Goblin's Retired!

When someone asks if I have a favorite dog, I always respond- no way! You can’t have a favorite child, so it’s not possible to have a favorite dog. And I stand by that statement. But there’s something about the older dogs. The ones who you’ve shared intimate moments of your life with on the race trail, whether it be the highest of highs or the lowest of lows, that no other human was a part of. Sure while preparing for the race and in checkpoints, there’s a dedicated human team who we couldn’t race without. But on the trail, it’s just you and the dogs. And there are moments of overwhelming joy or immense relief or even gut-wrenching anxiety that you only shared with your canine family. So for those dogs with whom you’ve crossed thousands of miles of arctic wilderness, I won’t say they’re my favorite, but there is definitely a special bond that develops after sharing such powerful moments. And for Goblin, well, we’ve got six years of those.

Goblin and I have shared SIX years of 1000-mile races together, not to mention countless mid-distance races and training adventures in between. From 2016 through 2021, Goblin was a key player in every 1000-mile race. That’s almost every 1000-mile race Ryno Kennel has competed in. The only one he didn’t race was our first Yukon Quest in 2015. This year, even though Goblin is nine, I still had hope that he’d join me on the 2022 Iditarod. He was such a key member last year, running the majority of the race in lead, that I thought just maybe he could do it. While mentally Goblin was ready for the 2022 Iditarod, his body said no. On a training run earlier this year, Goblin tore his CCL (essentially the equivalent of a human ACL). Yesterday, Goblin had a successful surgery with Dr. Cole at Aurora Animal Clinic and is expected to make a full recovery! A big thank you to Dr. Cole! While the surgery was successful, it does mean that his racing days are behind him. While I’m obviously sad (and a little nervous) to hit the Iditarod trail without him, I feel so lucky that I was able to share the trail with such an amazing dog for so many years. Here’s to more adventures in your retirement! You’re a special pup Gobbles.

2016 Iditarod

2018 Yukon Quest

2017 Yukon Quest

2019 Yukon Quest

2020 Yukon Quest

2021 Iditarod

Goblin and his new iron knee