We are proud to have some of the best teams in the world representing Howling Dog! We are happy to keep on working with the same teams as in past and we would also like to introduce a new member of Team Howling Dog!
Long Distance Mushing
JEFF KING (Alaska)
Simply THE KING! He is often recognized as the “Winningest Musher in the World.” He holds four championship titles for the 1,049-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 1993, 1996, 1998, and 2006. Jeff took first place in the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest in 1989 in addition to earning close to thirty other first-place titles in races across Alaska and other parts of North America. Jeff was inducted into the Iditarod Hall of Fame in 1999. In 2006, at age 50, he became the oldest musher to win the Iditarod. Jeff King has twice received the prestigious Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award for exemplary care of his dog team. He has logged more than 150,000 miles on a dogsled over the past thirty five years. During the 2013 Iditarod Sled Dog Race Jeff finished third overall.
Jeff moved to Alaska in 1975 in search of adventure. He quickly became interested in dog sledding and Alaskan huskies, devoting all his spare time and money to building his own team, while developing a construction business. He began racing in 1980. His competitive nature and athleticism had found a new outlet, and Jeff set his sights ever higher, entering his first Iditarod just one year later. In 1992 he decided to devote his full time and energy to training and racing, setting aside his construction business. He won his first Iditarod the following season.
Jeff enjoys living just outside of Alaska’s Denali National Park and sharing his life with his sled dogs. In the summer months, Husky Homestead welcomes visitors from around the world to watch his sled dogs in action, hear stories of adventure, learn about Alaskan Huskies, the tradition of dog mushing and the life and spirit of Alaska, the last frontier.
We are happy and excited to work with Jeff, the “innovator” for yet another winter.
Visit Jeff’s Husky Homestead web site: http://www.huskyhomestead.com/
Jeff’s harness of choice is our Hybrid Light Weight Harness.
ALIY ZIRKLE & ALLEN MOORE (Alaska)
Howling Dog is very proud of Aliy’s and Allen’s last season’s performance; highlighted by Allen crossing the Yukon Quest finish line in first place! And Aliy and her team finished second in the Iditarod Sled Dog Race. Boy, what an exciting race that was!
Aliy and Allen are the proud owners of SP (Skunk Place) Kennel in Two Rivers, Alaska. They run a relatively “small” kennel by competitive mushing standards (only about 40 dogs) and pretty much every dog gets to race! Aliy races the Red Team and Allen races the Black Team. The goals and strategies for each team vary from race to race, so the dogs may run on either team at any time. Aliy and Allen dedicated themselves to the individual dogs through excellent health, nutrition, training and care.
Both Aliy and Allen strive to be good-will ambassadors for the sport of sled dog racing, balancing winning performance with exceptional sportsmanship, community outreach and advocacy for the amazing Alaskan Husky. And we are proud of you, guys!
Visit SP Kennel blog for training and racing updates: http://spkenneldoglog.blogspot.com/
Aliy’s and Allen’s harness of choice is our Distance Harness.
Mid-distance Mushing
AMANDA VOGEL (Minnesota)
Amanda Vogel is originally from Bay City, Michigan, and now lives in northern Minnesota, just south of the Ontario border. Amanda was introduced to the sport of mushing in 2003, and after a few years of learning the basics from a recreational dog sledding club, she began building a kennel that would allow her to race professionally.
Today, Amanda is the owner and operator of Snomad Racing and is one of the top female competitors in mid-distance sled dog racing in the lower 48. Her most recent achievements include being awarded Rookie of the Year, earning a 4th place finish, and passing another Iditarod qualifying race, all of which were accomplished while competing in the nearly 400 mile 2013 John Beargrease Marathon.
Snomad Racing also travels for exhibitions and speaking engagements, works on TV, film, and modeling projects, and puts winter and mushing products to extreme tests for sponsors committed to making the toughest gear and equipment on the market. When Amanda is not training and racing, she is found raising pups, exploring woods and waters, and laughing with good friends.
More information about Amanda and the Snomad Racing sled dogs can be found by subscribing at http://www.facebook.com/snomadracing.
Amanda’s harness of choice is our Light Weight Harness.
Sprint Mushing
AMI GJESTSON (Alaska)
Another race season is over and Ami and of course us here at Howling Dog could not be happier with the way it turned out! Ami achieved her two major goals for the team – to win the Su-Valley Championships, which she hadn’t done before, and to get on the podium at the IFSS World Championships. Ami’s six dog team had three 1st place finishes going into the World Championships and the pressure was on with all of the very competitive teams converging on North Pole, Alaska. Ami’s dogs were race ready and peaking at the right time, and winning a silver medal was a highlight of her racing career. Fergus, Piper, Hollywood, Dandy, Pin & Jeter put it all on the line at every race they competed. They are just awesome dogs! Now another race season is just around the corner. Good luck, Ami!
To meet Ami’s dogs, visit her kennel page: http://www.dogtec.com/kennel/nordskogen-sprinters
Ami’s harness of choice is our Light Weight Harness.
MARTIN & KATI DAGENAIS (Quebec)
What a great season for Team Dagenais it was – highlighted by Kati winning the gold medal in the 8-dog class during the IFSS World Championship in North Pole, Alaska!
Kati and Martin own a relatively small kennel specializing in limited class racing. Their past accomplishments also include winning the ISDRA gold medal in the 8-dog class in 2008 and in 2009 a gold medal in the 6-dog class at the IFSS World Championships in Daaquam, Quebec . In 2012 Kati and Martin materialized a lifelong dream of going to Alaska for the first time and winning the Limited North American Championship in the 6-dog class.
Visit the Dagenais Kennel page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/dagenais.kennel
The harness of choice for the Dagenais Kennel is our Light Weight Harness.
Skijoring & Bikejoring
RICH KISSELOFF (Illinois)
Rich is the newest member of Team Howling Dog. He is our new representative in the bikejoring and skijoring field. Welcome aboard, Rich!
Rich’s story started about four years ago in St. Louis, MO. with a young Siberian Husky and an eight year old Chocolate Lab. He was looking for another way to exercise his dogs and started a crude form of bikejoring and rollerblading. After doing much research and finding several mentors, Rich has progressed to where he is at now in the dog mushing world. Due to his competitive nature Rich soon realized that he needed to get faster dogs than his Siberian Huskies. He finally took the “plunge” and got a retired Eurohound sled dog. His “urban kennel” has now grown to eight dogs with five being his own. It includes two Siberian huskies, two Alaskans, and four Eurohounds, three of which will be his A-Team for bikejoring and skijoring events.
Last season was Riche’s first full schedule of races. Rich and his dogs raced canicross, bikejoring, skijoring, sled, scooter, and dryland rig. They managed to be very successful in every race they entered with some young and old dogs. Rich hopes to continue on that same path for the upcoming season and for the future. While a podium finish is always icing on the cake, his main focus will be to learn as much as he can from the veteran mushers, and to field a competitive team in each event and have fun doing so.
Rich also dedicates a lot of his time to promoting and helping new people get involved in the sport of “urban mushing” in the Chicago area.
Visit Riche’s Facebook page Windy City Mushers: https://www.facebook.com/pages/WindyCityMushers/370560473046323
Riche’s harness of choice is the Light Weight Harness and the Second Skin Harness.