[OPLINLIST] FW: Iditarod Dog Musher Available to do Library Talks - Paws, Claws, Scales, and Tails

[Ruth Metcalf]

TO ALL OHIO CHILDREN'S LIBRARIANS:

I thought you might be interested in this person for your upcoming
summer reading programs. 

Sincerely,
Ruth Metcalf
Library Consultant
State Library of Ohio
614-644-6910
rmetcalf at sloma.state.oh.us


-----Original Message-----
From: Karen Land [mailto:mymusher at yahoo.com] 
Sent: Monday, March 06, 2006 6:19 PM
To: Ruth Metcalf
Subject: Iditarod Dog Musher Available to do Library Talks - Paws,
Claws, Scales, and Tails

Hello Librarians and Teachers!
I am an Iditarod dog musher and writer living in
Montana. For the last 6 years, I have been doing
Iditarod talks at libraries, school, conferences,
etc.. I am originally from Indianapolis, Indiana and
my family still lives there. I return to Indiana for a
month every spring to do talks. I am now expanding
talks to other areas and would love to come to your
library. Below I have posted an
informal letter recently sent out to my "regulars" -
the libraries and schools I go back to every year. For
more information, go to my website at
www.mymusher.com. I have a great booklist on there for
suggested reading.

Thank you for your time.
Karen Land

Dear Teachers and Librarians,

I am once again planning a trip back to Indiana to do
Iditarod Dog Mushing Talks. I will be in Indiana in
early May. I will also be available to do talks in
other states - so spread the word! Last year, I ended
up doing over 40 talks in just a few weeks time. It
was quite a marathon but, as you might know, I love to
talk so it
was fun for me (and Borage who loves to schmooze!).

As most of you probably already know, I am not running
Iditarod this year. In the fall, I sold many of my
adult dogs to focus on my litter of "white pups,"
named after the First Ladies and last two Presidents
(Martha, Barbara, Lou Hoover, Lucy Hayes, Lady Bird,
Jackie-O, Bill, and George). It takes an incredible
amount of time and money to train a dog team (by
myself) and I just wasn't set up to do Iditarod this
year. I ended up running my 19 dogs in sprint races in
Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Canada - quite a new and
interesting experience for me and the dogs. We had a
lot of fun and did well (the pups finished in second
place twice this season in fast, competitive sprint
races - they LOVE to run!) To learn more about our
season, go to www.mymusher.com and read my columns
posted on the "recent columns" page and my blog.

So now for my plan - I will be back in Indiana in May.
If you would like to have me come to your school or
library, just email me with the best dates and times
for you. I will put a new "Spring Schedule" page on my
web site so you can go to it to see the open times.
This will be first come, first serve. Last year, I was
able to squeeze almost everyone in so we shouldn't
have a problem. But please get to me as soon as you
can with dates. That will make it easier to schedule
and assure you a reservation. Basically, I am wide
open now so just start by sending the dates that work
best for you in May. If you are from a state other
than Indiana, email me and we'll work out a special
time.

The cost for the talks this year will be $350 per
talk. If you can organize other talks in your area for
the same day, I will do them for $300 a piece. Last
year, many towns had me go to their elementary school,
middle school, and high school plus their library
(yes, 4 talks in one day!) and it worked out just
fine. Many students loved the talks at their schools
and came back to the library with their family that
evening. The high cost of gas and travel has forced me
to raise the prices. It is really crazy how much it
costs to travel around to do these talks! Not to
mention the new transmission and tires that I had to
get for my truck due to high use. I hope the increased
prices are not a problem for you.

I will be bringing my sled dog (Borage, of course),
sled, gear, and arctic clothing to the talks. I also
have an all new powerpoint presentation and a short
video of my team in action. It should be a lot of fun!

Also, along with the best dates and times for you, I
would like your contact information and a map of how
to get to your location. Even if you think I already
know how to get there, please send it anyway. Doing
this many talks can get confusing and it works best
for me if I can have a file of all of this information
on hand as I travel. Thanks!

I look forward to seeing you all! And Borage looks
forward to the petting, hugs, and kisses. This is his
favorite time of year!

Enjoy following the Iditarod this year. I'll be
posting some of my thoughts as the race marches on...
wish I were out there!

Take care and talk to you soon.

Karen Land
www.mymusher.com

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