A sled dog team crosses under a tall train bridge on a crisp sunny winter morning

Eight sled dogs in harness bark and jump as they wait to take off on a race

The race arch for the T-Dog sled dog race stands proudly over the trail sporting banners for sponsors

She's off! Sarah @persistencemushing.bsky.social and the Great Eight have hit the trail for the T-Dog 50 starting in Nenana! It's a beautiful morning for a mush!

Rebel - Cassidy
Maynard - Boomer
Link - Maverick
Goose - Astro

Onward!!

A team of eight sled dogs run down a snowy trail. The gangline and sled are adorned with Christmas lights

Merry ChristMush to all, and to all a good night! @ataokennel.bsky.social @goggdog42.bsky.social #uglydogs

Fiona grins while sewing a fur ruff onto her blue parka while sitting on a couch. Gus, a pug mix is sound asleep in her lap.

Pepper, a Siberian husky stands and stares up at a TV showing a musher checking into an Iditarod check point.

Fiona and I are taking the opportunity to spend the day working on gear maintenance. We're watching mushing documentaries while we work and Pepper is enthralled!

Ah yeah that would be awesome!

She is the definition of demure 😂 very hard to tell what she wants.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background. Potato stands in front of her and joins in the scream. Rey is in the foreground and looks a little perturbed by all their nonsense.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

Additional evidence 😂

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

Astro, a tan and brown Alaskan Husky, screams to keep running while the team is stopped for a quick photo break. The team is stopped on a snowy trail with birch trees and a blue sky in the background.

If you only ever pay attention to the foreground of sled dog photos, you're missing great content.

I submit this collection of Astro screaming (demanding that I end the photo shoot and keep running) in the background of every photo I took today as evidence of your folly.

A team of sled dogs in harness in front of a four wheeler bark, howl, and jump to go on a snowy day as Sarah the human stands at the front of the line looking at the team and wearing heavy winter gear

A team of sled dogs in harness in front of a four wheeler bark, howl, and jump to go on a snowy day as Sarah the human, standing next to the leaders in heavy winter gear, faces the camera and makes an exaggerated shrug

@persistencemushing.bsky.social and I still not sure if dogs are excited

@goggdog42.bsky.social and @persistencemushing.bsky.social I talked about you

And Markey Mark. We'll rope him in too lol.

I just realized this will be the first time we've ever done a race at the same time 😱 7 years and we've never even both run the Solstice.

Sarah and Will stand in front of a banner that reads "Tanana Valley Sled Dog Races: THE T-DOG"

@ataokennel.bsky.social and I are both signed up for the T-Dog 200!! Let the season begin!! #uglydogs

Right?! The matching flop ears kill me. Too adorable 😭

Furiosa, a black and tan Alaskan husky, lounges next to Annie, a white Alaskan husky, on a blanket across the backseat of Sarah's truck. Both of their left ears are adorably flopped forward.

Annie and Furiosa rode around with me most of yesterday so I could take them to a vet appointment while @ataokennel.bsky.social is out of town. They hung out like the perfect sweet angels they are. Seriously considering kidnapping them regularly for emotional errand-running support. #uglydogs

I think it was betrayal. She was very excited to see me when I first arrived but I think at this moment she was thinking I brought the vet purely to torment her 😂

Have no fear, aggressive sighing was definitely involved in this pose 😂

Pepper, a Siberian Husky, gazes longingly out the window at falling yellow leaves.

Pepper is waiting "patiently" for sled season.
#uglydogs

Dog team pulling a red 4wheeler driven by Sarah down a muddy dirt road. Annie and Rey are in lead, followed by Ophelia and Egret, Nala, Max and R2D2, and Cassidy and Sundance in wheel.

A gang line stretches out across grass from a red 4wheeler in front of a log house. Sarah bends over Rey as she hooks her to the front of the gang line.

Sarah sits on a wood floor surrounded by bins and baskets of dog booties she is sorting.

On this day, 7 years ago, I ran with @ataokennel.bsky.social for the first time after happening to meet @goggdog42.bsky.social at a theater event. I am so grateful for the last seven years of friendship and growth I've had with you both and the team. I'll never be able to say thank you enough ❤️

A wooden deck with fallen birch leaves coated with a light dusting of snow. A forest of birch and spruce stands behind the deck.

It's been a super busy summer/fall but we got our first little dusting of snow last night! It will be a while still before we're on sleds but I am so excited for this season!
#uglydogs

lol so we just discovered yesterday that she misspelled Persistence in her design so you possess a very limited first edition sticker 🤣 She's made a corrected design though so if you would like I'll send you one of those.

Lol oh absolutely

Thank you! I had a lot of fantastic help from other troop leaders.

I apologize, I don't want to totally derail the conversation. From what I gather it sounds like you're set for now but I just want to confirm that you're getting what you need.

Lol someone asked how I continuously had so much energy and a positive attitude and I was like "it's like mushing but warmer" 🤣 my special interests combo is making more sense now.

Lol I love that. Thank you! I'm pooped but had a fantastic time.

Lmao then that was the highest of compliments. That's the sort of energy I live for 🤪

I'm not sure what bleral is but I think that was a compliment 😂 I'm also not fully sure whats happening as I've been off in the woods with 100 girl scouts all weekend but I hope you're safe and doing ok! Mush love 💚

Lol I was so delightfully overwhelmed by the #uglydogs ❤️ I was exactly 0% prepared but I think that made it even better honestly. I'm still processing how incredible that experience was and continues to be.

Thank you for sharing 💕 Most of the fundraising efforts are going towards Fiona being able to race this season. However, teaching her has been a big motivator for me to get out and get past some mental blocks so indirectly, helping her helps me and is greatly appreciated by both of us 💕💕💕

Thank you! She was so excited to see it all come together! I wish I would have gotten a video.