Date: December 3, 2006 at 8:28 pm
Nayokpuk touched thousands with his energy, kindness and humor
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Herbie Nayokpuk, a legendary Iditarod pioneer and one of the best-loved and most natural dog mushers in the sport, died Saturday surrounded by family at the Alaska Native Medical Center. Nayokpuk had suffered a huge stroke in mid-November at his home in Shishmaref, which left him comatose as his family gathered from across the state and nation.
Nayokpuk, 77, had been ill before. He had a stroke in 1988 and had undergone two triple heart bypasses, bouncing back from one such operation to race in yet another Iditarod – and race well, as he always did. But this time, it was different. As word spread about Nayokpuk’s worsening condition, his family was inundated with cards and e-mails from friends, acquaintances and people who never met “The Shishmaref Cannonball,” but who had been inspired by him. Plainly Nayokpuk’s influence spread far wider than his home village.
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Date: December 1, 2006 at 5:21 pm
KASILOF, Alaska — Every year, students write to me and other mushers with a series of questions for some school-related project. And once in a while, one of them just seems to hit the mark with well-worded and insightful queries. I got one recently from a boy named Jack that covered what longtime race fans would consider well-trodden territory. But Jack asked such open-ended questions that I felt compelled to cut right to the heart with my answers. And while the resulting dialog covered the simple basics, it seems worthwhile to compile the Q&A into a column to be posted here. Some fans are new to the sport and might appreciate this. For others, who, like me, sometimes gloss over the simple joy of running sled dogs as they talk about the minutiae of run/rest schedules, it’s never a bad idea to take a refresher course.
Here are Jack’s questions:
Q: What is it like to compete in the Iditarod or any sled dog race?
A: It is like nothing else I’ve ever done. The Iditarod, more than most other races, takes you to places mentally and physically where most people these days never go. You get tired, sore and sometimes hurt, and yet you find that you not only can keep going but also still have fun. It gives you new perspective on the rest of life.
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