Dog sleds with Iker Ozkoidi
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: Hello there, Iker!
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: Hey, hey, hey, hey!
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: You're a musher. What is a musher?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: Well, the person who guides the dogs, we can say. But he is also a friend and owner of dogs. But after all, it’s a team: the musher and the dogs.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: You have to be together, right?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: Yeah, you need the feeling with the dogs.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: Who drives the sled, you or the dogs that go on the head?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher:I drive the sled, but the front dogs need to know whether to go right and left, or when to stop and when to go faster.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: Here's the sled you use in your races. Will it be light?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: Yeah, it only weighs nine kilos. It flexes very well to make it easier to move. And then we've got this to slow down. And this one is an anchor. We put it on when the team stays, so we don't leave.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation:Yeah, like a handbrake on cars...
IKER OZKOIDI; musher:Similar, yes.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: What is this sled made of?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: this is aluminium. There are also carbon ones, but this one is made of aluminum.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: We hear dogs barking. They're looking forward to getting out.
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: When I prepare everything, they know they have to train and...
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: Well, you're gonna have to take them out, otherwise...
Does each dog have its own space? Do they always go in the same place?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher:Yes, those who go here in front know the orders to go to the left and right, and the last four dogs are the strongest.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation:They are also bigger.
IKER OZKOIDI; musher:But after all, everyone has to shoot.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation:What race are they?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: These are race dogs. They have braco or pointer blood, a braco and a husky are born crossed.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: Do they need a lot of training?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher:Oh, yes, of course.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation:Every day?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: No, not every day. Two days yes, next break... For example, more training is needed for Pirena. But not every day. They need to rest like people.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: Yeah, they're sportsmen after all. How many miles do you run?
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: There are sprint races, 24-kilometer races. Pirena, for example, is a half-distance race in which we perform stages of 30-45 kilometers.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: What speed do you take? For example, today you went out with eight dogs.
IKER OZKOIDI; musher: we take tips of 40-45 kilometers per hour. The average, for example in the Spanish championship, was 30-32 kilometers per hour.
NAGORE REMENTERIA; Elhuyar Foundation: All right, Iker. I wish you and your group of friends very good luck.
IKER OZKOIDI; musher:Thank you very much.
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