Team Interview: Huffle

Our walkers are all active and making good progress.  Several Team members posted pictures from their walks this week on their bogs - be sure to check them out, member blogs are listed to the right.  

On to our next special feature:

"Meet the Teams"  Interview with our Honorary Huskie, Huffle

Our second in the interviews is with our most unusual member, Huffle Mawson, Explorer Cat. Now woo might be thinking "What!?!  A Cat?!?  did woo say a 'CAT'?!?"

Read on....

1.   Huffle, how did woo get to be an honorary husky?

Well Jack, I was always a big fan of huskies and when I started reading a few husky blogs (Meeshka, the Army of Four, Turbo) and then making friends with those huskies, I think Turbo in particular realized that I have some husky traits and that I should be made an honorary husky.  So he gave me that special honour.  and I take husky lessons from Stormy, of course.  (note*  Stormy is  Supreme Commander of the Ao4)

2.  Tell us about where you live.  Most of us have never been there.

I live in Melbourne, Australia.  It's a very nice place: we have good weather (although there are a lot of fires here at the moment) and it's never cold enough for snow.  The countryside is beautiful and the people here are very relaxed.  There are a lot of dangerous critters in Australia, though; most of the snakes and spiders here are killers.  But the koalas and kangaroos are cute.  We don' have them in our backyards, like everyone seems to think.  they live out in the country.

3.  How did woo come to be with your furever family?

I adopted mum and dad just over three years ago after being abandoned at the Cat Protection Society.  Dad was looking for a friend for my late brother Salvador and I charmed him into taking me home.  My previous humans were not very nice to me, but mum and dad treat me like a princess, and I love it here!  

4.  What are your favorite foods?

HAM! And roast chicken.  Gravy is good too.

Favorite Toys?  My mouses.  I have about 20 of them.  I also have a puppy wubba that Dave from the Ao4 sent me.

Favorite Games?  Chasing Mr. Mous around the huse.  playing "Thundering Herd of Elephants: up and down the stairs at 3 am is also good.

Favorite places to nap?  Anywhere warm!  I like to sleep under mum and dad's doona )duvet, quilt, comforter) and in my purple Huffle bed.  My newest favorite place to nap is the flower pot where the parsley used to live.

5.  Have woo had any encounters with squirrels or other unusual animals where woo live?

We don't have squirrels here, but I have caught a gecko before.  It was very exciting and I was yelling for mum and dad to come out in the backyard to see what I'd caught.  They didn't seem that impressed; I don't know why.

6.  Do woo like to go to the v-e-t?

NO!  Last time I went to the v=e=t= I peed and pooped in my crate because I was sos scared. And then I had to have a bath.  It was awful.  I'm sure now that I don't have to go back for at least another three years.

7.  What do you do for exercise, Huffle?

I run around the house at 3 am.  I also jump on the back fence.  Mum gets anoyed atbout that. And I spend quite a bit of time every day chasing my mouses around.

8.  We hear a lot about the Dyson Wars on the husky blogs - is your fluff as difficult to remove as sibe fluff?  Do woo shed?  Woo always look so soft and shiny!

We have a Dyson too!  I don't think its doing a good job though - there is black fur everywhere in my  house.  a while back you would have read on my blog about my mum finding black furs in her coffee too.  Meeshka was so proud of me for that.  I think mum and dad have given up trying to remove all my furs from the house - there seems to be lots of it around.  Every time they clean up, I just put some more back for them.  I know they love it.

9.  If we were doing the Idita-walk up in Alaska, what would woo like to see up there?

Brown bears!  Mum and dad have seen some but I haven't and I'd like to.  I've also heard the scenery is pretty good the, lots of places for an expolorer cat to check out.

10.  Is there anything else woo would like to tell us about yourself?

I am a grown up 8 years old kitty, but dad says I act like a silly kitten most of the time.  I'm just making up for all the fun I didn't get to  have when I was little!

Thank woo, Huffle Mawson.  It's great to have woo on our team!

  THAT'S A FACT JACK:

Every musher must comply with the Iditerod rules and regulations.  Each musher is required to carry an arctic parka, a heavy sleeping bag, an ax, snowshoes, musher food, dog food, and boots for every dogs' feety-feets to protect them against injuries from cutting ice and running on hard-packed snow.   A husky's paws are naturally heavily furred on the underside, which provides a better grip for running over ice.

Woos & a-roos to yous,

Jack a-roo, reporting for Team SiberMal

Idita-walkers in Action

Here's a glimpse of our teams in action this past week:

#1 & #2: Steve & Kat, checking out the hiking trails in Washington. Kat explores off trail, investigating some interesting life forms:

#3 & #4: Star, Jack & Moon, the 3 Husk-a-teers! Coming and going:

#5 - #8:  The Kapp Pack - King Sky Boy and his enthusiastic teammates, Canyon and Princess Sunshine Meadow, put Dad through his paces:

#7:  And, walking "down under",  Team SiberMal's Honorary Husky, Huffle, is doing the Huffle Shuffle for Idita-walk!

THAT'S A FACT, JACK! Musher terms: 

"Dog in Basket" Tired or injured dog carried in the sled. "Pedaling" Pushing the sled with one foot while the other remains on the runner

MEET THE TEAM!

We're going to start our special feature today. Here's a chance to meet all the fabulous four-footed Team SiberMal pack members! (Who cares about the bipeds?) My first interview is with the youngest member of Team SiberMal, Miss Khady Lynn! 1. Ha-roo! Khady Lynn, just how old are woo? My birthday is April 22, 2008, I am now 9 month old. 2. Tell us a bit about your family: Do woo have siblings? My oldest Sibe sister is Abby, she is 14, Sibe brother Samuel ( aka the dork) is 10, Samoyed brother Kona is 12, Samoyed brother Monty (the monster) is 8, and my bestest big Malagal sis Holly is 5. 3. How did woo come to be with your furever family? I was the last of my litter, and my birth mom (Gloria) and dad's (Juarez) family wanted to be sure I would go to a VERY special family, cuz they thought I was very special. well, since my mom knows my birth family's humans (Cecile & Lisa of D'Azul Siberians), and mom decided she just HAD to have me! She hadn't had a puppy since Samuel! Mom knew this was THE perfect place for me. I'm sooo happy here! I just love my whole family! And, not cuz I'm spoiled, or anything like that. 4.  That's quite a large family! Woo have a nice variety of Northern Breeds. Where are your D'Azule sibe sibs now? Cornelia Marie is in Georgia with Sitka, Shinzou & Lily live out west. Colorado, I think. 5. What kinds of biped transportation have woo used? So far I have only traveled in a car, and the "whale" that belongs to my birth family. I guess it's some sort of huge van. 6. Do woo like to go out in public? Where have woo gone with your bipeds? I LOVE going out in public! I seem to get a lot of attention, and lots of pets! Mom and dad take me to Petsmart, Petco, and on lots of walks in different parts of town. I even got to go play at the dogpark! 7. Doo woo like mini-bipeds? So far, the ones I've met at the pet stores have all been really interesting to sniff, and they seem to like me. 8. Have woo had any encounters with cats or sqwirrels? There is one cat that lives in a house along my neighborhood walk, and he hides under the truck in the driveway. I always want to chase him, cuz he smells really tasty, but mom just drags me away. We do have a few stupid squirrels that come into our yard, but we are all really good about chasing them away. 9. Do woo like to go to the V-E-T? Oh yes! I get LOTS of attention. They poke me a little, but so far I haven't minded. 10. What's your favorite color? Pink is my signature color. Favorite toy? I love my little squeaky ball! It's small, and fits perfectly in my mouth, and I just love doing the squeaka squeaka squeaka noises with it! Favorite food? Peanut butter! TOTALLY!!! 11. Where do woo sleep at night? Umm, does the bedroom count? We all get to hang out wherever we want. I like my cushy doggie pillows to sleep on. 12. Did woo do any preparation for the Idita-walk? Mom does put my pretty pink harness on me. She says that's the best way for me to walk. I like to run ahead, but then choke myself when I get to the end of the flexi-leash, if I'm just hooked to my collar. 13. What's the most interesting thing for woo about walking in the Idita-walk? I really enjoy being able to get out and take in all the interesting smells. I also look forward to running into that stupid rabbit that sits in my neighbor's yard and terrorizes me, by IGNORING me when I yell at him! Someday I'll see him when I'm not behind a fence! 14. What do woo want to be when woo grow up? I would like to be a therapy dog, just like my big sis Holly, Abby, Samuel and Kona. I think it would be great to visit people and get lots of attention and make them feel better at the same time. 15. Is there anything else woo would like to tell us about yourself? I think all pups should be allowed to eat peanut butter and cheese with their kibble. It makes things much tastier! Thank woo for the interview, Miss Khady Lynn! So there woo have it, she may be the youngest, but she sure has a lot to say! Keep up the Idita-walking, team. And check back for more interviews & updates! THAT'S A FACT, JACK: The Iditarod Trail began as a mail and supply route from the coastal towns of Seward and Knik to the interior gold-mining camps at Flat, Ophir, Ruby, and beyond to Unalakleet, Elim, Golovin, White Mountain and Nome on the west coast of Alaska. Dogsleds packed mail and supplies into the towns and camps, and packed out the gold. It's now a National Historic Trail. Reporting for Team siberMal, woos & a-roos to yous, ~Jack

DAY 4 (WED)

This first week of Idita-Walk is off to a good start, with several Team SiberMal packs reporting in. 

Khyra is forging ahead, checking every site for evil sqwirrels before making camp.  She took a bit of time off for her huzzy photo shoot, to appease her many fans.  As soon as she rests up (those photo shoots can be so exhausting!) she'll hit the road again.

Our youngest member, Khady Lynn, has also been romping onward.   All that youthful enthusiasm!   More about her when Jack (that's me) interviews her for our first "Meet the Teams" interview, coming soon!

My "twin brother" Steve and his darling and daring sister Kat sent in a pic of them trekking away.   Notice the motion blur - obviously they weren't going to stand still for a moment to let mom use that flashy box.    She'll just have to keep up!

Star & I are making progress, but we did take a day off yesterday to play in the new snow.   (What self-respecting husky wouldn't?) We also stopped along our virtual trail to take at look at - are woo ready for this - "JACK LAKE!"   Ha-roos!   I have my furry own lake and didn't even know it! We found this stunning photo of  Jack Lake at Twilight by Mary Lang .  (Be sure to check out her link formore of her beawootiful water photos.) Today we'll be packing up and mushing out.

We found some furry interesting reading on the Iditarod site - check out real details of the terrain of the route at the Iditarod's Route and Checkpoint map.  Makes for a dogs-eye view of the trail!

That's the news from the trail today, Happy mushing!

Reporting for Team SiberMal, a-roos to yous, Jack

THAT'S A FACT, JACK:  "THE OBJECT OF THE RACE IS TO DETERMINE WHICH MUSHER AND DOGS CAN COVER THE RACE IN THE SHORTEST TIME UNDER THEIR OWN POWER AND WITHOUT THE AID OF OTHERS.  THAT IS DETERMINED BY THE NOSE OF THE FIRST DOG TO CROSS THE FINISH LINE."

DAY 1

click map - follow along!

A-roos to yous!

It's me, Jack, reporting for Team SiberMal.

Day 1

Star & I finished our first day's walking of the Idita-walk (30 minutes). It was a beawootiful day here, sunny and 43F. And look who came with us!

Our friend Moon joined in, our bipeds said we were a lively bunch! Mom actually took me & Moon for a little extra walking, she said we needed to stretch our legs a little more. We did not complain.

Our 30 mile/minute walk lands us at the virtual Iditarod Trail campsite mentioned yesterday, at Hwy 1 & Old South Glenn Hwy. We'll pitch the tent and put a kettle on the campfire in case any more walkers come along.

We also received

these great shots of MFT herself (being shadowed by her own personal pupperozzi) on her first Idita-walk walk. Just look at that fluffy tail waving in the wind! Good job, Khyra! At our virtual camp, Khyra's putting a pot of soup on the cooking fire, supper will be ready soon! MMMM! We don't have any updates from other team members at this time, but maybe they're still walking their feety-feets on the trail! Tomorrow's virtual walk through Alaska of 30 more miles/minutes will take us N. on Rt. 1 , left on Rt. 3, through Wasilla, and on up Rt. 3. & take a right off Rt. 3 on Zero Lake Trail. We found a nice place to camp tomorrow called Zero Lake. Isn't it pretty? It's definitely secluded!

THAT'S A FACT, JACK: The Iditerod has 70 mushers registered. It begins on March 7th. The Iditawalk has 659 walkers and 74 canines registered!

Have a good day hiking, we'll keep the campfire burning, and see woo tomorrow!

~Jack

The Iditawalk 2009 Begins...

Welcome to the Team SiberMal Iditawalk Blog! 

This team has committed to completing an exciting challenge: to walk for 1,049 minutes to honor the 1049 miles run by dog teams in the Iditerod.   The walk raises money for the Boy Scouts of Salmon Lake, near Nome, Alaska.  Please click on the Idita-walk link to the right & read all about it!  

The walk begins on Feb. 1st and runs through March 31st.   Team SiberMal walkers represent an International group of Siberians, Malamutes,  honorary Siberians (felines), and the bipeds that love them and share their lives.  

Team members are on the list to the right, with links to our blogs.   We'll do a little feature on each member during the course of the walk., so keep checking in.   Members will be posting about their experiences here in replies, and perhaps on their personal blogs as well.    

Ha-roo!  I'm Jack, and I will be your host for the first part of the journey!   Our virtual trip begins in Anchorage, Alaska.   The goal is to cover 30 miles (30 minutes) during each walking session.  Our first "camp" will be set up 30 miles north  of Anchorage near the Highway Rt. 1 at the exit at Old South Glenn Highway.   We'll set up our virtual tents along the banks of the Knik Arm.

Look at the gorgeous sunset we can look forward to!   

It's time to go curl up & get some napping in, before the walk begins!  See you at Camp Knik!

THAT'S A FACT, JACK:   A Dog Team consumes apx. 1800 pounds of food over the course of the Iditerod race. 

Reporting for Team SiberMal, a-roos to yous!  ~Jack