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Swingley: A True Competitor

Montana Musher Not Here For The Money

by Andy Moderow

03/16/2006

Sitting around a table with Doug Swingley, a discussion broke out investigating the essence of the Iditarod. Is it a world-class competition, or is it an event that commemorates the history of a battle against Diphtheria? Is it a journey across Alaska on a historic trail, or a battle against the elements? Is it completely about the dogs? Is it a commemoration of how life used to be? With such a rich history, there are numerous reasons to love the race. For Swingley, one reason has particular appeal.

Like many mushers in the sport, Doug Swingley admits that he doesn’t run the Iditarod for the money. But unlike most who claim the same thing, Doug has actually won a chunk of change during his Iditarod career: In 14 Iditarods, the Montana musher has netted roughly 450,000 dollars. While undoubtedly the prize money has helped to offset the cost of running his kennel (his expenses most likely total more than his winnings over the years), anyone sitting around with him last night couldn’t help but see that he was dead serious when he said; “I’m not here for the money: I’m here for the competition.” Doug isn’t here for the history: He’s here to enter the history books. He doesn’t race annually just to travel across Alaska: Traveling isn’t challenging enough. Competing, with his team of dogs, is the reason he runs the Iditarod.

Without a doubt, Doug is also a dog person. He knows that winning requires him to take the best care of his team, and he believes that competition makes dog care better. Anyone who has ever worked for a living knows that people work best when they like their job: To him, the dogs are no different. He knows that without a healthy team, a top performance would be impossible.

There are many other reasons that people enter the Iditarod each year. Sonny Lindner, from Two Rivers, AK, says that he enters the Iditarod each year to travel to Nome with his dog team: “It’s usually a good trip.” Aliy Zirkle views the race not only as a competition, but also as a celebration of ‘true Arctic transportation’. Rookie Mike Jayne entered the race this year for the adventure. Karen Ramstead, from Alberta, Canada, chooses to run the Iditarod behind a team of purebred Siberian Huskies, because of the history, spirit, and presence of that type of dog in the sport.

Whatever draws a person to the Iditarod, one cannot help but be impressed by Swingley’s competitive drive and the confidence that he has in his team’s ability. Without the Montana Musher, following the front of the pack would be a lot less interesting.