Lance Mackey Wins Iditarod 36!

For many years the proverbial "they" said it couldn't be done. One person could not win the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod back to back - two weeks apart even - in the same year.

An impossible feat. Those who had run both in the same year either held their dogs back during the Quest, or went all out and were too tired during the Iditarod.

But Lance Mackey didn't believe the naysayers. After all, he had just finished surviving cancer - what was a couple of 1,000 mile dogsled races?

And then last year, 2007, he did it. After already winning the Yukon Quest twice and then cracking the top 10 both times at Iditarod - a hard enough feat he got little credit for - Mackey won them both, back to back, within weeks - no - days of each other.

"A fluke," many thought. "Lucky," some said.

Lance Mackey is no fluke. And just to prove the naysayers wrong again, he won again. The Quest and the Iditarod. Back to back. For the second straight year.

An athletic feat of man and dogs that should be in the history books, but will barely scrape the first page of most papers. But in Alaska and all of the mushing world, Lance and his dogs are true heroes.

Well done Lance...and on to the All-Alaska Sweepstakes!

For more info:
http://www.adn.com/iditarod/2008/news/story/342568.html

Iditarod 36!

As many of you know I am a huge fan of the Iditarod and dogsledding in general. This is also the first year since I moved to Vermont 5 years ago that I have high-speed Internet in my house - so I am finally able to be an Iditarod "Insider" subscriber. I love watching the teams come into the checkpoints and hear the mushers talk - I'm a fan of mushing like some people are fans of the NBA or NFL. It's also hard for me to pick someone to route for. I like Lance Mackey an awful lot, and the fact that he won both the Quest and the Iditarod last year (the first person ever to win both races in the same year) and just defended his Quest title again this year, really makes me want to see him win it again. However, I've also always been a fan of Jeff King and would love to see him get his fifth championship.

And then there are some of the others that I'd love to see win for the first time like Aliy Zirkle or Dee Dee Jonrowe.

We'll have to see how it all turns out. If you're interested in learning more, check out these sites:
www.iditarod.com
www.adn.com
http://www.buserdog.com/
http://www.huskyhomestead.com/

Iditarod Champion Jeff King has a new book

I haven't yet read it - I just ordered it yesterday - but four time Iditarod champion Jeff King, has written a new book. Sometime last summer I had noticed that it was in the works, but forgot about it until yesterday when I realized that while it's basketball season here in central VT, it's Quest season up north. I did a little surfing and checked on the race stats, and then found myself at CabelasIditarod.com - another favorite site - and saw that Jeff's book had been released.

Anyway, I am very excited to read it and will give a full review once I do. For those of you who have read my books or writings, you know what I huge fan of mushing I am - even if my previous attempts ended unfortunately. Someday, I hope to try again.

Here's an interesting tidbit - my daughter Lydia, the one who was attacked, is also very interested in starting a team. Strange how life changes, hmmm?

I hope you'll visit the King's web site
or blog - no, I don't get some sort of commission for sending you there, but if you'd like to learn about mushing, these are great sites at which to begin.

Little Boxes - My New Theme Song

If my life had a theme song, I've decided this would be it. I love the version on "Weeds" sung by Zoey Deschanel

The song is by Mavina Reynolds - and there are many wonderful versions.

Little Boxes
1. Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes made of ticky-tacky,
Little boxes, little boxes,
Little boxes, all the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky-tacky
And they all look just the same.

2. And the people in the houses
All go to the university,
And they all get put in boxes,
Little boxes, all the same.
And there's doctors and there's lawyers
And business executives,
And they're all made out of ticky-tacky
And they all look just the same.

3. And they all play on the golf-course,
And drink their Martini dry,
And they all have pretty children,
And the children go to school.
And the children go to summer camp
And then to the university,
And they all get put in boxes
And they all come out the same.

4. And the boys go into business,
And marry, and raise a family,
And they all get put in boxes,
Little boxes, all the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky-tacky
And they all look just the same.