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Day 16
March 17, 2002
At 10:00 this morning I heard the beautiful voice of musher Anna Boderenko singing Ave Maria over the loudspeaker. This signaled the beginning of the double wedding ceremony between Doug Swingley and Melanie Shirilla, and Jason Barron and Harmony Kanavle. The couples were led to their makeshift alter under the burl arch by their lead dogs. All participants were wearing ruffed parkas. The vows were personal and very moving, and the rings were hand made of ivory. A reception followed at the old Nugget Inn. The photos that follow are taken from behind all of the professional photographers, so please check the Cabelas site for more photos.
Doug and Melanie at the alter
Jason and Harmony exchanging rings
The newlyweds kiss
I chose to go to a church ceremony instead of going to the reception. The service touched upon the spiritual journey of the mushers out on the trail. Individual mushers spoke of their journeys in deeper and more meaningful ways than simply trail conditions and health of the mushers and dogs. They explained that although mushers often speak only of the journey in a physical sense, it is also a journey of self-reflection and spiritual growth. The bond between the people and dogs, the heightened appreciation for the unending work that the volunteers do, and the camaraderie between people bring the mushers to tears. Mike Williams explained how unimportant the money is to him and his race. He instead focuses on hard work, determination, and fulfilling goals, and being an example of these for youth.
There were about eight more mushers that arrived today. I was there to witness some some of them.
Buser welcomes Ken Chase to Nome
Bill Borden was thrilled to be in Nome
Devan Currier comes through the arch
Devan is all smiles when his wife, Judy, congratulates him
Later in the day the red lantern musher arrived. David Straub made it into Nome carrying the red lantern with pride. He was the fastest last place finisher in the history of the race. He closed Iditarod 2002 and made it in time for the mushers banquet.
Later in the afternoon I went back to the museum in Nome to see the gifts that Harald Tunheim had presented to the mayor at the finish line two years ago. They are on display at the museum. These consisted of a photograph of one of Leonhard Seppala's relatives. Seppala is from Norway and one of the men who mushed the diphtheria serum to Nome in 1925 with the help of his dog Togo. Tunheim also brought an engraved pewter plate and letter from the Seppala family to the mayor. These gifts were from the Seppala family, and in the letter they stated their gratitude to Tunheim, "one of Norway's best mushers," for carrying these items to the mayor.
Harald Tunheim near the Seppala display that he carried in his sled to Nome's mayor two years ago
The plate given to the mayor in gratitude for keeping Leonhard's accomplishments alive today
The photo of one of Leonhard Seppala's relatives
Do you know anything about his dog Togo? Here is an interesting bit of information from Alaska Geographic: The Iditarod.
"Togo was a natural leader. He came from the line of dogs chosen to haul explorer Roald Amundsen to the North Pole. As a young dog, Togo couldn't be contained. One day when Seppala set out on a long-distance run, he left instructions for his handler to keep the dog in an enclosure. Instead, Togo tried to climb the fence. He reached the top but got hung up on the far side by his foot. He yelped and the handler came to help him. While doing so, Togo twisted free and ran off, following Seppala and his team who already had several hours headstart. The musher later reported that when he looked up the towline as his dogs were moving, he saw a dog running loose at the head of this team, nipping at the ear of his lead dogs. From then on, Togo became Seppala's number one leader."
I was fortunate to be able to attend the banquet. It brought some closure for me seeing each of the mushers presented with a trophy and prize money. Each musher also had the opportunity to thank their support people, or to talk about an event along the trail. I loved hearing all of the tales. Some of the mushers received additional trophies for exceptional performances.
Looking toward the stage at the mushers banquet
Martin Buser won all of the awards this year for coming into checkpoints first. Robert Sorlie took Rookie of the Year, with the fastest rookie time ever.
Sorlie near his rookie of the year trophy
Ramey Smyth had the fastest time from White Mountain to Safety. Lynda Plettner got a trophy for the most improved musher and she won the Humanitarian Award. This is because her dogs were really healthy. Rick Swenson won the sportsmanship award for helping other mushers along the way. Lance Mackey won the Most Inspirational Musher award. He had cancer last year and ran the race anyway this year, and with enthusiasm!
All mushers received the finishers trophy which states the number you placed and your finishing time. They each received a bottle of champagne, their vet book, notes about their times between checkpoints, a signed envelope that they had carried to Nome on their sled, a copy of their final check-in form, and a check with prize money.
Kjetil shows his trophy
One of the envelopes Tunheim carried to Nome
Most of the mushers headed off for Anchorage on a "banquet flight" immediately following the banquet. This was a bit hard for me, since the first flight I could get out on was the following night. Thank goodness I had some of my new Norwegian friends to keep me company.
After a day in Nome goofing around with the Norwegians, we headed for the airport. I was thrilled to find out we were traveling on the same plane for the first leg of the trip. We said our good-byes in Anchorage. It was anything but a happy moment, saying goodbye to new friends and the trip at the same time. About twenty-four hours later I arrived in Vermont. I could sleep for days!
Please check on the Post-Race Days too for some reflection on the trip, and some other photos too.
Mrs. Holmes
Nome, - Thursday, March 21, 2002 at 10:17:08 (EST)
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Mrs. Holmes
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Webspace for Mrs. Holmes Iditarod 2002 project was provided courtesy of
ValleyNet of Norwich, Vermont.
