Storm Watch Siberians wondering who will watch TV tonight.
My good friends, the Siberian Huskies from Storm Watch Kennel up there in Wasilla, Alaska just across the road from where I used to live at the Redington’s, have their own television watching room in the musher’s house! With a huge wall television, leather couches and chairs, a really durable floor, a large bucket of treats and big tall bowls of cool fresh water, it’s quite luxurious. Every night a few of the huskies go inside to watch some TV and relax human style with their musher, Wayne Curtis. Wayne and the Sibes seem to agree that American Idol and Heroes are their favorite shows. Down here at Just Guts, we don’t watch much television except for football on Sunday evening but we do talk about our heroes, heroines and idols on other evenings and sunny afternoons when we’re not working.
Our list of Heroes includes Martin Buser, Bruce Linton, Balto, Togo, Baldy of Nome and Granite. Susan Butcher, DeeDee Jonrowe, Pam Flowers and Ivedi have made our list of Heroines. All of these creatures have done miraculous things in the face of adversity and extremely challenging situations. We have some idols too – Jeff King, Rick Swenson and Lance Mackey.
A few days before Iditarod began in 2005, Martin Buser cut part of a finger off in a saw while doing some fancy woodwork project. Unless you’ve had an injury like that, you can’t imagine the pain. Everyone thought Martin would withdraw from the race to let his finger heal but no. Martin said, yes I’m in a lot of PAIN but my dogs have trained hard and they deserve to run this race. It won’t be easy but I’ll endure the pain and do what is necessary to get this team to Nome. I still have one good hand, I’ll figure out how to manage the pain; bootie, feed and care for my dogs; drive the sled; and take care of myself. They ran the race and amazingly finished in 13th place.
Bruce Linton, an Iditarod veteran of three races, is a Type 1 diabetic who needs to inject insulin daily. As a diabetic, Bruce focuses on living life in a healthy way. From experience he knows that exercise is important in keeping his blood sugar in a healthy range. His impressive list of athletic accomplishments includes 12 marathons including 3 Boston finishes, 3 Ironman Triathlons and 3 Iditarods. Bruce is convinced that diabetics can achieve anything as long as they take care of themselves, live a healthy lifestyle and have a positive attitude. Bruce models this belief in his lifestyle and has renamed his kennel – No Limits Dog Sled Kennel. He’s improved his place every year that he’s run Iditarod – 55th to 46th to 28th. Do you suppose he can finish in the top 20 in Iditarod 2010?
You all know about Balto – he was the lead dog of the relay team that delivered the much needed diphtheria anti-toxin to Nome. The weather conditions were horrible between Bluff and Nome but Gunnar Kaasen and the relentless dogs led by Balto covered the final 53 miles delivering the serum to the waiting Dr. Welsh. We read in The Cruelest Miles that after the brave driver handed the serum over to Dr. Welch, he stumbled up to Balto where he collapsed praising his brilliant unstoppable leader.
You and your classmates might consider these questions and activities. What is the difference between a hero, heroine and an idol? Create a list of criteria for each category. Create your own list of heroes, heroines and idols. After you’ve made your list, look for common characteristics they all share. Does it match your list of criteria? Create a list of synonyms for each of the categories – hero, heroine and idle.
To read the biographies of our heroes Martin Buser and Bruce Linton, just go to www.iditarod.com and click on 2010 Iditarod and then choose Musher Listing. Visit www.buserdog.com and www.nolimitssleddogkennel.com to learn more about Martin and Bruce and their preparations for Iditarod 2010. You can learn more about Balto from two of our favorite books – The Cruelest Miles by Salisbury and Gold Rush Dogs by Murphy & Haigh.
Stay tuned for more stories about our heroes, heroines and idles. Remember, in everything do your best and as Bruce Linton would say, there are no limits!
Born to Run,
Sanka