The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1923-02-22
Special Trains Carry Fans
To Seventh Annual Dog Derby
Night Work Under the Stars Marks Keenest
Contest Yet Standardization People
Engrossed in the Derby

On this Thursday morning, specia
trains went over the line a
scheduled, carrying crowds of peopl
from Boise and Salt Lake and inter
! mediate points to the dog derby a
Ashton. The snow and weather hav
been right to make a good track
and a remarkable record run wa
hoped for.
Ashton people have developed
something in the dog derby that ha
attracted nationwide attention, ant
it has not been done without SOM
persistent effort on their part. Fo1
weeks people have talked dog races
studied dog races and dreamed dos
races; they have bet on dog races
and kept an eagle eye on the train
ers and the trained to see which
ones were keeping at it in the best
way and what results they were
getting. They keep tab on the time
it takes each one to go around the
track, and Is so doing, they make
some sacrifices of time. A grocery
clerk pauses in waiting on a GUS
toner, to look at his watch and jot
down the exact time, for 10, dog
team whizzed by and he has 1t on
his tablet what time 1t started on the
run little while ago, going around
the five mile track. The barber
pauses with shears or razor in the
air, or walks to the window at inter-
walls to see just what is doing, and
the customer is expected to be
patient while he keeps tab on this
publico (for public good.) 1t may
take little longer to get shaved,
but what of it!
A dray passing up, the street, pulls
out to give plenty of room for a
streak Of fog to go by, and the
teams out along the road keep a
sharp lookout fore and aft, to make
sure that they do not delay string
of dogs that loom up in the road, for
verify, it is a flash and a vanish.
Everybody at Ashton is supposed
to know something of the dogs in
the respective teams; what or who"
is the leader, for the dogs are re-
garded as almost human, and as
much depends on the lead dog as
upon the driver. 1t takes tactics
and close attention as we'll as speed,
to lead a dog team, and the leader
must be a tactician keeping in close
accord with the driver. To find and
train five dogs that can run at the
same speed and all put their share
is quite some job, and to keep the
dogs all obedient and not let any of
them get offended or lose enthusiasm
or morale" is part of the trainers
task. The driver that gets irritated
and offends a dog in his team may
by that stroke, lose the race and
lose money for all those who be-
lieved in him and bet their ,cesterces
upon his skill. So when a team of
dogs and a sledge with driver on,
goes by the store or the barber shop,
the close student of the situation
wants to have his eye on them to see
II any dog in the string is Sinking
or has an Indifferent attitude.
But the drivers become cunning
under all this watching and record
ing of their speed, and they slip out
At night to make some runs, and 1t |
keeps people watching early and late |
70 keep track OF these things. If a |
driver slips out and makes better |
run at night than he did in day
light, the fellows who are rfsking |
heir money on the race. have just
got to find it out and keep 1t still,
but there Is always the fellow who
gets next to everything and can't
xeep anything. He tells 1t. He tells
Ill he knows and then he tells
hings that he doesn't know. He
ioes it for fun, and 1t becomes a
,attle of wits as we'll as test OF
logs and drivers.
Those who are interested in the
aces like to mingle with the drivers
Is much as they can, to study their
to see II they can detect
lnything on their breath and to see
t they have smokers cough or any
hing that spells weakness or short
for under some circum-
tances the driver gets of and runs
reside the sledge and must need be
n fine trim for all eventualities.
Smoky" CASTOR of Yellowstone is
N the job this year. Two years. ago
Ie had to lay of one dog and went
nto the race one dog short, and lost
" fourteen minutes. Last year he
tarted to drive thru from Yellow
tont to Ashton and got into wild
nimal fight in the Targhee forest,
ost a dog and went back. 1t was
vhile he was supposed to be lost in
he forest that 'Lyd" Hutchinson [
uit her training and went out thru s
he great silence of the Island Park ]
ountry with food and blankets look
lg for him, till a messenger over
ook her saying that Smoky" was s
ack safe IN Yellowstone. Then she 6
'ent back to Ashton, got into the {
ace and her dogs took the wrong s
.ack in the excitement and lost a 7
wv precious minutes that swept I
way all chances of winning. c
Olcott Earn is fifteen year old '
oy, who is training fine team and c
lis is his third year In the races. '
"Lyd" Hutchinson is good look '
e girl of less than thirty, and she a