What are mushers really up to when freezing nights and endless tracks are months away? We had a chat with the Iditarod 2020 Champion Thomas Wærner to know more about how he spends his days at the kennel during summer.

Thomas Wærner opens up about:

• His non-structured summer plan

• How summer can lay the foundation for a miserable race season

• What he actually feels about tanning and chilling in the sun

There are great variations in summer training within the mushing community, and several completely different approaches have been proven to succeed.

Some mushers are focusing on building the dog’s endurance and strength through the summer months. Others are more concerned about giving themselves and the dogs a well-deserved active recovery phase.

Thomas Wærner is definitely amongst the latter, and deliberately refrains from specific mushing training or racing during the summer.

Free Play and Observing

“I try to keep some elements of traditional mushing training, for instance with the dogs pulling the ATV, into the first two weeks of June before we take our summer vacation”, he says.

From mid June and onwards, he stay away from any kind of organised training.

“We focus on pleasurable recovery activities. Mainly, I let the dogs out in the dog yard, and they are allowed to run freely around the kennel for some hours every day. I am able to observe the dogs, look for injuries and physical state, spend time with them, socialise, and simply enjoy their company.”

For Wærner this is also a great opportunity to focus on getting the new puppies integrated into the group.

With a total of 40 dogs at the kennel, and only 18 dogs to be chosen for racing during the winter, the task of mapping and screening the qualities of the dogs begins already in June.

Thomas’ favorite thing about summer at the kennel is the absence of things that needs to be done.

“Everyday life is not as hectic as during winter, there is no structured plan”.

He can prioritize the things he really wants to do over the tasks he knows has to be done. He appreciates the mental break summer provides, and the opportunity to get those odd tasks that have been piling up over winter done. Not to mention a couple of weeks of proper summer holiday, spending quality time in a warm and relaxing place with the family.

Dogs Longing For Winter

“Although I really appreciate summer when the time comes, I actually have the impression that the dogs always long for the winter. They seem to really miss being able to run fast and pull hard along the tracks.”

However, for their own good regarding rest and prevention of injury, Wærner have to force them into a couple of lazy months. In addition, being a thick-coated Alaskan Husky during warm summer days is not really cool experience in any way.

Improving Own Fitness

Physical training for himself is also an important part of summer duties. Thomas logs hours on the rowing machine, does long, fast walks in the local mountain areas, and traditional weight training to be physically prepared for the season to come. As race season is too hectic to be able to fit this kind of training in, he uses summer to improve his fitness. Winter is spent trying to minimise the decay.

Thomas believes there are several good ways to approach the summer training in dog mushing.

His biggest concerns is not necessarily to do the exact right thing, but avoiding doing the wrong thing.

Tired of Mosquitos

Summer in Norway is slowly coming to an end, and temperatures are decreasing. Thomas is checking his weather app every two hours these days, in search of forecasted lowered temperatures.

“Both the dogs and I are really itching to return to proper mushing training now. They are tired of being held back from running fast and pulling the sled. I am tired of mosquitos and the cold, wet days pretending to be summer here in Norway. We all agree that we had enough, and can’t wait to hit the tracks once again.”

“Time to get back to work!”