国家地理:Reindeer Man 圣诞老人和他的驯鹿

There's a Santa's carrier.

For Tom Scheib, today is one of those days he spends most of the year preparing for.

Let's just put the harness out right here.

This is his time to make any last-minute adjustments and see that his team is in good spirit and ready for their performance.

Hi, Elli, how are you doing? Good boy. Haha. I know it's close to time.

Everything has to be perfect. Because tonight for the people of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, the magic of the holiday season rests on the shoulders of Tom's reindeer 1 and the very important sleigh they're pulling.

The kids, they give wide eyes. The adults are wondering what you got pulling Santa Claus, you know. It's a, it's a really fun time.

The road to Rice Lake begins here on Tom's dancing reindeer farm in Milltown, Wisconsin.

This is a great job.

It all started back in 1985 when this 23-year Marine 2 Corps 3 veteran was looking for a unique way to spend his retirement 4.

Very few people in the United States have reindeer and I, kinda do things that are a little different as you've seen.

Stop, now.

What he found is a passion that's grown into one of the largest reindeer farms in North America.

Hi, Rudy, oh, yeah, boy, my little old guy, uh.

Unlike some farms that raise reindeer as livestock 5, his animals are specially 6 trained to be entertainers.

Hi, kids.

Not only are they the toast of many holiday festivals and parades, they've also made appearances in movies and on TV.

OK, Noah, you are not half the good, you are not half the you. It used to mean I'm gonna get standing 7 up here for early close to you, Noah.

And training reindeer is no easy task. Tom and his wife Lisa work with the animals for weeks before every event to make sure they are ready to take center stage.

We are picking for these reindeer and running rehearsal 8, training session before the parades that we do for the Christmas season.

And like every great performance, practice makes perfect.

Come on, let's go.

And sometimes it's a little bit rock, but we'll try to take a lot of the ...

Here at home. So that we give Santa a pretty smooth ride.

Ya, ya, let's go, let's go.

For Tom, it's not just a working relationship.

Put your right foot front, you take your left foot back. You do the whole people skiing. Turn it over.

Tom feels lucky to be able to share the spotlight 9 with his amazing animals.

I don't go because it's me. I go because of these guys. They are the ones that make it all happen, you know, those are the guys that do it.

Back in Rice Lake, the star of the show is safely onboard.

Ready, Santa?

Elli, let's go.

It's full speed ahead. For Tom, the spirit of the season is found in the joy his reindeer bring to so many people. It's his holiday gift to share with the world.

Merry Christmas.

You know they are really making me happy. It's a wonderful experience. You get to meet great people. And that's what it's all about.

Words

harness : A harness is a set of leather straps 10 and metal links fastened round a horse's head or body so that the horse can have a carriage, cart, or plough fastened to it. 马具,挽具