Happy March! The Iditarod starts today. I'm having a hard time connecting to the Official Site, but I understand there is not enough snow.

The recent snowfall here, however brief, along with the start of the Iditarod, inspired a return to sled dog books. In truth, not many of the mushers in the Iditarod make the front runners. Many are novice drivers, some are driving new teams and are giving their teams experience, others run because the race 'gets in your blood' and you have to return and do it again. And again. Back of the Pack : an Iditarod Rookie Musher's Alaska Pilgrimage to Nome by Don Bowers tells of these teams. The children's book, Togo written and illustrated by Robert Blake is a well done, easy-to-read history of the serum run. Balto may be the best known dog from the 1925 Serum Run (there is a statue of him in Central Park) but Togo was the dog that lead Leonhard Seppala's team most of the distance. At first considered to be too small, Togo's strength, speed and sense of direction soon had him at the head of the team. While they ran a greater distance than the other relay teams, at the end, the serum was passed on to another driver at Golovin Village to run it on into Nome. This is a beautifully done, well researched tale of Seppala and Togo's journey. Storm Run: the Story of the First Woman to Win the Iditarod Sled Dog Race by Libby Riddles, illustrations by Shannon Cartwright. Illustrated with family photos and delightful drawings, this is the autobiography of Libby Riddles. (She and Susan Butcher would inspire the motto "Alaska: Where Men Are Men and Women Win the Iditarod"). Dogteam, written by Gary Paulsen and illustrated by Ruth Wright Paulsen. I have learned from the reading I've done that mushers enjoy running at night and this book certainly (for me) explains why! I love the description of how quiet it is, except for the huff of the dogs, the shoosh of the runners over the snow, and the jingle from the harnesses.

Those of you who have read Winterdance are familiar with the time when Gary Paulsen tripped as he and his dog team were heading down the driveway. My mushing friend tells me he, too, had a 'tripping' experience with his team. It was when his mother was visiting. She was very interested in the dog team and was eager to take a ride in the dog cart. (There was no snow at the time). Mom was helped onto the platform behind the steering handle and told to step on the brake while the dogs were hooked up. The dogs were too quick, however, and before my friend could step in behind his mom, they took off, leaving him behind, watching his mom racing down the driveway and imagining the dogs speeding out onto the road in front of a gravel truck. His mother, who was pretty much unflappable, hung on gamely, steering the cart down the long, curving driveway. Finally she either got the team stopped, or they got tangled enough to stop themselves. When my friend finally caught up with them, all was well and his mom was smiling at the adventure she'd had.

'Mush!' (from the French marche) is not used much anymore, instead, the more common command (at least in English) is 'Hike!'

Reading Hermit With Dog