That is a basket style sled, made by a company called "Affordable Dog Sleds". Why? Because they are affordable. You do have to assemble them yourself but the fact that they send them to you as kits saves you ALOT on shipping costs. If I am not mistaken, Sheryl also has one of these sleds.

By the time I made it back to Shaver Lake at the end of March, I had purchased a used beginner sled that was originally made by Arctic Star. I got a great deal on it as it was only 4 years old and only occasionally used by a retired doctor with his two huskies. It was in great condition and was definitely worth the 4-hour drive to San Luis Obispo to pick it up (much better than paying over $200 for shipping costs when sleds are trucked over from the East Coast).
 

My sled has six-foot runners (similar to skis, this makes it easier to handle than sleds with 7 or 8 foot runners but won't go as fast), has a 44" basket, and the handlebar height is 37" high. It is a two- stanchion sled. The stanchions are the vertical wood slats that connect to the runners and hold up the basket to the main frame of the sled. I corresponded with Johnn Molburg, who originally handcrafted the sled and he told me that this sled was NOT designed to take in adult passengers so he recommends 50, maybe a 100 lbs on it. However, I have taken on a couple of adult passengers on it for short rides.

Note: From my observations, basket sleds with bigger beds end up having three stanchions (or more). OR, sleds that can take heavier loads have 3 stanchions --- makes sense since this is what supports the bed. Most SPRINT racing sleds have smaller baskets (sometimes, only a half basket) and two stanchions to make them as lightweight as possible. FYI, I think my sled weighs about 30 lbs.

My sled is mostly a bolted sled but is tied/lashed at the brush bow and at the handlebar joints for added flexibility. Generally, tied sleds are more flexible (and also more expensive). The previous owner also purchased it with a tied basket (the thin pieces of rope crisscrossing the sides of the sled basket) which gives you a little bit of containment when transporting gear in the basket and more of an "old school look". It also came with a bridle (rope tied to the stanchions that go to the bottom of the bow), to which you would attach your dog sled team.

WHAT ABOUT BRAKES? DON"T I NEED BRAKES?

Brakes are a musher's best friend (after his sled dogs, that is). I have three different braking systems on my sled, all of which I either upgraded or added on. They are the double-claw (aka bar) brake, the drag mat, and the dreaded snow hook.
 

The bar brake is permanently attached to the sled --- I upgraded this from a single claw brake system. Knowing that I would be using this sled with 3 or more (have ran up to 6) dogs, I realized that I needed something with much more braking power so I spent $50 and installed the double-claw system. Here is a pic of what the single claw brake looked like --- you can see why I upgraded:
 

The drag mat is basically a rectangular piece of conveyor belt or a portion of a snow mobile track. It is lightweight and drags along the snow (or I can hook it to below the handlebar so it's hanging from the back of the sled --- more expensive models have a spring system that flips up) and is attached via rope to the stanchions. I added this on as well as it is a great way to smoothly slow down the sled by simply stepping on and applying your weight to the mat. You don't have to have a drag mat --- the first time I went sledding, I was using my feet.

The third component to stopping a sled is the snow hook. This is something you purchase separately and come in different weights, depending on how large your team is. Think of the snow hook as your hand brake or emergency brake --- you use it to hold your team in place when you are off the sled or to use as an emergency anchor to stop a runaway sled (and yes, I know this from personal experience). They even have lightweight hooks just for keeping your lead dogs in place or for a two dog team (as for when using a kick sled) and they call this a leader hook. The main snow hook is connected via a line that is attached to the end of your gangline. FYI, mushers sometimes carry two snow hooks for much larger teams.  Oh yeah, there is a fourth braking component --- me! If I fall off the runners and/or the sled tips over, I make sure to grab on to the handlebars and not let go. In which case my butt, hips, shoulders, legs, even my face, ends up being a braking system but sometimes this is a better option to having to track down a runaway sled dog team out in the woods.

I do want to mention that there is a component/accessory called a snub line that I also use. This is NOT a braking system but rather another method to help keep the sled in place while hooking up a dog team or while taking a longer rest stop. It is simply a long piece of rope (such as you would use for your center line), one end of which is attached to the end of the gangline. The other end can then be looped around a (very) stable stationary object such as a tree or a truck via a quick release mechanism.

WHAT'S A QCR?

Sleds come with plastic runner bases attached to the bottom surface of the sled, and this is what enables them to glide over the snow. The standard runners (such as what I have on mine) that you find on beginner's sled or recreational sleds are made of UHMW (Ultra High Molecular Weight) plastic which are screwed on to the base of the sled. These are made from high density plastic that has a higher resistance to abrasion. However, most racing and long distance sleds nowadays come with a QCR system, which stands for Quick Change Runners. Instead of screwing on the runners directly to the wood, rails are attached to the base and then you can replace your runners by simply sliding it out and changing it with a new one (BTW, from what I understand, sliding the plastic runners in and out of the rails is not as "quick change" as one would be led to believe).

Why would you replace your runners? I, for one, need to do so as we went through some rough terrain (as in running over bare asphalt) this past season so I've got gouges and pockmarks on the bottom of my runners. Competitive mushers though may be replacing their runner bases with a different type of plastic when they are racing. The standard UHMW runners is what they will probably be using for training purposes but come race time, they may switch to a type that is not as heavy duty but allows for a smoother (ergo, faster) glide over the snow. Which is why a QCR system makes it more convenient.

BASKET STYLE vs. TOBOGGAN STYLE --- WHAT SHOULD I GET?

A toboggan style sled is essentially the same as a basket style sled except for the bed. Whereas the basket sled uses wood slats for its bed, the toboggan sled uses a hard plastic bed. AND, whereas the basket sled has a raised bed, the toboggan sled is connected directly to the runners which means that it is down at snow level and is also used to glide over the snow.

Below is a picture of the Hugo's toboggan sled:

 

Toboggan sleds can generally take in heavier loads and are built to take much more abuse than basket sleds. These are used for freighting, touring, and for mid and long distance races. The sled in the picture is "accessorized" with a sled bag for keeping passengers warm and/or storage for supplies. Sled bags (along with certain supplies and equipment) are required accessories for mid and long distance races.

So the type of sled you will get will depend on the type of sledding you want to do. Basket sleds are more for recreational, sprint racing, and/or smaller dog teams (probably 2 -8, however, note that there are heavy duty touring basket sleds made with much longer beds or use in dog sled tours and/or long distance races). These are also easier to pull as they are usually lighter in weight than toboggan sleds. And they perform better on groomed surfaces or packed snow than a toboggan sled would, which has a bigger snow surface contact area. On the other hand, a toboggan sled would float better on fresh snow or ungroomed trails. It is also good for recreational sledding as well as for use with smaller dog teams but would be able to take the abuse of running bigger teams and heavier loads.

OKAY, I WANT A SLED --- WHERE DO I BUY ONE?

Unfortunately, we have no local sled makers (that I know of) here in Southern California. Most of them are in the East Coast, such as Arctic Star which is in Pennsylvania or Maine Made Sleds to mention a few of those that are probably more within the price range of the recreational musher or want to-be-sprint-racers like us. Brand new sleds can cost anywhere from $250 to $700 dollars for urban mushing use BUT on top of that, the cost of shipping is what is makes it hard to swallow. It can cost $200 or more when shipping a fully assembled sled from the east coast. 

Of course, as mentioned earlier, you can save a ton on shipping if you are willing to assemble the sled yourself by buying from Affordable Dog Sleds.  There is also Adanac Sleds  which is also a reputable traditional dog sled maker and they are not too far away -- they are based out of Montana and you can buy a "kit" sled from them. They sell both a basket and toboggan sled that they ship out in two parts, so it is already partially assembled. I inquired last year about shipping costs for these kit sleds and they quoted me approximately $65. Note that these kit sleds are not as big as your full size standard sled and would definitely be good for even a 2-dog team. BTW, they do also sell the standard sized basket and toboggan sleds. FYI, Jack and Pam Beckstrom are the owners/operators of Adanac Sleds and are both very helpful and informative people. Be aware though that they do get a lot of sled orders so you may have to wait for weeks before they can ship out a sled. Also closer to home as sources for dog sleds would be Alpine Outfitters and Nordkyn Outfitters, both based out of Washington State. All their sleds are shipped completely assembled and I do not know how much shipping costs are but it is probably cheaper than shipping out from the East Coast. Or you can always drive out there to pick it up.

Here is a list of other sled makers that you can at least look at and compare products and pricing on:

http://www.sleddogcentral.com/equip_sleds.htm