“Quick. What’s the mileage between Cripple and Ruby?” AJ asked as soon as he realized Rebecca was on the brink of waking up. June being what it is in Alaska, the room was not dark. It might have looked like noon, but it was not yet four a.m.
“Huh?”
“Do you know the mileage between Cripple and Ruby off the top of your head? I can’t remember.”
“Why didn’t you go look at the map?” Turning her head on her pillow, she wasn’t looking at her husband, as she expected. Tenzing, her first sled dog, his head also on her pillow, touched his wet nose to hers. “Morning, bud.”
This map, the map of the Iditarod trail has hung in the house year round for quite some time. It is stared at, examined and studied by musher and musher’s best-damn-handling wife together and separate on a regular basis. “I didn’t want to wake you by getting out of bed.”
“Grrr.”
***
This early morning exchange, common between us increased as the 25th of June approached, the first day to sign up for the 2012 Iditarod.
Snowhook Kennel was a last day entrant for the 2011 race, screeching to the deadline with paperwork and scraped together entrance fee in hand just hours before the entrance window closed. This year is different, a night and day difference. This year, Snowhook entered the race on the first day possible. This year, lifting the stress and worry of last year, Snowhook’s entrance fee was made possible by a new fan and friend of the Kennel who wishes to remain anonymous.
As Snowhook looks toward March we are ever aware of the steps between now and our thousand mile journey.
***
Thank you to all those who support and cheer for the Kennel, who have made this race and previous races possible, and a special thank you to the individual who knows what it is to dream and made our 2012 entrance fee a reality. Our dog dish runneth over…
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