Tour busses can be amusing

I have taken to riding my ATV to work on the weekends and since I live on the north side of Wasilla, and my workplace is on the south side of it, I am left taking the trails through town to get from point A to point B. This is something that is allowed in Wasilla, provided riders follow the City of Wasilla rules for ATV use in the city. They are quite easy to follow, actually.

• Maintain a maximum speed of 10MPH on trails, 5 MPH in parking lots.
• Wear a helmet at all times.
• Must be over age 16 or accompanied by an adult.
• No 'stunt riding'; IE jumping driveways or skidding to kick up dust etc.
• Come to a full stop at all road crossings and look both ways before crossing.
• Stay off paved bike paths and avoid spraying gravel onto them or roadways.
• ATVs must be equipped with both working headlights and working taillights.

Simple rules that are easily followed by any courteous ATV rider, and as long as they are followed, then ATVs should, hopefully, be welcome in the city limits of Wasilla for many many years to come.

So, anyway, I was crossing through the city on my ATV and am paused at the corner of the Parks and Kinik in downtown Wasilla waiting for the chance to cross the road to continue my trek and two tour busses pull up at the northbound turn lane. A moment later first one then the other pulls around and onto Kinik-Goosebay, pausing for the train tracks.

I look up as the first one pauses and see tourists staring down at the ATV in the middle of town. Then the next bus pauses and again, tourists are staring at the ATV rider sitting in downtown Wasilla.. At that point the amusement hits me that there are probably very few places where ATVs can jsut drive down the side of the road and people can go shopping or to work on their ATV.

It is just one of the great things to love about Alaska, the ability to drive your ATV to work.

Summer Biking

Spring is here finally. The snow has melted off outside for the most part, with only the thicker piles still needing to be melted off. They should be gone soon, however, and the yard will be ready for spring. I am more than ready for spring myself, and want to get out there and hit the trails on my ATV. It has been far too long since last summer and my getting in some good ride time, I want to make sure the winter wood getters did not mess my ATV up, and hit the trails.

Springtime! ATVs and fishing!

Spring is here, and I am watching the snow and the temperatures as things warm up and the snow slowly melts off. I really can not wait for it to be time to get the ATV out there and hit the trails for some good summer fun. I have every intention this year of riding up to the fishing holes to go fishing this summer. Last summer was too chaotic and short for me to do much, and before that I was always thinking of others, this year I am doing what I want to do, and I want to hit the rivers and catch a salmon. After a lifetime in this state, I think it is about dang time I reeled in a King. I've never caught a salmon before and I really want to do that.

Iron Dog Race in Alaska

The Iron Dog is the longest and toughest snowmobile race in the world. First run back in 1984, it traverses some of the ruggedest land in Alaska as it follows the northern Iditarod trail.

This year's race will begin February 17th in Big Lake, with the official start of the ProClass being Sunday the 19th with the first flag drop at 11L10 AM, followed by another flag drop every two minutes until all snowmobiles are off onto the trail.

A New Adventure

The Author of this post is Darius Boone

After years of working in the corporate world, my wife and I decided that in order to live the life that we wanted to live; we could no longer be chained to our offices and desks. We wanted to travel the world before it was too late. It seems opposite of what you should do to work while you’re young and healthy and then just hope that you will be able to retire with enough good years left in you to be able to enjoy the work that you’ve done. Why do we do this? It seemed to my wife and I that we needed to switch up this mindset. So, we invested in a very fast internet connection from ClearWirelessInternet4g.com, and then started making changes! We began a virtual website in which people can order baked goods online. This meshes both of our passions- mine for business, and my wife’s for baking! We make our own hours, and can now manage our business from anywhere in the world- right now we’re sitting in a bakery in France!

Seat Reskinning in Aaska

Unique Skinz, a Sew Unique product, can reskin your old worn out ATV or sled seats for you. Custom designs and custom embroidery welcomed, we also do airplane and boat seats. Unique Skinz uses only quality marine grade vinyl that will withstand Alaska's cold weather conditions, and strong high quality thread.

Bear maul your seat? No problem! Dogs chew up the padding? No problem! More Duct Tape than vinyl on the seat? No problem!

Find us on Facebook at Sew Unique on Facebook or visit our website at Sew Unique

Copper Basin 300 canceled at Meier's Lake due to cold and snow

The Alaska Dispatch reported on the 15th that the Copper Basin 300 sled dog race was canceled following an emergency alert issued by the Copper Basin Race Committee. The race was officially canceled at Meier's Lake, which is a mere 75 miles into the 300 mile race.

It was a necessary call on the part of race officials to help keep mushers and dogs safe as temperatures dropped and snow accumulated. Snow machines sent ahead to break trail were sinking into deep drifts whenever they paused, and reports of temperatures in the rage of -50 F to -60 F were coming in.

Alaskans are tough, but there are times when even we need to take a step back and not press our luck against the harsh conditions that this great land can send our way. Dog mushing in Alaska is serious business, but I think anyone can agree that as well into the blood as racing is, it is not worth our dogs when conditions just get too harsh to keep pushing ahead.

My old battered knit cap is nodded respectfully to those who were a part of the 2012 Copper Basin 300, I know it had to be difficult to put that much work into the race only to walk away less than a third of the way through it.

To read the full details check out the article at Alaska Dispatch: Cold, snow and wind cancel Copper Basin 300 sled dog race.