Dog sled

Stained glass Alaskan theme, formerly part of a Seattle storefront, now in the Museum of History and Industry

Dog sled team and riders

A dog sled is a sled pulled by one or more sled dogs used to travel over ice and through snow. Numerous types of sleds are used, depending on their function.

History

Dog power has been utilized for hunting and travel for hundreds of years. As far back as the 10th century these dogs have contributed to human culture. (Coppinger, L.)

Dog sled teams are put together with great care. Putting a dog sled team together involves picking leader dogs, point dogs, swing dogs, and wheel dogs. The lead dog is very treasured, and seldom will mushers ever let these dogs out of their sight. Indeed, trained lead dogs become part of the family household. Important too is to have powerful wheel dogs to pull the sled out from the snow. Point dogs (optional) are located behind the leader dogs, swing dogs between the point and wheel dogs, and team dogs are all other dogs in between the wheel and swing dogs and are selected for their endurance, strength and speed as part of the team. In dog sledding Siberian Huskies or Alaskan malamutes are the main types of dogs that are used because of their willpower to work.

Sleds

A basket sled has a bed raised several inches above the surface of the snow. This type of sled is used in dogsled racing. Sprint sleds are often short-bodied basket sleds. A toboggan sled has a lower carriage and uses a closed bed, allowing the sled to slide or float over deep snow. Freight sleds, which are heavier and sturdier than sprint sleds, may be toboggan or basket sleds. Both of these types of sleds have runners which stick out behind the sled, on which the musher can stand. For brakes, older sleds relied on hooks attached to the sled with a rope, modern sleds usually include drag and claw brakes built into the sled.

The komatik is a traditional Inuit sled, used in Canada and Greenland, low-slung and on which the hunter or racer sits or lies down, facing forward. The runners do not stick out as in basket sleds.

A pulk is a short, flat sled used in the Scandinavian sport of pulka. The dog is hitched to the sled and the sled to the skier. The pulk is used to carry supplies or equipment, but not usually a person.

The expedition led by the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen used dog sleds to reach the South Pole.

A recent innovation in sled design was introduced in the 2004 Iditarod by Jeff King, who used a split sled for the race. This sled, the Tail Dragger, has a basket-style body with a freight-holding back end, and an open middle. The musher can sit on the back part or stand in the middle.

A dog sled race was included at the 1932 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York as a demonstration event.

Gallery

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  Antique dog sled at the Adirondack Museum
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  Racing across the snow
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  Dog sled in Quebec
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  Indian dog sled near Fort Clark. Watercolor by Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied 1833

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References

• The Canadian Museum of Civilization - History of Dogsled mail in the Yukon