Iditarod has always been 61 year old Paul Hansen’s dream. Hansen was born and raised in Denver , Colorado. He graduated from Colorado State University in 1979 with a degree in Environmental Health. The following year, he moved to Kotzebue to work for the Public Health Service/Maniilaq Association.

Part of Paul’s job was to travel to the area villages and administer rabies vaccinations. There were quite a few dogs teams in the villages back then and he had the opportunity to meet the mushers and their dogs.   He became interested in dogs and has been involved in the sport of mushing since those days of giving rabies shots.

The Hansen’s started a small family kennel. The Kotzebue Dog Mushers sponsor sprint races that the entire Hansen family participates in. Paul decided to try long distance mushing about five years ago. Since then he’s run the Kobuk 440 and Nome to Council Races. This is the year for Paul to take on the Iditarod.

When Paul and the team get to Kaltag and head down the old portage trail toward Unalakleet and the Bering Sea, they’ll know they are heading toward home.  Kotzebue is located 184 miles to the north of Nome and 26 miles north of the Arctic Circle on the Bering Sea.  The village is located on a gravel spit along the western coast of Alaska in the Kotzebue Sound.  Three major rivers drain into the Sound near Kotzebue.  With the river access to inland villages, the area has a rich history in trading for furs, seal-oil, hides, rifles, ammunition, and seal skins.    Back in the day when the whalers, traders, gold seekers, and missionaries arrived, trading increased and Kotzebue grew into an important trading center.  Today the population of Kotzebue is 3,200 and the motto of the city is “Gateway to the Arctic.”

Good luck to Paul and the Hansen huskies as they follow the trail through the streets and trails of Anchorage and then from Fairbanks to Nome.