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Show Page 1C North Edition Lakeside Review Wednesday, January 30, 1985 Pat Shane surrenders to her When a young girl enters her it is often said the wolves will soon be howling at her door. In Patricia Shane's case, it was mid-teen- s, dogs. Just one at first. Then three. Then seven. Now some 25 Alaskan huskies thrive on Ms. Shanes attention, and she responds to their call. Some might think her life is overrun with dogs, but nearly the opposite is true. It is she who keeps her dogs running. She is a sled dog racer. . The sprightly Boun- tiful native has been racing sled dogs for about nine years, but was interested in it four or five years before that. Racing sled dogs is a natural extension of Ms. Shanes interests. I love dogs. I love wild anilike wolves mals and huskies arc about as close to wolves as you can get. And I love the outdoors and winter, she said. I love to see dogs that are in are happy beand good shape cause they are doing something they like, she added. To sec that Ms. Shane loves her dogs is to see her after a race. At the Heber Valley Classic Sled Dog Race held at Wasatch Park Saturday and Sunday, where her teams finished sixth in both the and eight-do- g competitions, it was obvious that to Ms. Shane, her dogs came first. After each race she took her each of which has his dogs own separate compartment for back to her truck, traveling gave them each some water, and handed out doggie treats in appreciation of their performance. After a race run in weather, slightly warmer than an ideal temperature for huskies, one six-do- g ee of Ms. Shanes dogs was overheated. No problem. She stayed with the dog until she was sure it had recovered and was comfortable before she ventured off to reinforce the strong camaraderie she and her peers share. The first dog to capture Ms. Shane's attention was a Siberian husky named Chinook she got when she was 13. Chinook could pull the kids of the young Ms. Shanes Bountiful neighborhood up and down the street in a sled during winter or a little red wagon during summer. Then one winter day when Ms. Shane was about 15, as she remembers, she went with her father, who often formed snow trails for the state with a large track snow machine, to form some trails at Sherwood Hills near Logan for the Kanganark Mushers sled dog club. Seeing those dog sled races that day convinced the teenager she wanted to race dogs. Shortly after seeing the races, Ms. Shane got two more dogs and formed what she called a pretty mediocre three-do- g team. A year later she added one more dog, and a couple of years later she added three more and by then she was off to the races. Dogs have been more than just a hobby for Ms. Shane during much of her life. After she was graduated from high school, she landed a job in a grooming and breeding kennel where she learned to groom and care for every type of dog imagin- emergency medical technician with the ambulance and a firefighter at the South Davis Fire Department. One complaint Ms. Shane says she often hears from some who arent acquainted with dogsledding is, How could you be so cruel as to harness poor dogs and make them pull a sled? Truth is, the dogs love it. Youve heard of a good race horse chomping at the bit. If these dogs had bits theyd be chomping, but as it is they jump and yap and strain against their choke chains in excitement at the very sight of their harnesses. The dogs love to race. Theyre bred for confirmation their ability to run and their attitude toward racing. All you have to do is watch them to know thats what they like to do most. When I get ready to take them on a run they are all jumping and screaming to go. You can tell they are happy ' f ; dogs, when they are at home they are quiet and content, she added. Ms. Shane also sculpts and paints likenesses of dogs and other wild animals in her spare time. That is, the spare time she has after taking her dogs on runs three to five nights a week. She has several paintings and? four sculptures completed so far. i. I have only been able to afford ' to get one of the sculptures bronzed. Soon I hope to find some place to work so I can devote more time to it, she said. ( II i I- Though she wants to pursue her Since November she has been art seriously, she will not let that working as an animal control of- get in the way of the time she ficer for Davis County, following spends training and working with almost three years as both an her dogs. able. if Cu rr - ; - - kV-- ? ; . fU J v - , v - ; ...jp1 ' " A w mV451 - ' & ijj ' X f& ' I ( Vi iS. f It I ' a t k " i I V' i 1 T w"'" Sr 4 V . AFTER THE RACE ' Pat hands out doggie treats to her tired team. X - :v(y ' .3? i fi. ., ' o ,2' ' f. Ij 1 ' .f . t ;4v 2', .v.; , y t ' .. I r 4-- - t ? .Vis: 4 - I t ; A ' : mi PATRICIA SHANE f nTrmth r r -' ; f - oft . a 4Kv..s4i i Hi strikes a heroic pose while watching a mishap on the track. PAT GETS a playful yank from two of her dogs on their way to the starting gate while another sits passively in the staging area. (left) keyed-u- p Photos by Robert Regan Story by Gary Hatch S ( . f ,! ' ' , . - ;-'- I .1! ft i : iu |