Imagine seven overwelmed and powerful huskies straining against the harnesses that connect them to the sled that they will be pulling over a four week period though Denali National Park. Kristen knights is hoping she can experance this wonderful moment of breath taking adventures this winter.

Q: What’s your name?
A: Kristin Knights

Q: How old are you?
A: 22

Q: How long have you been working with the sled dogs?
A: First year, since May

Q: Have you gone on a patrol?
A: No i’m hoping to this winter

Q: What do you do during a patrol/ what’s the major reasoning of them?
A: We’re mainly out there breaking the trail for people that are going to come out and use the trail after us. There are people that come out here with their own sled teams and that like to go on the trails. Also people that like to do cross coutry and snow sking they follow the trail we break for them. Sometimes if a scientist wants to come out and do some researching wildlife, we’ll put him in all our stuff and take him out there where he needs to go or take his material out there for him. We also do the maintenance things like we’re building cabins and we’ll bring firewood out there.

Q: Have you done the demonstration?
A: Yes about three times since I’ve worked here.

Q: Have you ever gotten hurt?
A: No, this morning I almost fell off it was pretty funny, I was balancing on one foot for a while.

Q: How did you catch your balance/ did you have to tell them to stop?
A: The dogs won’t stop no matter what you say. You have to remain calm, it’s weird because you’re going so fast, you’re flying around the curve, and instead of freaking out and just letting go and falling you just have to say to yourself, “My foot’s off, I just have to figure out how to put it back on,” and you just do it and keep looking ahead and never look down

Q: When she showed us how to ride the sled I saw her kick something in the back to let it go. What was that?
A: The dogs are ancored to the ground because they want to go so bad that the minute that they feel no resistence/ the minute they know they’re not hooked to the ground, that’s when they go. We really don’t have to say anything, so thats what you see over there is a little clasp, and you just pull the rope on it and it releases the sled.

Q: Has that clasp ever broken on you?
A: We used to have two clasp and one of them kept getting stuck and now we only have one and thats only the main thing, like it hasn’t just broken off or anything. that would be really scary because then you wouldn’t be ready and the dogs would shoot off.

Q: what’s the term that you say to go right and left?
A: Right: G

Left: Haw
Q: Has one of the dogs ever come off from one of your leashes?
A: No, sometimes we have a dog named Willow who gets really excited, and usually shes the calm/ mellow “pet me” dog, and then as soon as we get the harness out and she sees that she’s gonna go she goes nuts. When you hook her up to the sled she get excited and starts chewing on her harness and one time she bite it in half. Later we found out that that was her second time chewing the harness in half.

Q: Did Willow run off and did you have to go and get her?
A: No, she stayed right with the van and was very good. The dogs are very smart and they love what they do and they would never chance doing anything at all that might end their running career.

Well thank you for your time.