Welcome to Urban Mushing™ –
home of the Southern California Working Snow Dogs --- a group of humans and
their canine companions indulging in different fun dog-powered activities for
the working dog. Our dogs LOVE to run and pull and we give them a chance to get
the exercise they need and deserve through various “mushing” type activities
such as dog scootering, carting, bikejoring, canicross, skijoring,
weight-pulling, and yes, dogsledding. Most of us are also avid hikers and
take our dogs backpacking as well as snowshoeing during the winter.
Our site is constantly
evolving, so please
check back often for updates. We hope to use this as a source of information on
different types of urban mushing activities, gear, equipment, and events and to
encourage others to exercise their dogs, especially the working breeds.
Interested in
learning more about urban mushing? In
addition to this website, please join our Yahoo discussion group!
Go to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SoCalWorkingSnowDogs/. Our discussion
group gives you local run locations as well as meeting times and the best conversation around with fellow urban mushers!
Also visit our new blog
for up-to-the-minute information regarding our activities, fun runs and pictures
from events!
It doesn’t matter where
you’re from or what breed of dog you have --- if you love your dog and want to
learn more about dog-powered sports, then you’ve come to the right place.
To get a feel for what we're all about,
watch this
news clip from ABC News which aired on December 8,
2007 covering our 2nd Annual Not-So Great Serum Run! You can also watch this
promotional video by Donna Meichtry, one of our
more creative group members who is studying video production. She still
has hours of editing to do before she completes the project but in the meantime,
enjoy this amazing 'teaser.' Are you hooked yet? To see even more,
see news articles about our group,
view pictures from past events
and view and listen to our slideshow from our
Dogs Across America event.
Add an event to the website!
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A Weekend with
9-time Iditarod Veteran Karen Ramstead
in Southern California!
July 10 & 11, 2010
Nine-time Iditarod
veteran (and quite the engaging speaker) Karen Ramstead is flying
down to Southern California from her North Wapiti Siberian Husky Kennels in
Alberta, Canada!
We will be hosting 2 different events in order to help Karen raise funds for
her kennel:
July 10 (Saturday) - Presentation and Forum Costa Mesa Community Center 1 PM - 4 PM Karen will give a live audio and visual slideshow
presentation covering her experiences in training and racing in the Iditarod
with her "Pretty Sled Dogs". Donation is $30 per attendee - drinks and
snacks will be provided. No dogs allowed.
July 11 (Sunday)Barbecue/Potluck picnic and Q&A workshop
Laguna Niguel Regional Park 11 AM - 4 PM
Hamburgers and hot dogs will be provided but please bring a potluck item
(send an email to Cindy Stepp btrflygrl68@msn.com).
Donation amount is $20 per person, and $5 for children 12-and-under. Aside
from enjoying the food, picnic, and mingling with Karen Ramstead as well as
your fellow mushers, we will also have a Question & Answer Workshop
(note: this is NOT a hands-on mushing clinic so dogs are optional). It's a
wonderful opportunity to pick Karen's brain and learn a little bit more
about her training techniques and viewpoints. IT WOULD HELP A LOT if you
could write down your questions on the back of the registration form so that
Karen can answer them as best as she can.
T-shirts will also be sold at the event (you can order them ahead of
time - see registration form) as well as cookbooks, posters, etc., that
Karen will be bringing.
See you there! Specially those who want to learn more about the
Iditarod. If you can't live it, at least hear about it....from the great
Karen Ramstead!
2010 Urban Mushing™
Clinic!
March 27 & March 28
Fairview Park, Costa Mesa, CA
Carmen Rasmussen from Alpine Outfitters, who has been facilitating our
clinics for the past 3 years, will be able to fly down here and spend time
with us on March 27 and March 28. This clinic will have a different
format than previous
ones. It will be more informal and will be more hands-on.
The clinic will be split up into 2 different sessions which will cater to
different levels: Saturday will be for newbies (those who have NO or little
experience with dog scootering/bikejoring) while Sunday's session will be
for those who are at the intermediate level. The newbie session will
cover the basics, including what equipment and gear to use, proper harness
fit, how to teach your dog the basic commands (GEE, HAW, LINE OUT, EASY,
WHOA), ground work training, trail etiquette, and attitude. The intermediate
session will cover a little bit of what is in the newbie session but will
focus more on advanced commands such as GEE OVER, HAW OVER, ON BY passing,
teaching your dog to avoid distractions, speeding up on command, etc.
Both sessions will be held from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM and will be limited to
probably 20 participants per session, as this will be a more "hands-on" type
of clinic. Carmen will be the main facilitator but others will be on hand to
help her out. Registration fee will be $20 per session (plus $5 per
family member).
Our site is constantly
evolving, so please
check back often for updates. We hope to use this as a source of information on
different types of urban mushing activities, gear, equipment, and events and to
encourage others to exercise their dogs, especially the working breeds.
previous
ones. It will be more informal and will be more hands-on. 
The 2009 (not so)
Great Serum Run and Barbecue! 
