There are two types of sleds that have their own characteristics, the basket sled and the toboggan sled.

 The differences of the two sleds are that the basket sled is more the traditional version. It has a cargo bed [or basket] made of wood parallel to the runners. The toboggan sled invented later on (about thirty years ago), has a plastic sheet for a cargo and is not above the runners. In the past few years the raised toboggan sled was established now it has a solid plastic bed.

 Basket sleds are lighter and are usually used for sprint races and recreational mushers.  They’re good in high wind conditions.  They go faster than the toboggan sled.  They can be used for longer trips and camping.

   Toboggan sleds are more stable than the basket sled.  They’re less maneuverable than the basket sleds.  The bed of the toboggan sled rides two inches above the snow.  These sleds handle soft snow better than the basket sled can.  The toboggan sled is better for carrying larger loads.

 The traditional way of building a sled was using wood, bone, sinew, and rawhide.   These are just simple materials used on a sled.

 The common characteristics were: runners, cargo beds [or sled bags], brush bow, handle bar, footboards, and brakes. There are also a few additional components include: a snow hook, track or drag, and snubline.  A snow hook is like an anchor that helps an excited team dog to stop, and the anchor is angled so it digs deep into the snow.  The track or drag is another brake that slows down the team a little bit of a time. The snubline is a rope used to secure the sled and the team to a tree or other stable object. This is very handy when hooking up a dog team. 

  Both sleds have a brake.  The brake is made of a spring loaded wood plank attached to the sled bed at one end, and to a metal hook at the other end.  The human stands while riding the sled.  The person steps on the brake driving the hooks into the snow.  It slows or stops the sled.

 There are two main harnesses, the x-back harness and the freighting, or weight-pulling harness.  For speed or recreational mushing, the x-back harness is the best harness.  The x-back harness is sometimes used for racing. 

 The weight pulling harness is used to carry heavier loads.  A musher would use a weight pulling harness.  A freighting harness is used for the toboggan sled.   The x-back harness and freighting harness are similar except the freighting has more room between the nose of the sled and rear of the dot, so the dog has more freedom.    The x-back harness does not have that.

  The line that runs on the side of the sled to the dogs is called a gang-line.

 The gear they bring on the sled is a little too much to fit on a sled. The required items are: an axe, snowshoes, cold weather sleeping bag, stove and water pot, dog booties, and a vet book. The not required items are: extra gloves and socks, a knife, a first aid, dog food dishes, dog jackets [if extremely cold], dog food and snacks, human food and snacks, a sled repair kit, extra plastic for the runners with a few personal items, and wrist wraps. The other two common ones are: headlamps and a cooler. How does this all fit you ask? Most musher’s answers were “ very tightly.”

Building our own dog sled was really tough.  First, we glued big pieces of plywood together.  Then we took smaller pieces of wood for other parts of the sled.  We marked our measurements so we knew where to cut.  Then we cut the wood and sanded it.  On other pieces we made mortars and tenons.  These are for holding the sled together.  Old fashioned sleds were made this way – with no nails!  Finally we had to assemble the whole thing.  We also noticed that the directions from the Internet were very complex, and wrong!

The information for this report was from the following web sites:

www.ultimateiditarod.com

www.samoyed.org

www.dogsled.com