About Kathleen Frederick...
Born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, Kathleen Frederick called Pennsylvania
home until 2002 when she moved to Juneau, Alaska. Kathleen’s
descent into mushing madness began when she visited Alaska in 1995
and saw Alaskan huskies at work. Intrigued, Kathy found an outfitter
in Maine and took her two children (ages 5 and 14 at the time) on
a three-day dog mushing vacation in 1996. From the moment she stepped
on the runners, she was hooked. To learn more about sled dogs, Kathy
handled for a friend in Pennsylvania who had a small touring kennel
and in 2002 got her first sled dog, Kenai, who is also known as
“Kenai the Terrible” and, from her days at obedience
training, “Psycho Bitch”. Fortunately, having her most
difficult dog first has given Kathy lots of patience! Kenai and
Kathy competed in skijor races with the Pennsylvania Sled Dog Club
before they moved to Alaska.
After relocating to Alaska, Kathy got her
second sled dog but held the line “dog wise” for a
few years while she kept busy with work and child rearing. In
2006, Kathy decided she was not getting any younger and that the
time to race sled dogs was now, so she began building a kennel.
In the fall of 2008, Kathy moved to Willow, Alaska where she is
enjoying the sunshine and the good trails. Shameless Huskies,
Kathy’s kennel, has 16 adult dogs, one retiree (the infamous
Kenai), and five puppies. Kathy has done some shorter races (40
miles and under) and hopes to do some mid-distance racing this
year before the Serum Run.
When Kathy is not busy with her sled dogs,
she enjoys other outdoors activities: hiking, canoeing, kayaking,
snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing. Her daughter Laura, who
is now 26, married, and lives on the east coast, thinks Kathy
is having a mid-life crisis that has taken a furry, four-legged
form. Kathy’s son, Christopher, enjoys dog mushing and this
summer worked in Juneau for Gold Rush Sled Dog Tours as a handler.
In her other world, Kathy is an attorney focusing on employment
law, is a private mediator and a mediator for the Alaska Court
system, and is Commissioner for the Alaska Public Offices Commission.
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