Sledding and Carting with Samoyeds


				Dashing Sams *Sledding and Carting with Samoyeds*



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Samoyeds are an ancient breed discovered and selectively bred by british dog fanciers and descended from dogs used in polar expeditions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Antartic Buck

To Learn More:

Here's a list of some of excellent resources to learn more about dog sledding, carting and skijoring.

Samoyed Club of America

Organization for the Working Samoyed

Sled Dog Central Website

Samoyeds are a moderate sized working dog. Due to their close and long relationship with their original breeders the nomadic people known as the Samoyedes or Nenets; they also thrive on having a close relationship with both their human and canine families. For these reasons samoyeds seem to really enjoy working together in teams with their human companions. Most samoyeds show an innate desire to pull and a great love of the outdoors, especially when there is snow involved. Sledding and skijoring are therefore, excellent ways to exercise a samoyed and develop a deeper relationship and understanding of the breed.

Dog Sledding is a team sport where the team is composed of the "driver" or musher and his/her dogs. The number of dogs on a team can be as few as 2 to more than 12. Dog sledding can be enjoyed as a solo tour into a wintry wilderness or in competition in one of the many venues such as limited class sprint racing, mid distance, stage racing, or ultra distance events such as Alaska's Iditarod or the Yukon Quest. There are races throughout not just Alaska but California, the Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwest, Midwest and Northeast as well Europe and the southern hemisphere! To see more sledding pictures click on the Dashing Sams team.

Skijoring is a true example of teamwork where both dog and skier work together to negotiate a snowy trail. Skijoring is a great way to get started in mushing since all it is required to take up this sport is one dog who likes to pull. Some skiing ability on the part of the musher is very helpful in fact it is a good idea to feel comfortable on skiis before hooking up a dog. The equipment needed for skijoring is simple, a harness and line for your dog and a skijor belt and skis for you. As with sledding, skijoring can be enjoyed as a recreational or competitive activity. To see more skijoring, click on Finney and Bob.

Carting, Scootering and bikejoring allow anyone to enjoy dog powered sports without snow and for mushers to train their dogs in the early season before the snow falls. While carting has been around for years, scootering and bikejoring are relatively new activities that are catching on around the world. While carting allows mushers to train sled teams without snow. Bikejoring and scootering allow skijorers to do the same. Nonetheless both of these activities are emerging from the shadow of their sister snow sports as urban enthusiasts discover the joy of working with their pets in harness. Events like the Relay Across America are doing much to popularize these and other dog powered activities. More carting pictures may be seen by clicking on the team.

Samoyeds as Sled Dogs. Samoyeds are not the fastest dogs found racing in any of the venues just described, which are dominated by teams of alaskan huskies or "Eurohounds", however people can enjoy the sport of dog sledding with their Samoyeds by focusing on the goal of doing the best that they can. Both the Samoyed Club of America and the Organization for the Working Samoyed offer working title programs as well as awards to reward top notch teams. Still Samoyed teams can perform well in any of these venues provided that they are conditioned and trained to do so. Top Samoyed sprint teams have posted average speeds of 15 mph and greater in competition. Distance Samoyed teams have completed such prestigious races as Montana's Race to the Sky, Minnesota's Beargrease, and Michigan's Midnight Run.

Heading to the Finish at the Bigfoot Rendevous

Dashing Sams Sledding

Jill began running dogs in the mid 90's when an adventurous dog named Moqui came into our lives. She and her husband Bob skijored for several years until Jill decided that she wanted to work with a team. Dashing Sams began as a mixed samoyed and alaskan husky sled team in 1999, Finnegan and Mingus were the Samoyeds and Cain the alaskan husky. We competed in two races in Colorado that year, living at the time in Flagstaff Arizona. For several years we ran primarily shorter distance recreational runs and limited class sprint races. During that time Finnegan (Kriskella's Finney O' Flag WSX CGC) and Mingus (Avalanche's Misguided Joi WS HCT) earned their working titles within the Samoyed Club of America. In 2000 we moved to northern Idaho where the snow is more reliable and the opportunities for training and racing more diverse. The team grew and Jill's desire to get out with team for longer distances also grew. Now we are training short mid distance events in the range of 10-20 miles.

c. Dashing Sams 2006