The mushers introduced in this part of the Rookie Review are a diverse as any group can be. One has a degree in nursing, one has a degree in microbiology and one had dreams of playing professional soccer. Taking a gap between school and career brought one to mushing. Doing research on sled dogs brought another to mushing. A career ending injury brought yet another to mushing. They will be finding their way to Nome with a common goal of finishing with a healthy happy dog team and in so doing earning the coveted finisher’s belt buckle.
Julie Ahnen – Cantwell – Bib #29
Having served as Teacher on the Trail for the 2006 Iditarod, I’m delighted to learn that Julie Ahnen’s 5th grade teacher used Iditarod as a theme for education. Combine real world Iditarod based learning with Jack London stories and Gary Paulson stories and sled dogs came to life for Julie. Now Julie is running the 2022 Iditarod – a dream that was sparked by that fifth grade experience.
After receiving her degree in nursing, Julie decided to take a little time off to backpack in the Pacific Northwest and Canada. She learned of a sprint kennel in the Northwest Territory that needed a handler. She took the position. After all she’d really enjoyed cross-country skiing with her dog, so why not work with sled dogs?
At the age of 24, Julie now finds herself working for Iditarod Jessie Holmes as a handler for Team Can’t Stop. Ahnen mostly works with Holmes’ young dogs and was exceptionally pleased at how well they did in the recent Copper Basin 300. She’s also completed the Willow 300 and the Yukon Quest 300. She’s very grateful to Jessie for he’s taught her about sled dogs. Holmes and Ahnen train on the Denali Highway.
During the summer Ahnen works as a firefighter. In the future she would like to return to her home in the upper peninsula of Michigan and eventually do the UP 200, the Copper Dog 150 and the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon. While she planned to work as a registered nurse, she had found her passion working with sled dogs and living in remote Alaska. Julie says, “Iditarod is the ultimate dream for me. It’s the highest adventure and a test of both body and spirit.”
Amanda Otto – Denali – Bib #32
Amanda Otto works at Husky Homestead and trains with four-time Iditarod Champion Jeff King. Otto says she has been passionate all of her life about dogs and athletics. She was introduced to mushing in 2016 after her collegiate and hoped for professional career in soccer came to an unexpected end with a knee injury. Thinking back to her first sled dog experience as an eight-year-old growing up in Idaho, she realized a new career path – combining her love for dogs and the outdoors through mushing. She headed to Alaska with the goal of running Iditarod.
On her Go-Fund-Me page, Otto says, “Dog mushing is a metaphor for life. Things rarely go as planned, hardship is inevitable and you need to adapt to survive. I have certainly learned much from these dogs and have grown as a person from the obstacles we tackle together.”
For qualifiers, Amanda has completed the Copper Basin 300, the Willow 300 and the Alpine 200. In preparation for those races and the Iditarod, she has put in several thousand miles in training runs. From the East Idaho News Otto says, “The Copper Basin is the toughest race in Alaska. After that one, I felt like a musher.”
Otto is a true teacher at heart saying that every morning I wake up and ask myself, “How can I set my dogs up for success.” Amanda feels that the most rewarding part of mushing is recognizing each dog for who it is as an individual, then maximizing those potentials to build a team. She tries to be in sponge mode to absorb everything she possibly can from King and the athletes. Dogs have been her lifelong passion. Iditarod is a long awaited dream. Otto says, “At the end of the day, I just love running dogs.”
Joe Taylor – Fairbanks – Bib #22
Dog driver, Joe Taylor, was born and raised in Fresno, California. He then lived in Oregon and British Columbia before finding his way to Fairbanks, Alaska. With a degree in microbiology, Taylor did research with sprint musher and scientist Arleigh Reynolds. Moving to Alaska and becoming a musher evolved from that research project. His kennel, Mushing Malarky, began with three dogs in 2017 and has grown to the size of a full race team since then. His huskies are from King, Zirkle, Erhart and Hall bloodlines.
Taylor says he likes working with young dogs and watching them develop into talented athletes. He named his kennel after a very silly dog who acquired the nickname Malarky. Taylor says the name reflects his fun and lighthearted approach to the sport. Joe has participated in the Copper Basin 300, the Yukon Quest 300 and the Two Rivers 200. In the off season, Taylor is both a guide and a research technician.
Check back soon for the final story in the Rookie Review series. In the meantime make sure your subscription to the Ultimate Insider is up to date. You won’t want to miss the Insider video clips sharing personal stories of mushers and their experiences on the trail. Having GPS tracker at your fingertips is invaluable when following the race and keeping track of your favorite mushers. For the 50th Iditarod, the Insider crew has been busy capturing interviews with mushers from the ‘old’ days and memorializing mushers and founders who have passed. BTW, the race guide for the 50th Iditarod is a must have souvenir of the occasion. They are available through the Iditarod Store either in person or on line.
