Hello Boys and Girls,

The school year is going fast.  Can you believe it’s already December?  While you’ve been working hard in school and learning new things, the same can be said about the Iditarod mushers, too.

By now, the deadline for signing up for the 2012 Iditarod has gone by and we officially have 67  mushers signed up for the 40^th running of Iditarod. (But check next week because some registrations are in the mail!) The race will start in downtown Anchorage on March 3^rd, Restart the following day from Willow, and end when the last musher reaches Nome some 1, 049 miles later.

As you know, this year’s race is exciting because it’s the 40^th Iditarod.  40 years ago, 22  mushers finished the race to Nome.  One of those mushers was Dan Seavey.  And boys and girls, can you believe it?  Dan has signed up to race this year again!  It makes me just howl a long, exciting song about the race’s history when a musher from the first race is racing again!

H O W L a song with me about that!

A fun thing about any Iditarod race is that both experienced Iditarod racers, called veterans and rookies will be racing.  Rookies are mushers who are experienced racers, but they haven’t ever finished an Iditarod before, so they are ‘new’ to racing this particular race.  When a rookie gets to Nome and finishing the race, that musher is no longer a rookie when entering a future Iditarod race.

This will be a fun race, boys and girls.  The trail, this year the northern route because the race will be in an even numbered year.  The weather conditions will be something to learn about as we follow the race and often plays a part in how mushers must run their race.

Here is an idea for you, boys and girls.  As you start thinking about this year’s race, make a big chart that is divided into three parts.  Mark one section ‘KNOW’, one section “Want to Know” and the last section, “I Learned”.  THEN as the weeks go by, fill in your chart.  At the end of the race, when the mushers get to Nome, share your charts with other students in our class.  Then, H O W L a long howl-song about all you have learned during the school year!

As you can see, I’ve made my chart and I’m going to get right to work filling out what I know and writing questions about what I want to know more about…   Now what else should I put in my chart?

I’ve got it…  and I’m going to get my paws working on it straight away!  How about you?

Lots of Tail Wags,

Zuma

* originally posted: Dec 3, 2011