#iditorod

Alaska

I wake up to the sound of howling sled dogs once again. It's the early morning rooster crow of Willow, Alaska. Today is a special day. It is the ceremonial start of the Iditarod and I get to go for a ride in the dog sled with my mother. We head into downtown Anchorage to the same site where the Iditarod has started for many years. We find my mother's number painted into the ice, #40 and we start to prepare. We pull the dogs out of their special little compartments in the back of the truck. A whole team of 16 dogs can fit in the back of one truck.

Photo courtesy of decktheholidays.blogspot.com

At first, I have to admit that when I saw those tiny little compartments I immediately felt bad for the dogs… it reminds me of seeing chickens in tiny cages while driving on the freeway and other animals who are kept in confining boxes or cages. But I quickly come to realize that these dogs love their little nests. Sometimes they don't even want to come out. They also LOVE running. When all the dogs are harnessed and ready to go they become so excited that they bark wildly, squealing and jumping straight up and down as if they were on springs. "Let's go! Let's go! What the heck are we waiting for!?" They seem to shout.

"Nicolina!" I hear my mother's voice as I wander around taking photos and marveling at the crowds of people, teams of sled dogs and the overall scene. "It's time to get in the sled!" My heart jumps with a beat of excitement and anticipation. I lower myself into the sled. Crowds of people line the street, hollering and taking photos. The dogs are going wild. The handlers run us up to the starting line and the loudspeaker announces "Jan Steves! From Edmonds, Washington. This is her third Iditarod race and her Iditarider this year is her daughter, Nicolina Johnson." The countdown begins; 10… 9… 8… "This is such a crazy moment!" I think to myself. 7… 6… 5… "I want to remember this forever... 4… 3… 2… (My face hurts from smiling) …1… and "GO!!!"

The handlers release the dogs and they take off with turbo speed, tails wagging, tongues flapping… And we are off!