It takes a lot to keep the dogs happy, healthy and whole….
…and we are really lucky to have an extended support crew.
Brianna in her first race.
Brianna Boisselle
For the past so many years, Brianna has become more and more involved in our team, moving from a general dog sitter to a full on handler/ co musher/ vet tech/ dog whisperer to now occasionally helping train the teams. Brianna has a special skill for communicating with dogs, especially with training young dogs and giving them what they need to succeed. Over the years Brianna also developed a knack for managing a team throughout long tough races, inching her way up the places. (Although, she did start out on top, winning her first race).
Brianna has a team of retired sled dogs mostly 12 years old and up, which has become her life’s passion. You can follow the motley crew's escapades here. My personal favorite is smiley Zima, who at times joined the puppy team for fall training.
Connie, buried in puppies
Terry and Connie Eddy (And Azula and tap)
Terry and Connie Eddy went for a dogsled ride in Jefferson NH probably a decade ago, adopted a retired lead dog Zuni, and the rest is history! Terry and Connie fell completely into the world of mushing as superfans and supporters, both of them incredible lovers of dogs and adventurous people themselves. I became connected with them through a mutual friend Chase Tingle, who I used to do tours with, and over the years the Eddys have moved to team sponsors to now full-fledged kennel family. The Eddys bring the fun, wherever they go, and a can-do spirit that every musher and kennel needs around—helping smash wasp nests, nudging the dog box into place on the truck, and even diving into building the dogsled (forever named the ‘SS Terry’) with Aurora wearing her white supervisors helmet. The Eddys have also given the most loving home to their own retired sled dogs, including Ariel and now Tapper. Thank you, Terry and Connie, for everything you bring, we all love you so much!
Everybody loves Chuck.
Chuck Johnston
Chuck’s role is to bring the play: with puppies, with adults, with house dogs. Chuck loves each and every dog, even though he’s never set foot on the back of a sled. Who knew, when he said ‘I love dogs, how many do you have?’ 8 years ago what that would mean now. The dogs see Chuck coming and they all break out in big smiles.
Chuck’s other contribution is designing nicknames (or Chuck-names) for each dog: Hygge, Coco Chanel, Werm, GB, Infeugo, the Dawlins’, Rippers, Brewster, Haas, Hairy Buffala are only a small sampling. Chuck tries out a few names first before one sticks. And then, inevitably, the Chuckname becomes permanent.
Chuck, as Sally’s partner, is an integral part of the home life and the dog life and is an unbelievably kind and generous person. We (the dogs and Sally) are forever grateful for him being part of the team.
Laura Rushfeldt (or ‘Auntie Laura’)
Laura, and her two-dog pack of Wolfy and Wylie, became a ‘sled dog auntie’ a few years ago when I asked her if she wanted to help kennel-sitting a few nights a month. I saw her out there traveling across New England, ‘mushing adjacent’, and felt like we might have a shared connection or mutual benefit, a place for her to get out of the city and surrounded with dogs and mountains and a trustworthy caregiver to entrust with the beloved athletes. Forever will I be impressed when Laura showed up to meet everyone in the middle of a snowstorm, and she knew everyone’s name. Laura is an incredible adventurer and athlete, with a generous spirit and love of dogs. The sign of a kennel accepting a new caregiver is a very calm and content dog yard when I come back, and Laura earned that trust in spades. And while no-one gives nicknames like Chuck, Laura gave all the 2024 puppies superlatives that have stuck: in particular Mattie’s ‘Most Likely to Get Arrested’. I see my dogs through my own vision, but I love learning other facets of their personalities from others who have gained their trust.
Laura watches the kennel when we go racing (when she’s not off being a badass in the Iditarod Trail Invitational as a skier), and during the off-season when our schedules align for her to get out of the city for the weekend and me to head out of town. She is a kindred spirit, an incredibly driven professional (she, like, does have a ‘real’ career!) with a love of winter wildness and mountains, enjoyed with a beloved canine at your side. The dogs, and myself, are so lucky to have her—sometimes I feel like she’s too ‘cool’ for us, and I love having her in our lives as she also inspires me to do more and expand my horizons. You can follow her adventures at ‘Type Two Fun’: https://type-two-fun.club