Calvin Daugherty of Eagle River moved with his family to Alaska from Florida so his father could pursue his Iditarod dream. He began helping his father train for the Iditarod and he’s been mushing ever since. In 2020 at the age of 17 he ran his rookie Jr. Iditarod with a team of Northern Whites under the tutelage of his father, Larry Daugherty, and veteran musher Jim Lanier. He’s wanted to do the Iditarod ever since reading about it as a kid.
Watching his father leave the start line on his Iditarod runs fueled Calvin’s desire to make the 1,000 mile run to Nome himself. He says, “I love the sport of mushing. It’s all about the dogs, the mushers and the mushing culture.” Daugherty, a second year rookie, ran Mitch Seavey’s two-year-old puppy team with the goal of keeping the dogs healthy and happy and getting as many of them to Nome as possible.
Daugherty completed the race in 13 days, 2 hours and 58 minutes with 12 dogs in harness. The first words he spoke, “What a journey” likely encompassed all of the years he’s put toward achieving this goal. Calvin was greeted at the finish line by his parents and siblings. Standing under the burled arch and earning the coveted finisher’s belt buckle was an emotional experience. Calvin said he broke down about 10 miles outside of Nome. The ride along the coast, especially going into Shaktoolik was also an emotional time. He covered the 22 miles from Safety to Nome in 2 hours and 30 minutes!
Calvin praised Fendy his three year old leader who ran up front for the whole race. Daugherty came prepared to entertain his dogs on the long river run. He brought a speaker and played music for them.
Connor McMahon rounds out the top twenty mushers in Nome for 2025. McMahon finished in 13 days 4 hours and 7 minutes. McMahon has earned his finisher’s belt buckle on his second run as a rookie. He scratched last year in Galena. At the arch, Connor said it’s pretty special to be under the arch but it hasn’t really sunk in yet. He praised his leader Manko, an 8 year old who has run every race with him. Connor finished with 13 dogs. His time from Safety to Nome was 2 hours and 46 minutes.
McMahon is a Yukoner and operates Feral Racing Dog Sled Tours. Connor grew up in southern Ontario and was introduced to working dogs at the age of fifteen. While managing a kennel of security dogs he learned the importance of proper training and happy dogs. Early on he learned how to instill confidence in dogs through positive reinforcement. He says, “Through carefully observing the dogs in their environment, I was able to see the world through their eyes and learn how they relate to their surroundings.
Mushers Ebbe Pedersen, Dane Baker and Jenny Roddewig are still on the trail, expected in Nome later tonight and tomorrow. there will be a second finisher’s banquet to honor the accomplishments of these three mushers who didn’t reach Nome before the Sunday evening banquet.
