“It is not really a sled race, nor a race of people … It is a dog race.”
What makes a person want to run the Iditarod – a more than 1,000-mile sled dog race in the bitter cold of an Alaskan winter? It is a fine madness, according to Gary Paulsen, the author of Hatchet who ran the Iditarod twice. He started just by moving north and owning dogs. Then, he started running the dogs through the wilderness, staying out longer and longer. It was his wife who knew first, asking him on his return once if he was going to do “that race.”
I lived in Alaska for three years and got to see the official start of the Iditarod twice. It was such a wonderful event. The dogs want to run and you can feel the excitement in the air. I’ve had Winterdance in my to-read pile for several years and I’m making 2020 the year I read a lot of books from that pile. I started Winterdance when the Iditarod started this year.
Paulsen takes you through how he got enchanted with the idea of running the Iditarod, how he trained for the race and then what he encountered on his first race. None of it was easy and just when he thought he had experienced the worst thing, something would happen to top that. He faced the dangers of wolves, moose, wrong trails, thin ice and other mushers. He finishes and then wants to do it again – not just to finish, but to win.
Winterdance takes you right into the sled of Paulsen as he becomes a musher. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves his books, loves Alaska, loves dogs or wants to learn more about the Iditarod. I’m keeping it on my bookshelf as a book my children should read eventually to learn more about Alaska.
What do you know about the Iditarod? Share in the comments!