunch at Big Mountain Cafe in Chemult, and I picked up a copy of your book for my mother who's 84. She is so thrilled with it so far. Wanted to clue the others in to No End In Sight: My Life As A Blind Iditarod Racer - by Rick Steber. I haven't read it yet - hopefully I can pry it out of my mother's hands later. ;)

What do you do in the off season? Do you have a regular job ten/eleven months out of the year? Where do you train around Bend, or do you spend a lot of time acclimating in the North Country?
What's your favorite treat from Trader Joe's for your mom to pick up for you? ;) What was your most "What Am I Doing Here!!! :shock: moment out of all your races?
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby jonnybegood » Thu Sep 04, 2008 11:15 am

Thanks Rachael, for taking the time to join us on this forum. We think your AWESOME and will be cheering you on again next year. God Speed, JBG
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Rachael Scdoris » Fri Sep 05, 2008 6:27 pm

well thenk you very much, JBG. I appreciate the support, alot
Rachael
jonnybegood wrote:Thanks Rachael, for taking the time to join us on this forum. We think your AWESOME and will be cheering you on again next year. God Speed, JBG
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Re: ASK THE MUSHER Vol 6: Rachael Scdoris (starts Sun. 8/31/08)

Postby Di* » Sat Sep 06, 2008 8:04 am

:D Hi Rachael!
Thanks so much for joining us here. I'm sure when you run the Iditarod it is a rollercoaster of emotions dealing with sleep deprivation and everything else.
So how do you talk yourself out of slump when you feel like quitting?
Have you ever had any hallucinations while running the race?
Also if you had the power to change or improve the race what would you do?
Any chance that you are going to write another book perhaps about your Iditarod experiences? ;) :) Hope so!

:) Thanks for your reply! ~Di
Di*
 

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