We are back to work tomorrow. We cannot wait to share more with our students.

Here is the video from the start of the Iditarod in Willow, Alaska yesterday. They start on a frozen lake! You will see how the spectators entertain themselves, and how much the dogs are ready to pull. There were a lot of snow machines as well.

The lead has already changed a bunch in the first 24 hours of the race. It is very exciting to follow, and the students will be tracking their mushers through the next 2 weeks.  We had a great time!

We are back in Texas where I think it may be as cold as Anchorage!  We had the time of our lives and above you will see the slideshow of the official start of the IDITAROD!  (video of the day will be in the next post)

You can follow the race at www.iditarod.com and watch all the mushers come into each checkpoint. Coulson Tough students have a special insider login that allows them to get even BETTER videos and information about the race. There is also an Iditarod app that is free, if you as crazy about the race as me!

Our last day in Alaska, standing on the trail!

AND.......we finally saw a moose!

The city of Anchorage celebrates fur trading the same week as the Iditarod. The Iditarod celebrates the history of dog sledding and the FUR RONDY celebrates the history of fur trading. They have serious events and silly events. Mrs. Traicoff and I were able to participate in one of the silly events called the Run with the Reindeer. This happened a few hours after the ceremonials start, on the same street.  Yes, we ran a few blocks being chased by actual reindeer!
Check out the video!

Above is the amazing video we where able to take at the ceremonial start of the race today.  Wait until you see where Mrs. Traicoff and I were able sit and view the start. So exciting to see the dogs and mushers up close and personal! Pay close attention to the excitement the dogs show as they are ready to run!
Below are some great camera shots we took as well!

Here is a quick look at last night's meet and greet with Aliy Zirkle and Allen Moore. Aliy came in second place for the past 2 years, and we think she will win this year! We learned that she has a different harness for her dogs. Her dogs are only attached at the collar to her gang line and not attached with the harness on the back part of the dog. Many mushers harness the front and back of the dog so they don't accidently turn around. Aliy gives her dogs more freedom on the gangline.

WE ARE IN THE CONROE COURIER!  HERE IS A LINK TO THE ONLINE ARTICLE!!!

http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/courier/news/elementary-teachers-giving-iditarod-lessons-from-alaska/article_d769fb68-7903-5c0c-902a-d7f689326013.html

Pictures of the ceremonial start are coming soon! Here are a few highlights!

Alaskan Adventure!  

Dog Sledding and snowshoeing in Eagle River, Alaska.

Sledding with a Dallas Seavey's dogs! Scroll down for a slide show of more great pictures!

Here we are dog sledding and hiking in snow shoes! We are at Chugach State Park, the Eagle River green belt access area. Our sledding and hiking trail was on a frozen river.  Our dog team was Eddy and Rapid (wheel dogs ), Flats, Rye , and Delta (middle dogs), and Tybo and Carbon ( our lead dogs).  The weather was unusually warm by Alaska standards (32 degrees), so our day was perfect. We were still dressed in three layers to keep our Texas blood warm!

Mrs. Traicoff and Mrs. Robertson will be in the Courier this Saturday! Get yourself a copy! They have been interviewing us via e-mail and telephone while we are here in Anchorage! So exciting!

Tonight was definitely a highlight! We attended the 2014 Iditarod Musher Banquet.  Over 1,800 mushers, teachers, race supporters, and fans were in attendance. At the banquet, mushers drew their race order and mingled with the race fans.  It was exciting to meet the participants that we have followed over the years. Mrs. Robertson and I did get a little star struck at times and made sure we were able to meet EVERY MUSHER in the race this year! The mushers definitely know two teachers from The Woodlands, Texas and their students are tracking them in the race this year!

 

The 79th annual Fur Rondy festival is being held during our visit. After today's session, we were able to head to the snow carving exhibit.  Due to the warm weather today, they were starting to melt! However we still enjoyed the amazing frozen creations.

 



 

 

 

We were able to observe the vet checks on Wednesday. 

The mushers are required to have their team checked by a veterinarian to be cleared for the race.

These canines are true athletes! Dog health and safety always comes first for the race officials and the mushers.  Dogs are brought into the vet check on the dog trucks and it gets pretty noisy with all the barking!

This dog truck drove all the way from Minnesota!

This team is waiting their turn for the vet.



The vet checks the heart, hydration, attitude, weight, legs (joints), and feet.



The dogs are always eager to see who is walking by the truck!

The vet check is getting very busy.

This is the vet trailer where dogs are taken for their EKG test.

 

 

 

 

Trophies for the race winner!

 

Here are more pictures of yesterday's adventures from

Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla, AK!

 

Can you believe we saw THE REAL TOGO??????

 

 

 

 

       

Statue of Balto!

Statue of Ray Redington, Jr., the father of the

Iditarod Sled Dog Race.

 

Today we are in classes learning new and amazing lesson ideas from past Teachers on the Trail. It is exciting to be the student and have the opportunity to interact with master teachers from across the country. We have made new friends from Alaska, Hawaii, Florida, New York, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, South Dakota, Illinois, Ohio, Iowa, North Carolina, Minnesota, Indiana, and of course TEXAS.

Tonight we will be attending the musher banquet where we will get to meet all the mushers! We are not sure which one we are most excited to meet!! Look for video and pictures on our blog tomorrow.

We just found an app called Aurora Buddy that is forecasting favorable conditions to see the Aurora Borealis tonight. WOW! We are going to head to Earthquake Park tonight after the banquet to see if we can catch a glimpse of Mother Nature's dancing light show. Cross your fingers we will be in luck.

We wanted to review everything we have done in the  4 days we have been here:
Monday: We took a 4 and a half hour flight to Seattle. Then we got to pick up Mr. Beckmann to fly us to Anchorage. That was a 3 hour flight. We arrived at the hotel and went to the social where we met Dallas Seavey!
Tuesday: We had great classes in  the morning, where we met Sanka W. Dog, and then an amazing field trip to Jon Van Zyle's . We carpooled with Terrie Hanke, the 2006 teacher of the trail.
Wednesday: Field trip day! We took a 45 minute bus ride to Iditarod headquarters to witness  vet checks. Then we loaded the bus and went to Dream a Dream kennel and met Vern Halter. We got to see a full kennel, 50 dogs, and watch Cindy Abbott's dog team in their own space.
Thursday: A day of classes and then the musher banquet. We will be there to get autographs and pictures. We will also watch as they draw their bib number for the race.

Today, we also visited Vern Halter's kennel named Dream a Dream Dog Farm in Wasilla, Alaska. Vern is a veteran Iditarod Sled Dog Race competitor who is training new racers. He is currently training Cindy Abbott. Ms. Abbott started the race last year and completed a majority of the race with a broken pelvis before scratching. She hopes to finish this year. Below is our visit to his kennel:

Vern Halter and Cindy Abbott

Mrs. Robertson, Vern Halter, and Mrs. Traicoff

Amazingly full day today! We were able to see vet checks at Iditarod headquarters in Wasilla, Alaska. Here are some highlights with a video above:

Musher Jason Mackey

Jason Mackey's dogs

Photographer Jeff Schultz

Waiting for vet check!

A different type of transportation!

Tough Teachers with Mr. Van Zyle

 

Mrs. Traicoff with Lion.

Mrs. Robertson with Anouk.



Mr. Van Zyle signing his artwork.

Mr. Van Zyle is an artist whose drawings and painting have been used for many Iditarod books, posters, and Alaskan artwork.

 He is the illustrator for the book The Great Serum Race by Debbie Miller.






Mrs. Robertson's purchase!

Watch our video from our visit to Jon Van Zyle's kennel and art gallery. We are in Eagle River, Alaska.

Signed in and got our vests!!!!
First speaker: Terrie Hanke--- She is Sanka W. Dog! She wrote the 8 traits of the Iditarod, the character lessons we have been studying in class. Mrs. Traicoff is extra excited because Ms. Hanke is from Wisconsin!

Terri Hanke