Benefits of multi day dog sledding trip for inexperienced participants

Abstract

This work investigates tourism based dog-sledding, and poses two questions: is there an educative element to this activity? And, if so, is there something particular about this activity that makes it more suitable for educative experiences? The first premise is accepted as valid, and a working definition for educative experiences is provided. Dogsledding is established as a liminal sport, that although increasingly competitive, is motivated by a set of values that are antagonistic to mainstream competitive sport. Building from this premise, the author examines several aspects of motivation theory, as linked to adventure and educational tourism. The argument is made that the liminal and alternative aspects of dog-sledding fulfill the motivation criteria for several tourism demographics. Then, to practically examine whether or not tourism based dog-sledding has an educative effect, interview data from participants in a multi-day dog-sledding excursion is analyzed. From this analysis, the conclusion is made that there are in fact educative elements to tourism based dog-sledding, but that these elements reflect more the spaces that the activity occurs in, rather than the activity itself.