It’s four days since John Baker claimed the Championship of Iditarod XXXIX. There were thousands lined up on Front Street to cheer for the man from Kotzebue. As the Sunday Finisher’s Banquet draws near, the welcoming crowd has dwindled but their enthusiasm and respect has not.

Johnson removes booties under the arch in Nome

When Paul Johnson of Unalakleet completed his run, John Baker was there to greet him. In addition to the well-insulated musher clothing and boots, Paul sported a band-aid on his frost bitten nose, a Unalakleet ski team hat and a huge smile. Media folks gathered around to ask Paul questions. One being, “How did running the race in 2011 compare to your previous run in 1986?” Paul responded that in 25 years there have been numerous changes – dogs are faster, equipment lighter and sturdier, clothing is warmer and easier to work in and the science of nutrition for the dogs has advanced. Johnson was quick to thank all the people who supported his race through words of encouragement before hand and along the way as well as donations of dog food and everything else. The quiet, soft-spoken man was at a loss for words when I came to quantifying all the support he’s received. There’s a saying that it takes a village to raise a child. Paul would probably agree that it takes a village to get a musher and team to Nome. In 1986, Paul made it to Nome in 15 days and 8 minutes. He was more than three, almost four days faster in 2011 – 11 days, 19 hours and 39 minutes. By the way, since sitting next to Paul in the UNK checkpoint watching as John Baker made the Burled Arch, the frostbite wound on Paul’s nose from a previous race has improved greatly.

Cain and Mentor, Lance Mackey

It was a happy scene under the Burled Arch as nineteen-year-old Cain Carter earned his rookie belt buckle. Lance was proud of his stepson’s accomplishment and was thrilled with the pep and energy the dogs displayed in the chute. They were strong; they were energized, they were happy although they wanted to be barepawed. Cain’s mother, Tonya moved from dog to dog with generous praise and then there was an enormous hug for her son. Cain was the 2009 Junior Iditarod Champion.

Cain Carter’s run up Front Street might have brought a feeling of déjà vu for his step-dad Lance Mackey. As the team made its way up Front Street, one of his lead dogs wanted to explore every parking area along the way. Cain repeatedly urged them to the middle of the street – gee, gee, gee. Honestly though, this is the first big city road this young dog has run on. Dogs are curious critters, all these new sights, sounds and smells, why not look around and see what’s going on – you never know when you’ll have this chance again. Finally Cain stopped, tipped his sled onto its side and set a couple of snow hooks. He hustled forward and brought a team dog up to switch out with the young and inexperienced leader. Once back at the sled, Cain called “HIKE”. A spectator lead the team back onto the snow covered trail in the middle of the street and with the experience of the newly positioned leader, the team made straight to the arch. Much the same thing happened to Lance in one of his recent victories. He had an inexperienced leader who preferred trails to streets. As Cain did, Lance stopped and moved an experienced dog up the line. In Lance’s race it happened to be faithful old Larry who finished the last few blocks of the race in lead.