- Write a biographical paragraph on the person you choose.
- Tell his/her background and what led them to race in the Iditarod.
- Tell why he/she makes a good musher (dog training, care)
- Lastly, give reasons why you chose this person.
You will follow your musher throughout the Iditarod.
Martin Buser was born in 1958 in Winterthur, Switzerland. As a teen in Switzerland, he became fascinated with with sled dog racing, and in 1979 moved to Alaska to further his education in sled dog care. In 1980, he ran his first Iditarod, he has ran every Iditarod since 1986, his third race. Martin won 4 times between 1992 and 2002, when he set an Iditarod speed record, with 8 days, 22 hours, 46 minutes, and 2 seconds. Martin has placed in the top ten 16 times. He has two sons, Rohn and Nikolai, both named after Iditarod checkpoints and a wife named Kathy Chapoton. I picked Martin because he won the the Leonhard Seppala award 4 times for best humanitarian care, and in 2005 he won the awards for Best Sportsmanship and Most Inspirational, after a woodworking accident 4 days prior to the start that resulted in the amputation of one of his fingers. Martin Buser is a great man, who treats his dogs as if they are people too.
ReplyDeleteFor the 2009 Iditarod, I have chosen a musher related to the 2004 Iditarod winner Mitch Seavey. But this musher’s name is Jen Seavey. Jen Seavey was born in Montana in 1987, which makes her 22 years old. During her younger years she mainly made Montana and New Mexico he usual homes. Jen started training when she was six years old, and she has a strange but funny way of training. When she had decided to start training, her father made her some skies and a little sled. She then put a horse halter on her German Shepard, and attached him to her sled, and had him pull her as her own little sled dog! Later, when she reached her older years, she came into college, but dog training and running the Iditarod is also very important to her, so for now she put college to the side. She had decided to go to Alaska, and start her own dog kennel there with her husband, Mitch Seavey. Lately during her time in Alaska, she has been training with her dogs year round, and an Alaskan tour guide during the summer. Jen loves her dogs, and is determined to get to the top ten in her big race!
ReplyDeleteBjornar Andersen is a Norwegian refrigerator mechanic born in 1978 he lives in Oslo Norway. His uncle is Robert Sorlie a famous sled dog racer. But Bjornar is not your ordinary mechanic once every year he makes a trip to Canada to race in the annual Iditarod sled dog race.
ReplyDeleteThough he has never won a major award Bjornar is still one of the worlds best mushers. In 2005 he finished in fourth with a time of 9 days 19 hours 50 minutes and 38 seconds winning the rookie of the year award. Because of his great finish as a rookie he was named to the Norwegian sled racing national team. In 2006 Bjornar did not fall off the radar finishing in sixth place. Bjornar has finished in the top ten every time he raced an accomplishment not many others have achieved. He has won every long distance race in Norway. Bjornar started racing in 1991, he says he started racing because he loves nature and dogs together. I chose Bjornar because he was the only racer from another country. Also I thought he had a good chance of winning. So if you are ever in Norway and you need a refrigerator fixed just ask Bjornar Andersen.
Fifty-three-year-old Jeff King, known as “The Winningest Musher in the World” has won the Iditarod 4 times and the Yukon Quest once. He has logged more than 100,000 mile in the last 20 years. When he won the 2006 Iditarod at age 50, he became the oldest person to win the Iditarod.
ReplyDeleteJeff was born in North Fork, California. He came to Alaska to seek adventure in 1975, and after he heard about Jerry Riley’s finish, decided to start dog mushing. And look where he is now! King raises 60-70 dogs a year at Goose Lake Kennel, which he both owns and operates.
Cali, Tessa, and Ellen are his daughters, and they’re following in his footsteps. All 3 of them have run the Jr. Iditarod, and Cali has also finished the real one. He is married to Donna Gates, a wildlife artist who he met on a trailing run when Donna was a new volunteer ranger.
He loves to be a musher and to invent. He has invented a new sled that helped him get more rest called the Barcalounger. He has also added a heated handlebar to his sled.
He has 21 dogs, but only some dogs get to be leaders. Some of his leaders are Berkeley and Claire. Claire’s mother is Jenna, who has won the Golden Harness Award. Sometimes he themes the names of the litters: for example, Dublin from the “Irish” litter and Dickens from the “great authors” litter.
I chose Jeff King because he has won the Iditarod many times and is one of the most famous mushers this year.
Jeff King is a very good musher and he has many mushing accomplishments.
Have you ever wanted to race in the Iditarod? 19-year-old Melissa Owens is going to this year. She was born in Nome, Alaska and has lived there all her life. Her father ran the Iditarod when she was born. Melissa began mushing when she could stand on the runners and now, she is a high school student. Did you know that Melissa completed 4 jr. Iditarod races? Her family owns a kennel and her hobbies are dogs, mushing, and gymnastics. She raises and trains her own dogs and says mushing is in her blood. Being the 2005 jr. Iditarod champion, Melissa has the talent for winning the Iditarod this year.
ReplyDeleteThere were initially 73 people running in the Iditarod and out of those 73 people, one person’s story was so inspiring, Dee Dee Jonrowe. Dee Dee was born in Frankfurt, Germany 1953. Her father had been stationed by the military in Greece. As you can see the Stout family moved around a lot by the military. Dee Dee and her little sister Linda went to elementary school in Ethiopia, Junior High in Okinawa, Japan, and High school in Virginia. Their last move was to Fairbanks, Alaska. She went to the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. She got her B.S. degree in Biological Science and Renewable Resources. Dee Dee Jonrowe worked as a biologist for the state of Alaska for ten years. She began mushing in 1971. Her family constitutes of her husband Mike, Mother Peg and father, and her younger sister Linda. She first got interested in the Iditarod when Rick Swenson won. Dee Dee’s hobbies include mushing, cross-country skiing, running, inline skating, horses, dogs, rag doll cats, and her flock on laying hens. Some of her lead dogs are Bauer, Brady, Butterscotch, Ford, Hagler, Ivan, Janet, Jeanette, Lightning, Python, Shake Spear, Sydney, and Thoreau. This woman is so amazing she is a 7 and a half year breast cancer survivor, she has had several accidents and life threatening injuries, and emergency surgery on her ruptured intestines, and this is her 27th Iditarod. Dee Dee Jonrowe has had a hard life and is so devoted to dog sledding that she deserves to win so keep your fingers crossed.
ReplyDeleteKen Anderson was born in Minnesota. His parents owned a recreational team so he started mushing at a very young age. Ken was the middle child of five children. Ken remembers camping as an infant up to a young child and he loved it. When he learned to read his father gave him a book on the Iditarod and he fell in love with it. Now ever since he has been involved in the Iditarod. In 1993 he volunteered in the Iditarod and ended up working with Jeff King and Susan Butcher. In 1999 he ran his first race and finished in 26th place. Now he runs a kennel in Alaska with his wife Gwen and all of his 75 dogs. His favorite dog is Izzy. She is one of the lead dogs and is the kind of dog that never gives up under any circumstance.
ReplyDeleteI picked Ken Anderson because he had a very interesting background and he never has won before so it will be really exciting to watch his journey though out the Iditarod.
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There are many people running the Iditarod. I picked one musher to follow and her name is Rachael Scdoris. She was born on February 1st 1985 in Bend, Oregon. Rachael was born colorblind and has a sight accuracy of 20/200. That means she has very bad eyes and needs glasses. She started mushing when she was eleven years old. Her first sled dog race was in 1997, and she got 4th place and later won many local short distance races. In 2001 she competed in the 500 mile International Pedigree Stage Stop Sled Dog Race and became the first colorblind person and the youngest musher to complete an event that long. She carried the Olympic Torch for the 2002 winter games. In high school Rachael was the captain of her track and cross country team in 2003. Her job is giving people tours. She loves everything outdoors and most of all loves mushing. Right now she is 24 and still lives on Bend, Oregon. I am very excited to see her in the Iditarod and I wish her luck.
ReplyDeleteThe sled creaks over the ice it’s a day to remember, a musher sees in the horizon a town. Their people wait for their first musher to arrive, the dogs pick up their speed and in a flash the musher crosses the finish line. The crowd goes wild and people cheer, “Chad Lindner has won!” the Copper Basin.
ReplyDeleteChad Linder was born in 1979 in Fairbanks, Alaska. As a kid Chad loved dogs and always had one. He grew up with his dad interested in mushing. He loved art and math in school and when it came time to go to college Chad went to Reed College and the University of Michigan to study law. He became a lawyer and now lives in Brookline, Massachusetts.
This year, in 2009, Chad is going to race for the first time in the Iditarod and his number will be 41. He will be using his father’s dogs and racing against him as well.
I picked Chad for my musher because maybe he isn’t famous yet, but he might soon be. Plus I love to learn about rookies for the Iditarod and Chad fits this idea very well. A young man eager to learn how race dogs and excited to win. Last I think he has a chance, because he has been taught from a great teacher, his dad Sonny Lindner. So I say go Chad wins this for us and for all who are routing for you.
Karen Hendrickson is 38 years old, and this is her first Iditarod. She’s run other races before, but this year she thinks she’s up for it.
ReplyDeleteKaren was born in the small town of Mt. Baldy, California in 1971. She loved (and still does, though she barely has any time anymore) to hike, rock climb, and other outdoors-type activities. Then, in 1991, she graduated from the University of Colorado as an air pollution analyst and went to work in Idaho. Now, she is a member of the Environmental Regulation in Alaska, after giving up almost everything she owned and moving up north because a love for mushing that had sprung up when she was volunteering for the Iditarod. Her mother had gone up every year, and so she convinced Karen to come too. She worked for the Iditarod in 2002 and again in 2003, this time training dogs for Ray Redington, and it was then that she realized how much she loved the dogs. She moved north that year. Also in 2003, she married Varan Hoyt on mile 3 of the Iditarod trail. In the 2004 Iditarod she helped Vern Halter prepare. The year after that, in 2005, she worked for Diana Moroney. Next, 1n 2006, she started a kennel of her own. She ran a few minor races, but she finally thinks that it’s time to try for the big cash.
Karen Hendrickson is 38 years old, and this is her first Iditarod. She’s run other races before, but this year she thinks she’s up for it.
Karen was born in the small town of Mt. Baldy, California in 1971. She loved (and still does, though she barely has any time anymore) to hike, rock climb, and other outdoors-type activities. Then, in 1991, she graduated from the University of Colorado as an air pollution analyst and went to work in Idaho. Now, she is a member of the Environmental Regulation in Alaska, after giving up almost everything she owned and moving up north because a love for mushing that had sprung up when she was volunteering for the Iditarod. Her mother had gone up every year, and so she convinced Karen to come too. She worked for the Iditarod in 2002 and again in 2003, this time training dogs for Ray Redington, and it was then that she realized how much she loved the dogs. She moved north that year. Also in 2003, she married Varan Hoyt on mile 3 of the Iditarod trail. In the 2004 Iditarod she helped Vern Halter prepare. The year after that, in 2005, she worked for Diana Moroney. Next, 1n 2006, she started a kennel of her own. She ran a few minor races, but she finally thinks that it’s time to try for the big cash.
Karen Hendrickson is 38 years old, and this is her first Iditarod. She’s run other races before, but this year she thinks she’s up for it.
Karen was born in the small town of Mt. Baldy, California in 1971. She loved (and still does, though she barely has any time anymore) to hike, rock climb, and other outdoors-type activities. Then, in 1991, she graduated from the University of Colorado as an air pollution analyst and went to work in Idaho. Now, she is a member of the Environmental Regulation in Alaska, after giving up almost everything she owned and moving up north because a love for mushing that had sprung up when she was volunteering for the Iditarod. Her mother had gone up every year, and so she convinced Karen to come too. She worked for the Iditarod in 2002 and again in 2003, this time training dogs for Ray Redington, and it was then that she realized how much she loved the dogs. She moved north that year. Also in 2003, she married Varan Hoyt on mile 3 of the Iditarod trail. In the 2004 Iditarod she helped Vern Halter prepare. The year after that, in 2005, she worked for Diana Moroney. Next, 1n 2006, she started a kennel of her own. She ran a few minor races, but she finally thinks that it’s time to try for the big cash.
Up ahead awaited a crowd of jumpy people waiting anxiously to see the first musher to cross the finish line of the 2009 Yukon Quest. Suddenly the crowd went up in a roar and people leaned over the taped off area to try to get a glimpse of the winner, a single musher, pulled by her dogs crossed the finish line. As the musher lifted up her hood everyone started chanting her name. “Aliy, Aliy, Aliy.”
ReplyDeleteAliy Zirkle is 39 years old. She will be running in her 9th Iditaod on March 7th, with her lead dog Pedro.
Aliy was born in New Hampshire. She attended the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in Biology. In 1990 she moved to Alaska where she met her husband Allen Moore. Today Aliy has two adult stepdaughters, named Bridget and Jennifer. While living in Bettles, Alaska she ran her dogs and realized “Sled dogs are her life and passion.” Eight years ago Aliy moved to Two Rivers, Alaska a small town outside of the hustle and bustle of Fairbanks, Alaska. Here she spent her days mushing her dogs, and carpentering. In the year 2000 Aliy crossed the finish line of the Yukon Quest in 1st place. In 2005 Aliy ran the Iditarod and placed 5th. After a long day of mushing Aliy enjoys sitting in the hot tub and watching the northern lights silhouetted against the jet black mountains. Aliy is hoping to survive the vast Alaskan wilderness once again, and to try and win the Iditarod.
As the start of the Iditarod nears, many mushers apply to be in the great race. One musher that I think is special is Ramey Smyth. I think he is special because he loves to spend time with his family and some of his interests are, hunting, reading, soccer, boxing, history, playing with dogs, and fishing. Ramey Smyth was born in Willow Alaska. When Ramey was younger he was in the J R Iditarod and has been in the normal Iditarod for 12 years. As you can see Ramey Smyth is a good musher and a one to remember.
ReplyDeleteChad Linder
ReplyDeleteMusher
Chad Linder was born in Fairbanks ,Alaska. As a kid he loved to be part of the Junior Iditarod races. He graduated from Reed College and he studied law at Michigan University. His home is still in Massachusetts. He went back to Fairbanks for the first time in a while in 2003. He likes to travel.
He competed and won the Cooper Race in 2003 in Alaska. It’s also a sled dog race but it is much shorter than the Iditarod Race. Not a lot of people join this race.
Chad is running the Iditarod Race in 2009. His father also ran in the Iditarod race too. After he completes the race, he will practice law in Boston. His dad is proud of Chad.
Aliy Zirkle was born in New Hampshire and she lived there when she was little. She came to Alaska in 1990 because she was working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service. Aliy came to Bettles, Alaska twelve years ago and has lived there since. But before she went to Alaska, she lived in a small village north of the Artic Circle. Her husband is named Allen Moore, also a musher, and her two stepchildren are named Bridgett and Jennifer.
ReplyDeleteHere are some tips from Aliy to have a successful race. To do a race you need to start with a plan or strategy. Don’t get confused with other peoples plans and always give your dog a break even if another musher isn’t. Race with your dogs and have fun. When you finish the race you should watch the competitors.