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Outdoor Athlete? |
Lance Mackey a.k.a 'our hero' |
ACTION ALERT: 2007 Yukon Quest and Iditarod champion Lance Mackey was nominated by ESPN for an 'ESPY Award' in the 'Best Outdoor Athlete' category. Winners are picked by people voting online. The Iditarod and Yukon Quest have long, well-documented histories of dog deaths, illnesses and injuries. What happens to the dogs during these races includes death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage, pneumonia, ruptured discs, viral diseases, broken bones, torn muscles and tendons, vomiting, hypothermia, sprains, torn footpads and anemia. In the Iditarod and Yukon Quest, dogs do all the work. Mushers sit or lie down on their sleds and sometimes sleep while racing their dogs into the ground. Iditarod and Yukon Quest animal cruelty should not be rewarded. ['Action Alert' from Sled Dog Action Coalition] Some words about Mr. Mackey's 'special relationship' with his dogs: [From February 16, 2007 Yukon News: "Mackey's dog team is in the dark" by Genesee Keevil - story available by free ONLINE subscription at Yukon-News.com] Lance Mackey likes to keep his dog team guessing. There's no routine, said the reigning champ. The dogs never know how long they're going to be running for, or when they're going to eat. "They don't know what's coming," he said with a grin. "But I can give them anything it takes and they will take it. "And I do this in training as well - I go with the flow." Pet-abuse.com: Lance Mackey's dog 'Wolf' regurgitates food, then chokes to death on it in 2004 Iditarod race [UPDATE - Friday July 13, 2007: The ESPY Award was won by a REAL ATHLETE, marathoner Dean Karnazes (50 marathons in 50 days) - Lance should think about harnessing THIS GUY up next year!] |