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Dogs Without Wheels!

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In Brief:  our dog truck is totaled.  We need a new one!

Who we are:  identical twin sisters and professional mushers Kristy and Anna Berington, of Knik, Alaska.  We raise, care for, train and race dozens of amazing canine athletes.  Learn more about us here .

What happened:  between the Ceremonial and Official Restarts of Iditarod 2018, Kristy, her husband, and 24 of their dogs were in a 9 vehicle accident caused by black ice outside of Anchorage, Alaska.  Miracle of miracles, no one was injured, dog or human.  Except the truck, which is beyond the money that would be needed to repair it.

 What we need:  a safe, new, reliable 4-wheel drive truck with engine capacity to haul a dog box and trailer in winter conditions.  We also need to build a dog box and purchase a trailer to accommodate hauling our entire kennel in an emergency.

Why we need it:  Our 2017/18 sled dog racing season is about over, but we'll be at it again next year.  We need to get to areas where we can train and to the start of races.  Even more importantly?  We need to be able to transport a large quantity of food and supplies for our dogs.  We need to be able, if the situation arose, to transport a number of dogs to the vet at once.  Imagine if an aggressive moose got into the dog yard, or a porcupine.  We take measures to prevent these things, but...!  We also need to be able to evacuate our furry family in the event of an emergency.  Wildfires can, and have , raged nearby in recent memory, and Kristy was woken up earlier this year to a tsunami alert.  We would never leave our dogs behind. 

And, hey ~ we try to give, back, too.  We've done presentations for the Rotary club about what it means to race 1,000 miles across the Alaskan wildressness.  We spoke to a large group of school kids about mushing in support of the Idita-Read program.  And that's just recently!  Canine representatives often go with us to these events.  We're ambassadors for dog care, as multiple-time Humanitarian award winners, the sport of sled dog racing, and for anyone, particularly young women, that faces a challenge.

Ok, explain your $50k goal amount:  The twins are out racing on the iditarod trail while their big sis (Kat) launches this campaign, and I need them to return, decompress, and opine on the best options.  That said, I priced out trucks that would meet their needs at a local dealership.  A new, 2017 is a worthwhile investment and would run $35-40k.  They are talented craftswomen, and with the funds to buy supplies could craft a durable, safe dog box for the truck.  A trailer, in which they could build additional dog houses and carry gear, would get them to the starting line of races as well as transport all the dogs in the event of a massive emergency.  Trailers priced out $3-5k, and further supplies to construct the interior would be needed. 

Toss all that together, and I bet you can see how $50k would get spent pretty easily meeting this need and making it a worthwile investment. 

We know we're asking a lot, and we intend to contribute ourselves from savings, recent inheritance from our dear late father, and help from family (says aforementioned big sis hopping up and down wildly in the background!).  But we really need to offset as much of the cost as possible so we can maintain the highest level of day-to-day dog care, particularly before our seasonal employment in construction and fishing get going. 

Every little bit means so much!!  In thanks for your donation to this cause, and with the generous support of friends and sponsors, we will be able to offer high quality photos taken by artist and Alaskan adventurer Albert Marquez, autographed by Anna and Kristy, as well as embroidered Seeing Double Sled Dog Racing logo patches.  Kat is working fast and furious to iron out these details, and will report back soon!  But I didn't want to let the opportunity pass getting this effort started as soon as possible.

Thank you so much for your time and interest!

Kristy & Anna Berington, 
   Seeing Double Sled Dog Racing
... And all the amazing dogs!!

... Big sis Kat (aka the Seeing Double Mad Blogger), thanks you as well!

Our poor totaled truck.  Might have been worth repairing if it weren't an older model with high miles. 



Anna & Kristy Berington
Albert Marquez Photography



Just 2 of our dear babies!



Our dogs always come first.
Kristy during Iditarod 2018, photo from Iditarod Insider.



Oh, to dream a dream of reliable transportation for our furry family...!

Organizer

Kat Berington
Organizer
Wasilla, AK

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