Exercise makes every day more fun! As a sled dog I believe that. I look forward to playing, some call it exercise, but I call it play. I look forward to playing every day. I wish I‘d come up with the slogan, “Play 60” that the National Football League uses. The first play (exercise) that …
The last time I was in Fairbanks was the summer of 2004. It was 105 degrees. There was exactly 110 degrees difference from then to today although it warmed up to 5 above. Folks totally enjoy the “race” aspect of Iditarod and folks enjoy the dogs. The fact is, folks come out to see the …
Northern breed dogs have multiple adaptations for the environment they run in. Their coat, their tongues and their feet keep them warm, keep the cool and keep them going. These sled dogs are amazing athletes. The tongue has an intricate system of blood vessels – lots of blood flows close to the surface. Then as …
Rookie Ben Harper of Wasilla was the first musher to reach into the mukluk and draw his starting position. He drew number 37. Aaron Burmeister of Nome was the final musher to reach into the mukluk for the one remaining starting number. It was 63. Drawing number 2, rookie Rob Cooke will lead all mushers …
Kevin Harper crossed the finish line at 0946 on Monday morning to earn the Junior Iditarod Championship. Harper is a two-time veteran of the race. He placed third in 2014 behind his brother Ben Harper and Conway Seavey. While living in Washington, Kevin was all about soccer and wrestling. When the family moved to Alaska …
Well, if you’re into checking Map Quest the distance from Anchorage to Cantwell is listed as 210 miles taking about 3 and a half hours. As visibility decreased coming out of Anchorage and snow flurries blew across the road, we knew the miles would seem longer and the time would be more than predicted. After …
March 1st and the start of the Junior Iditarod was the kind of day that makes folks who are visiting Alaska want to stay for the rest of their lives. Crisp, sunny and windless with the temperatures eventually rising into the 20’s. The action for the Junior Iditarod began at 8:00 in the morning when …
Junior Iditarod is her passion and this year Jayne Hempstead, DVM has been honored for her dedication to the race and the young mushers. The Junior Iditarod Board of Directors chose Hempstead to wear Bib 1 for the start of the Junior race. Hempstead could take her own team of sled dogs down the trail …
After landing in Anchorage early this week, Handler said, “The real deal of NO SNOW is staring me right in the face. There’s no snow!” It’s been warm and it’s even rained so that lakes aren’t looking too solidly frozen either. Driving north to Wasilla doesn’t improve the situation. She even heard someone comment, “Our …
