I love this word to describe this year’s Junior Iditarod. It has multiple meanings, all of which can be applied to what happened today. 

Close can be referred to in terms of time. This year, the champion was Emily Robinson. Emily is only 14 years old and hails from Nenana, AK. She is not only the winner, but she is also the “Rookie of the Year” for being the highest placing rookie. The thing that makes this finish even more impressive, is that she finished only 6 seconds ahead of the second place finisher, Hannah Wappett. During the finish, there were also many occasions where multiple sleds were in the chute at the same time.  So there were many times that the standings were very close. 

Close can also mean proximity. There were multiple moose sightings on the trail this year, and the trail crew did an outstanding job keeping them at bay. However, the teams still had a run in today. Two teams that were traveling close together had to wait for a moose to move off the trail before they could continue safely.

But the most important one that I noticed was describing close as “tight knit”. The support from the families of the mushers was evident throughout all phases of the race, but none more obvious than what was witnessed today. The parents and relatives poured on support of their junior mushers. The champion spent a good minute in a powerful embrace with her father under the finish line banner. The Paveglios shared a lighter moment, others talked more strategy, while some just sat in a special moment together talking in all of the events of the day. 

These junior mushers are one incredible group of human beings. Their sense of maturity and citizenship is far beyond their years. This group cheered each other on (even down to the last team), talked and shared stories about their runs, and just had fun hanging out together. The companionship was evident on far more occasions than were caught on camera. During the race they checked on each other, encouraged each other, and helped each other whenever possible. There are many adults who could learn a thing or two from these wonderful models of compassion. 

The juniors are an inspiration to the next group of kids hoping to one day, follow in their footsteps. I know my two girls are already watching, and I’m proud that they have 15 excellent role models to choose from.

My juniors watching the juniors.

Teachers: One activity I have done in my class has been to recognize “random acts of kindness”. Whenever someone at school does something kind, the recipient of the act fills out a post-it note with the act and person who did it. We read them once a week, and then they get stuck to the wall. Use some of the above acts to spark thoughts in your students, and see how quickly you can fill a whole wall.