Sven Haltmann, 33, came to Alaska in 2001 to look for new challenges and opportunities. He for sure found them. He lives with his girlfriend, Jamie Klaes, north of Fairbanks. Together they operate Himalaya Racing Kennel with their 40 sled dogs. Sven raced the last three Iditarod’s finishing in 17^th place in 2010. All of his dogs ae pretty much born in his hands. They are in their prime right now, all dogs being between the ages of 2 ½ and 6 ½.  They bring the necessary maturity to the plate to race very competitively in 2011. They are a bunch of maniacs and love to run and race. “I also have 12 dogs in the race pool that have never raced the Iditarod before and all of them are trying to impress Daddy for the next few months until race day. I will probably choose about 4-5 of those as well for the team. I love sled dogs, Alaska and the Iditarod.” In the summer time he operates Colony Glacier Adventures that provides scenic sled dog tours for thrill seeking clients. Sven says, “I’m with my dogs all year long !!! What else can I say but; I’m the luckiest musher ever !!!”