There were eight entries altogether. The dogs were prancing about restlessly in their harnesses like proud race horses, their curved tails waving over their backs. They were charged with excitement and seemed eager to get started. The huskies on opposing teams eyed each other sullenly, baring their long fangs and growling deep in their throats. Occasionally, one would dart out of line and snap at another dog, but there were no fights. Black Titan, like the good lead dog he was, watched his team closely, and whenever one of them became too frisky and pugnacious, he would bark a sharp command. Immediately, the offender would drop his ears and quiet down.
“They act almost human,” Sandy said.
“I’ll say,” Jerry agreed. “That Titan reminds me of Mr. Hall, my math teacher. No horseplay when he’s around.”
Charley helped the boys arrange themselves in the sled, Sandy in back, with Jerry in front of him, sitting between his legs. “Just like on a toboggan,” Sandy observed. They tucked the big robe that covered them around their sides as Charley took his place behind the sled and gripped the handles.
The sharp crack of the starter’s pistol split the crisp air and Charley’s bellowing “Mush! Yea, huskies, mush!” almost split Sandy’s eardrums. The figures lined up on both sides of them blurred rapidly as the sled picked up speed, and wind and snow whipped into their faces. Gripping the handles tightly, Charley matched the pace of the team effortlessly with his long strides.
“He’s not going to run all the way, is he?” Jerry yelled to Sandy.
“I guess he wants to give the team the best of it this early in the race. He’ll hop on when he gets winded.”
But a half hour went by and still the driver’s boots pounded behind them in unbroken rhythm. At first the seven teams were bunched pretty close together on the hard-packed trail, then gradually the distance between them widened. Sandy kept glancing back as Charley urged their sled into the lead and finally lost sight of the nearest team as they rounded a hummock and entered a stretch of forest.
“If we keep this pace up, we’ll be in Skagway in time for lunch,” Jerry said.
The big Indian reined in the dogs when they reached a spot where three separate narrower paths forked off the main trail.