race through the wilderness the iditarodextras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site204/2009/...mar 09,...

© 2009 Universal Press Syndicate

release dates: March 7-13 10-1 (09)

from The Mini Page © 2009 Universal Press Syndicate

On March 7, about 70 daring mushers,or sled dog racers, and about 1,000 dogsmet in Anchorage, Alaska, for the officialopening of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.The Iditarod (eye-DIT-uh-rahd) is one ofthe most challenging races in the world.

The Iditarod starts in Anchorage andcrosses more than 1,000 miles of Alaskanwilderness. It ends up in Nome.

The Mini Page found out more aboutthis exciting race and talked to a long-time Iditarod musher.Historical transport

The Iditarod follows trails that nativeAlaskans have used for about 10,000years. European settlers used the samenetwork of trails to carry mail, suppliesand people. Dogsleds could get to placeswhere horses and cars could not go.

Until about 1920, the Iditarod Trailwas the main Alaskan winter route. Thenthe dogsled gave way to the airplane.

Race to save livesIn 1925, a dangerous disease called

diphtheria (dif-THIR-ee-uh) threatenedthe people of Nome. It looked as if no onewould be able to get the needed medicineto the sick people there.

But dog teams succeeded in carryingthe life-saving medicine from Nenana toNome. Dog and musher teams racedacross about 670 miles over the icywilderness in less than five days.

In 1973, Dorothy G. Page and JoeRedington Sr. started the Iditarod race.They wanted to celebrate the many thingssled dogs have done for Alaskans. Thesled dogs’ life-saving trip was just one ofthe services the dogs have provided.

The race“Iditarod” is the name of a ghost town

along the trails. Many experts believe itmeans “distant place.”

The Iditarod begins at Anchorage witha ceremonial start to the race. The racetruly begins the next day from Willow.

The Iditarod Trail runs for about 1,049miles. It varies year by year, becauseobstacles may arise, forcing mushers tobreak new trail.

The race keeps going until the lastteam comes in. The fastest winning timewas eight days, 22 hours, 46 minutes andtwo seconds. The last racers can takenearly three weeks to come in.

Mushers begin training dogs inAugust, with the dogs pulling four-wheelers. In the spring and earlysummer, when the snow thaws, the dogsget a vacation.

Race Through the Wilderness

The Iditarod

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Musher Paul Gebhardt and his sled dog teamtake off at the start of the 2007 Iditarod.

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Alaska natives used the trail for everydaytravel needs, such as hunting and visiting.

In odd-numbered years, such as 2009,the race jags to include southernvillages such as Iditarod. In even-numbered years, the race detours toinclude villages to the north.

Please include all of the appropriate registered trademark symbols and copyright lines in any publication of The Mini Page®.

Mini Spy . . .from The Mini Page © 2009 Universal Press Syndicate

Mini Spy is racing in the Iditarod! See if you can find:• Santa face• snake• hourglass• heart• elf face• word MINI• fish• number 8• whale


10-2 (09); release dates: March 7-13®

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Braving the icy wildernessThe Iditarod Trail crosses snowy

mountain ranges, frozen rivers, coastalareas, treeless arctic plains, and landwith trees so thick it’s like goingthrough a tunnel. Temperaturesnormally range from 20 below zero to 40below zero, and that doesn’t count thewind chill.

One year, temperatures fell as low as72 degrees below zero. That race wascanceled because the dogs were gettingfrostbite on their paws.

Winds can be so fierce that blowingsnow makes it almost impossible to see.

Sometimes ice gets so thick that thewater underneath has nowhere to go.Then, water flows over the top of thethick ice and forms a new, thin layer ofice on top of the overflowing water. Thiscan be very dangerous to mushers,because they can fall through the thinice into the frigid water.

Keeping dry is themost important thingmushers can do. Theycarry dry clothes forthemselves andbooties for the dogs.

MushersMushers have to be at least 18 years

old. Kids from 14 to 18 can compete inthe Jr. Iditarod, which is 160 miles long.

Mushers have to study a lot. Theylearn how toplan strategy,coach the team,keep thedifferent dogshealthy andhappy, andprovide food.They must beable to handlerace hazardssuch as floods,avalanches andwild animals.

A Race of Skill and Endurance

CheckpointsTeams must stop at

checkpoints throughoutthe trail. Thesestopping points areoften villages wheremushers and their dogs

might get a chance to eat and drink.At each checkpoint, veterinarians

look over the dogs. Mushers rub salve,or ointment, on a dog’s paws. If a dog isinjured or too tired, it might leave therace and be flown home from a checkpoint.The dogs’ safety is very important.

Each team can start with amaximum of 16 sled dogs. If dogs haveto be sent home, the mushers keepracing with fewer dogs. But they musthave at least six dogs at the finish line.

Words that remind us of the Iditarod are hidden in the block below.Some words are hidden backward or diagonally. See if you can find:DOG, RUN, SNOW, ICE, WIND, MUSH, ALASKA, TRANSPORTATION,ANCHORAGE, NOME, CHECKPOINT, COLD, WOLF, QUIET, ZERO,MUSHER, TEAM, BELOW, LEAD, MOOSE, TRAINING, MILES, WIN,TRAIL, PAW.

Iditarod TRY ’NFIND

IT WOULD BEFUN TO BE ASLED DOG!

T M W Z W O L E B L I A R T MR U Q O E N C M D D N I W L IA S U S L R O O U O N P W E LI H I R N F O M L S G A I A EN E E Z U O V Z E D H W N D SI R T K W N W E C I E S O O MN M A E T T N I O P K C E H CG N O I T A T R O P S N A R TA K S A L A E G A R O H C N A


Basset Brown

The News

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Knolmayer drives his teaminto a checkpoint at WhiteMountain, Alaska, in 2005.He finished the race withnine out of his original 16dogs.

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Mushers come frommany countries andbackgrounds.

® 10-3 (09); release dates: March 7-13


Meet LuckyLucky is a former shelter dog lucky

enough to star in an episode of AnimalPlanet’s “Underdog to Wonderdog.”

In the show, a team of doggie makeoverartists rescues a shelter dog, trains it,grooms it, finds it a loving home and buildsit its very own doghouse.

Host Ryan Smith is also the host of a TVcommentary show in New York. He is anattorney and volunteers for family literacy.

Dog trainer Andrea Arden has writtenfive books and also writes magazine columns about dog training.

Ali McLennan started grooming dogs as a part-time job to supporther acting career, but loved it so much that it became a full-time job.She still acts, too.

David Leon, the show’s doghouse carpenter, owns a homeimprovement company.



TMGo dot to dot and color.

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You’ll need:• 2 (11-ounce) cans mandarin oranges (reserve juice)• 1 (3-ounce) package ladyfingers* (12 count)• 1 (1-ounce) package instant sugar-free, fat-free pudding mix• 11/2 cups reduced-fat milk• 1 cup light whipped topping• 1/2 cup reserved mandarin orange juiceWhat to do:1. Drain mandarin oranges; reserve 1/2 cup juice.2. Place half the ladyfingers on the bottom of a square 8-by-8-inch dish. Pour 1/4 cup of

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Chill for 5 minutes.4. Gently blend 1 cup of whipped topping into chilled pudding.5. Spread half of pudding mixture on top of ladyfingers. Top with half the mandarin oranges.6. Place other half of ladyfingers on top of oranges; pour other 1/4 cup of reserved juice on top.7. Repeat layer of pudding and oranges.8. Refrigerate to chill. Serves 6.*Ladyfingers are usually found in the bakery section of your market.You will need an adult’s help with this recipe.

All the following jokes have something in common.Can you guess the common theme or category?

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Paul Gebhardt has raced in theIditarod 12 times. He grew up inMinnesota on a dairy farm. When heand his wife, Evy, moved to Alaska, hebecame friends with mushers andlearned to mush and then to race. Hedidn’t mind that learning somethingnew was hard.

He said, “In my vocabulary, the word‘quit’ doesn’t exist. My dogs don’t knowthe word ‘quit’ either.”Working with sled dogs

Paul said it takes skill to figure outthe right dogs for the right positions.Each dog has a different personality. Ateam consists of these dogs, from frontto back:

• Leaders that are responsible forthe dogs and sled;

• Swing dogs that help guidethe team and swing the sled aroundturns;

• Team dogs that help pull the sled;• Wheel dogs at the back near the

sled.

School for dogsPaul begins training dogs when they

are about 1 year old. He said the youngdogs don’t realize what they’re capableof at first.

He said when the dogs first go out ina race, they are like elementary schoolstudents. But after their first 300-milerace they come back like high schoolgraduates. They learn how much theycan achieve without getting stressed.

Mushers call sleddogs “foreverchildren” becausethey never reallygrow up, Paul said.They always actlike children; theylove to play.

The dogs live torun. If they see araven fly, they will chase it for miles.

Meet Musher Paul Gebhardt

Danger: Moose aheadPaul said moose are “some of the

scariest animals to meet on the trail.”They can be mean and stubborn. Amusher may even have to break a newtrail to go around a moose.

A moose once trampled Paul’s teamand killed his lead dog. Another time amoose knocked him off a sled and thedogs kept running without him. He hadto walk for miles in the wilderness.Joys of the race

Paul said the best thing about theIditarod is the quietness. “There is noengine noise. You can hear nothing butyour dogs breathing for hundreds ofmiles. You’re alone, but not alone. I have16 of my good buddies with me.”

He said it is also beautiful. At night,he said, “There is no fake light. You’re incomplete darkness. You can watch theNorthern Lights and the constellations.”

Mushers may run from six to 13hours at a time. They stop to sleepwhen they need to, day or night.

The Mini Page StaffBetty Debnam - Founding Editor and Editor at Large Lisa Tarry - Managing Editor Lucy Lien - Associate Editor Wendy Daley - Artist

In the ceremonial beginning ofthe Iditarod, people can bid toride on musher’s sleds, withthe money going to theIditarod. A 9-year-old boy wonthe lucky bid to ride with Pauland Evy Gebhardt one year.A skilled musher understandshis or her dogs and knowswhat they do best. Forexample, a lead dog won’t likechasing other dogs. They, likePaul, want to see what isaround the next corner. Otherdogs on the team have fun justbeing part of the group.

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Paul Gebhardt hugs his sled dog Thor. Paulraises his own sled dogs. He also works asa carpenter.

The Mini Page thanks Diane Johnson,education director for the Iditarod, and Pauland Evy Gebhardt for help with this issue.

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Evy Gebhardt withpups.

Sites to see: www.iditarod.comwww.aspenhollowlodging.com/content.asp?CAT_ID=18

Next week The Mini Page celebrates St.Patrick’s Day with a story aboutleprechauns.

Look through your newspaper for storiesabout the Iditarod.

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