LEE
THOMPSON - MUSHER
I
grew up in Tacoma, Washington. During the summer months of my
"terrible teens," I was sent to Jackson, Wyoming to
live and work with my dad's sister and her family. Those extended
visits to Wyoming had a profound impact on my life. So much so,
after high school graduation, I headed back to Wyo. Living in
Laramie offered many outdoor activities: biking on and off road,
rock climbing, snow sports, rivers, ultimate frisbee(my favorite
sport to play, but hockey is still more fun to watch). Alas, I
never knew there was rampant dog-driving all around me; I might
have been hooked alot sooner. I earned a B.A. Anthropology/Archaeology
from UW in the winter of 1997. Wasn't much to do with that degree
unless you have passion for the field and I didn't. I signed up
with the US Navy 4 months after undergrad. The choice to enlist
took me places I never knew existed here in the US and oconus.
When obligation with the military ended, I sold, donated, and
burned many of my belongings, and purchased a one-way ticket to
Alaska.
As a dog handler for AIE sled dog glacier tours, I dove into the
world of working and racing dogs. Each musher adds his/her diversity
to the dozen or so other drivers at the camp. There are similarities
with what dogs are trained to do. But, how they're trained and
cared for reveals amazing and unique results with nutrition, psyche(mood),
injury prevention and treatment., and much more! I will be accompanying
12 dogs from Matt and Sarah Hayashida's Rubicon Racing Kennel.
We, the dogs and I, paticipated in this year's Don Bowers Memorial
200. We've also been taking overnight trips throughout the Willow
and "Y" community dog sled trail system. Thank you to
the folks maintaining those trails! We are ready for this journey
to begin...
