The dog team of 18 year old Melissa Owens naturally picked up speed as they crested the Kaltag portage looking down into Unalakleet. “The lights looked like Nome and I think they knew were getting closer,” she said. The Bering Sea coast should look familiar to Owen's team. She lives and trains in Nome within earshot of the Iditarod finish line. Perhaps this familiarity will help spur her team to the finish line quickly enough to earn her rookie of the year honors.
Owens turned 18 just 3 weeks ago making her the youngest female to ever to compete in the Iditarod - a race that requires its human competitors to be at least 18 years old. She has literally been involved in dogsledding her entire life. Her father first raced the Iditarod in 1987 and he brought the infant Melissa up to the stage with him when he drew his number. Melissa and her brother Michael raise and train their own dogs including some that can trace their lineage to her fathers teams in the '87 and '90 Iditarods.
Owens left the Shaktoolik checkpoint with 200 miles till her hometown finish line as the highest placed rookie in 24th place overall. She gained that spot during a run of more then 100 miles from Nulato to Unalakleet. Perhaps sensing the home stretch her dogs picked up speed the whole way so she decided to just keep going through Kaltag, then past Tripod Flats, and Old Woman Cabin on into Unalakleet. Her closest competitor for Rookie of the Year honors is 48 year old William Kleedehn who left Shaktoolik more then 3 and 1/2 hours after Owens.
Funding for Owens journey to the famous burled arches of her home town was made easier when she became the recipient of the 2008 Seppala Heritage Grant. The grant founded by the Seppala Family comes with a $10,000 donation and a four-year commitment of $10,000 per year per recipient. Earlier this year, Owens picked up the Humanitarian Award at the Kuskokwim 300 race. The Humanitarian Award, which is chosen by the veterinary staff and presented to the musher who, in their opinion, takes the most outstanding care of their dog team based on their level of experience.
Owens is the only musher in this year's race that lives and trains in Nome. Understandably, she greatly anticipates crossing under the finish line in front of her friends and family. “I’m curious to see how the crowd in Nome reacts to me coming in versus the winner, being the hometown musher—and a young one at that,” she said.
Owens turned 18 just 3 weeks ago making her the youngest female to ever to compete in the Iditarod - a race that requires its human competitors to be at least 18 years old. She has literally been involved in dogsledding her entire life. Her father first raced the Iditarod in 1987 and he brought the infant Melissa up to the stage with him when he drew his number. Melissa and her brother Michael raise and train their own dogs including some that can trace their lineage to her fathers teams in the '87 and '90 Iditarods.Owens left the Shaktoolik checkpoint with 200 miles till her hometown finish line as the highest placed rookie in 24th place overall. She gained that spot during a run of more then 100 miles from Nulato to Unalakleet. Perhaps sensing the home stretch her dogs picked up speed the whole way so she decided to just keep going through Kaltag, then past Tripod Flats, and Old Woman Cabin on into Unalakleet. Her closest competitor for Rookie of the Year honors is 48 year old William Kleedehn who left Shaktoolik more then 3 and 1/2 hours after Owens.
Funding for Owens journey to the famous burled arches of her home town was made easier when she became the recipient of the 2008 Seppala Heritage Grant. The grant founded by the Seppala Family comes with a $10,000 donation and a four-year commitment of $10,000 per year per recipient. Earlier this year, Owens picked up the Humanitarian Award at the Kuskokwim 300 race. The Humanitarian Award, which is chosen by the veterinary staff and presented to the musher who, in their opinion, takes the most outstanding care of their dog team based on their level of experience.
Owens is the only musher in this year's race that lives and trains in Nome. Understandably, she greatly anticipates crossing under the finish line in front of her friends and family. “I’m curious to see how the crowd in Nome reacts to me coming in versus the winner, being the hometown musher—and a young one at that,” she said.
No comments:
Post a Comment