A16
NEWS
Wallowa County Chieftain
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
Eagle Cap: Dog sled teams include seven competitors in the
Iditarod-qualifying 200-mile race
Continued from Page A1
“We are interested in cov-
ering several stories in addi-
tion to the race as a whole,”
he said. “They include the
two, father-son teams of
Brett Bruggeman and his
son Spencer, and also the
high percentage of women
in the race. We tend to asso-
ciate sled dog racing with
hardy frontiersmen with
beards. But there are a lot of
up and coming, very capa-
ble young women athletes
as well as more experienced
women racers in the ECX.
And there will be some
unanticipated stories that we
will find as well.”
Many of the racers are
returning veterans, includ-
ing crowd favorites Clayton
Perry, Gabe Dunham and
previous winner Brett Brug-
geman in the 200-mile event.
April Cox, Hugo Antonucci
and Rex Mumford return for
the 100-miler. Local favor-
ites Morgan Anderson of
Enterprise and George Gar-
cia of LaGrande and last
year’s winner Jane Devlin
of Bend, will run the 2-day
mid-distance race.
The dogs used in sled dog
racing come in many variet-
ies. Most teams consist of
Alaskan Huskies—a mix
of Siberian Husky, hounds,
German shorthaired pointer,
and other breeds that bring
sight, stamina, speed and
strength to the team. Alas-
kan Huskies are generally
very good with other dogs
and gentle with people.
Musher David Hassilev’s
team includes Chinook dogs
— an American breed with
Mastiff lineage. Connie Star
will run her team of regis-
tered Siberian Huskies in the
2-day mid-distance race.
The Eagle Cap Extreme
kicks off with an oppor-
tunity for the public to
meet the mushers and their
teams at the Vet Checks on
Jan. 23, from 9-11 a.m. on
Main Street in Joseph, and
1-3 p.m. on Main Street in
EAGLE CAP
EXTREME
HIGHLIGHTS
SCHEDULE:
Race Central at the
Joseph Community
Center: Wednesday,
Jan 23- 8 AM — 3 PM,
Thursday, Friday 8 AM-10
PM, Saturday 8 AM-3 PM:
Listen to radio updates
on musher positions,
learn about the teams
and dogs. Kids Corner
with activities, books and
events.
Vet Checks: Wed. Jan. 23:
9-11, Joseph Main Street;
1-3 PM, Enterprise Main
Street. 9-10, Wallowa
School.
Musher Potluck: Wed,
January 23 6:30, Joseph
Community Center. Bring
a dish. Free.
Race Start: Thursday,
Jan 24, noon to about 2
PM, Ferguson Ridge Ski
Area, Tucker Down Road,
Joseph. Shuttle starts at
9:45. Arrive at parking
area at least 1 hour early.
Ellen Morris Bishop
Students from Elgin enjoy getting to know sled dogs at Ferguson Ridge in 2018, just before
the race starts.
Enterprise. There will also
be a sled dog team or two at
the vet check event in Wal-
lowa from 9-11 a.m. At the
vet checks, dogs are secured
to the musher’s trucks or
trailers, and undergo brief
exams by a team of sled-dog
specialty veterinarians led
by Yukon Quest Head Veter-
inarian Kathleen McGill —
to ensure that the dogs are
in tip-top condition. Visitors
can meet the canine athletes
— and the equally friendly,
enthusiastic mushers and
veterinarians. More than 30
high school FFA members
will be on hand to help at the
vet checks.
At each vet check, a
musher will provide a pre-
sentation about their dogs,
sled, and dog sled racing to
students and adult visitors.
Schools, including Enter-
prise and Joseph Elemen-
tary, Cove, and La Grande
schools, learn about the
mushers and dogs in his-
tory and geography classes,
then bring students to the vet
check events. Elgin Elemen-
tary School often brings its
4th–grade students to meet
and cheer on their favor-
ite mushers and dogs at the
race’s start.
The potluck dinner at the
Joseph Community Cen-
ter on Jan. 23 at 6:30 p.m.
offers another opportunity
to learn about the race if
you can’t make it to the vet
check (or even if you can.)
This is where mushers draw
their numbers and the race
starting order is determined.
It’s a great place to meet
mushers, their families, and
assistants. Kids’ artwork
from around the county is
on display. The event is
free and open to the public.
Please bring a potluck dish
to share.
The race begins at noon
on Jan. 24 at Ferguson Ridge
Ski Area, Tucker Down
Road, Joseph. If you plan to
go, the ECX provides park-
ing and beginning a shut-
tle service to the race start.
It’s best to come an hour
or so early. Each team gets
an individual start, and you
can wish your favorite rac-
ers well as they mush down
the start chute. Racers will
be starting until about 2 p.m.
Racers finish at varying
times. The 22-mile junior
race concludes late Thurs-
day afternoon. The 100 mile
winner generally crosses the
finish line on Friday after-
noon. The 200 mile winners
arrive at the finish around
midnight Friday or very
early Saturday morning.
The ECX concludes at
the Eagle Cap Extreme
Awards Banquet, Saturday
evening at 6:30 p.m. at the
Joseph Community Cen-
ter. Mushers tell their stories
of the race and accept their
awards, and there is an auc-
tion of art, memorabilia and
other donated items. Tick-
Awards Banquet: Sat-
urday January 26, Doors
open: 5:30. Dinner (Stan-
gels buffalo!) served, 6:30
Tickets: $20, available
through the Eagle Cap
Extreme website, www.
eaglecapextreme.com
Website: www.eagle-
capextreme.com
Listen to the race radio
and track mushers on a
map: www.eaglecapex-
treme.com/index.php/
volunteers/amateur-ra-
dio
ets are available through the
Eagle Cap Extreme website,
https://www.eaglecapex-
treme.com and are $20 for
the general public and $12
for volunteers. All funds
from the banquet and auc-
tion support the all-volun-
teer Eagle Cap Extreme.
Baby:
Joseph
couple’s
child is
county’s
first in 2019
Continued from Page A1
Adele, who won the
2015 and 2016 “Best
Cowgirl” award at the
ranch rodeo, can’t wait
to get back in the saddle.
An unexpected sur-
prise during Schott’s
pregnancy was the sup-
port she got throughout.
“So many people,
strangers and friends
alike, congratulated me,
gave me best wishes and
told me how beautiful I
looked, even when I was
feeling less than glow-
ing,” she said. “Women
were especially kind and
empathetic.”
Schott’s advice for
parents-to-be is to take
in all the advice offered
but remember that they
still need to do it their
own way. She also sug-
gested that couples
choose their own labor
team wisely.
“I felt so fortunate
to have a doctor and
healthcare team that I
trusted and my husband
and mom in the room
with me for extra sup-
port,” she said. “Mark
and I are so grate-
ful for the outstanding
care we received in the
hospital.”
Adele
said
the
Schotts’ favorite thing
about being new par-
ents is the abundance of
love in their family and
how their hearts have
expanded in the process.
“Mark and I are so in
love with our son with-
out losing an ounce of
love for each other, she
said. “It’s an incredible
feeling.”
Per fect
Sett ing!
Enterprise – 103 N. Holmes St. – 1Bd/1Ba – $500/mo.
Wallowa – 402 Wynema St. – Brand New - No Pets –
3Bd/2Ba – $1000/mo.
Commercial
Enterprise – 103 Hwy 82 – X-Roads Building –
Various Sizes/Units.
AVAILABLE RENTALS
AS OF 1/14/2019
See Current Rentals at:
www.wallowamountainproperties.com
Ryan D. Barstad, Property Manager/Broker
309 S. River St. Ste. D, Enterprise, OR 97828
Phone: 541-426-5381 • 907-903-1807 • Email: ryan.barstad@gmail.com