From January 11, Cindy Duport is participating in her seventh VVF Grande Odyssey in the French Alps.
Objective, to make his team of ten sled dogs triumph between the mountain bends.
A professional musher, the Iséroise describes her work with her dogs and confides the complicity that binds them.
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The Great Odyssey VVF: the life-size adventure
In the small Savoyard village of Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe, Cindy Duport raises her sled dogs. Most of the members of her Galaxie Team, named after her first sled dog, were born in her home. At 30 years old, Cindy Duport represents a reference in the world of mushing. In 2020 and 2021, she won La Grande Odyssée in the limited category. This year, she returns with just as many ambitions in the Open category.
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The Great Odyssey, a challenge and a dream
How did you become interested in sled dogs?
I was six years old when my parents picked up Oasis from the SPA, a first Labrador who was quickly joined by another named Simba. I immediately started doing cani cross. In 2011, my parents gave me Galaxie, my first real sled dog, a Scandinavian hound with whom I obtained my first podiums in the French championship. As a riding instructor, I left my dogs at home for a good part of the day and I didn’t like having them alone. I decided to devote myself exclusively to my dogs.
What does The Great Odyssey mean to you?
It is the most difficult sled dog race in terms of altitude difference (more than twelve thousand meters) and effort. It was a challenge and a dream. It’s a motivation that sometimes helps me get up and has helped me become a professional.
How do you prepare dogs for racing?
All dogs can do cani cross. If you want to ride a sled dog, you must choose a breed adapted to the effort you are asking of it. In winter, I organize one-hour rides with a sled weighing 180 kg. During the race, the sled weighs 10 kg, to which we add a mandatory 12 kg bag and the musher. In the dogs’ minds, work must remain play and something positive. In spring, it is the season of births and education before going hiking in the summer.
Protect dogs upstream to avoid injuries
How do you protect the health of your dogs?
They run to please us. In return for this dedication, we must take care of their morale, health and well-being. Even if the dog is super strong, if we break him, he won’t want to go. In the event of an injury, we have no right to doubt. We know them and we are able to sense possible problems. You should consult immediately. Last year I had one who had a slight limp, but he wasn’t expressing any pain. I insisted to the vet that he still carry out an examination. As a result, he had a 5 cm torn muscle. If it’s too cold, we put them in fleece boots. We protect dogs upstream to limit the risk of injury.
What is the character of your dogs?
Education becomes very important for race management. There are two methods: calm or excitement. I prefer the former to avoid injuries from fights between them and prevent them from burning energy.
How do you see the race this year?
The dogs are in good shape, I want us to have fun while giving the maximum of ourselves. I’m not putting pressure on myself, we finished 4th last year. I am one of the four or five favorites for a podium.
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