Author: Zuma (110 posts)


2013 Teacher on the Trail – Linda Fenton

10 Years ago I was wrapping up my tenure as 2013 Iditarod Teacher on the Trail™ and passing on the official sleeping bag to Jen Reiter. It had been a busy year with teaching 3rd Grade while preparing for the teaching adventure of a lifetime. 66 Mushers were signed up to run the 2013 race …

The White Mountain Layover

Hello friends, Usually I get mail from students or classrooms, but today in my doghouse I had a question from Pastor Rob. He wrote “I realize the racers have to sleep. But the fact that they seem to stop and sleep at the same place at the same time is confusing to me. This would …

14 Dogs & A Musher

Hello friends, Congratulations Slater, Pink, Garnet, Marble, Morello, Lucy, Woody, Tock, Capone, Pop, Arlo, Kutuk, Jackson and Draco! These are the K9s that helped Brent Sass win the 2022 Iditarod. 11 dogs on the team came under the Burled Arch in Nome with tails wagging and smiles on their doggie faces. Awwooooo! It was quite …

What A Race!

Hello friends, BOWWOW! What a race! At this writing only 16 miles separates Brent Sass and Dallas Seavey. 39 miles beyond Seavey is Aaron Burmeister. With Sass only 181 miles from the finish line, this is a nail biter.  Speaking of the finish line, my friend Lucy from Michigan wants to know how they came …

And the Answer Is . . .

Hello friends, If the answer is 2,728 Paws, what is the question?  Sunday was a beautiful day in Willow, Alaska as 49 teams left the chute in two minute increments to start the 50th running of the Iditarod. My friend, Jason, from Wisconsin, asked how many dogs are on each team to start the race. …

How We Stay Warm

Hello friends, My friend Emma from Bismark, ND had a great question for me today. She wonders how we stay warm when it is so cold outside. My K9 friends and I have a few adaptations that help keep us warm in the winter. The first is our 2 layers of fur. We have an …

Teachers Everywhere!

Hello friends, Wednesday was a BUSY day here at Iditarod Headquarters. Not only were we hosts to Vets and mushers here for K9 Vet Checks , but teachers came to visit. Teachers from all over. It was fun seeing them talk to their students and taking LOTS of pictures. Each year the week before the …

Paws in Alaska

Hello friends, My paws have been super busy here at Iditarod Headquarters. It’s our busiest time as we are preparing for the 50th running of the Last Great Race.  There are also many other pawsome events leading up to the Iditarod. One being the Junior Iditarod. This year 15 brave mushers ages 14-17 raced in …

Number 1 Rule

Hello friends, Bow WOW! The 50th running of The Last Great Race is less than 2 weeks away. Drop bags are packed and sent, mushers are doing last minute preparations, and dogs . . . well . . . are dogs. They are well trained and can sense the excitement. My K9 friends are ready …

Who Runs?

Hello friends, Have you ever wondered if you could be an Iditarod racer? YES! However, you can’t just sign up and run, you need to qualify. Rule 1 in the 2022 Official Rules describes what a musher needs to do to qualify for the Iditarod. First, you need to be at least 18 years old …