Mike Dillingham: Alaska Dogs and Iditarod Mushers: The Adventures of Balto, Back of the Pack, Honor Bound, Rivers

“Mister Mike,” Randy said, “Do you really think I can do the race?”

“Randy, it is not what I think, it is what you believe,” Mike said.

Silence. Lakota told me that all eyes were on Randy. I know what we wanted the answer to be. Even the pups were sitting watching Randy. Brownie and Ugly went over to Randy and nuzzled his hand, telling him what his answer needed to be,

“Well Randy, will you race my team in the race?”

“Yes, Mister Mike, I really want to do this,” was Randy’s answer.

The time from the bear strike to the start of the race flew by. Fin joined us and meshed right in as a member of our team. Randy took us out for short runs with Mike in the basket. Randy spent a lot of time with us, practicing our setup and break-camp routines. Randy could stop the team, check our paws, then feed and water us very quickly. This is very important when racing. The more time it takes you to get back on the trail, the longer it will take you to get to the finish line.

In addition, the faster Randy could get us fed, watered, and checked would give him more time to rest. You only have so much time available in the checkpoints. A good routine does wonders to make checkpoint time go smoothly.

When we were in the kennel practicing, Doc would be on the sidelines barking encouragement to us and passing on tips to the pups. We all knew that he wanted to go, but he never showed his disappointment that he could not race with us. That is Doc, the leader, always thinking of his teammates.

Christmas told me that Tundra was sad that Doc would not be racing with us. From what Christmas told me, Doc was a major influence in Tundra’s life. Doc was her hero. I told Christmas that it was great that Tundra had a hero and she could not have picked a better one.

What is that expression? Time flies when you are having fun. Yes, it sure does. While Mike did have a broken arm, he managed to do many things around the yard. One thing was to drive us to the race starting point.

Mike made a checklist of what to pack in the truck, and Randy got it all loaded, except for us.

“Okay Mister Mike, the truck is loaded,” Randy said. “I am going to start putting the dogs into their dog boxes.”

Mike answered, “Let me help you.” Mike called us and we all walked to the truck. I walked with Lakota, who guided me. As we walked, I heard footsteps lagging behind us and Lakota told me that Doc was following us and he had his harness in his mouth.

“Mister Mike, look, it is Doc walking with the team to the truck. He has his harness with him,” Randy said.

I heard Mike laugh as he walked over to where I knew Doc was. The team stopped. Lakota told me that Mike knelt next to Doc and rubbed his ears as Doc dropped his harness by Mike’s feet. Doc sat as Mike talked to him.

“Doc,” Mike said, “Doctor Jim said he did not want you to run for a while. You know, to make sure you are okay, after the bear fell on you.”

Lakota told me that Doc looked at Mike. Doc licked Mike’s hand that belonged to the arm in the white thing. Doc then got up, picked up his harness, walked around Mike, and got in front of the team. Lakota told me that Doc was now the lead dog in our march to the truck. He looked back at the team and barked, “Lets go team, and look sharp. We are racing for Randy and we are committed to giving him our best in this race. Let’s go to the truck.”

After Doc finished talking to us, he turned and walked to the truck, right to the dog box that had his name on it. We all fell in step and followed.

“Yippee!” It was Tundra. “Uncle Doc is racing with us.”

“Maybe not,” Sky said. “Mike has not agreed to that yet.”

Tundra said, “Well not yet but he will.” Lakota told me that Tundra walked back to where Mike was kneeling and started to bark at him.

As Tundra barked, Mike laughed. Randy started to laugh also. Lakota told me that it was very funny watching Tundra dance around Mike barking at him. She used different tones in her barking. One tone was pleading, and another tone was debating. She was very good at this.

Soon, Lakota told me that Mike got up, gave Tundra an ear rub, and told her to get back in the line. I heard Mike walk past me to where I knew Doc was. Lakota told me that Doc was sitting very patiently by the truck.

Lakota told me that Mike opened the door and Doc jumped up. Mike helped him into the box. Randy was there also.

“Okay Doc, you can race with the team. However, I am telling you in front of Randy and the team that if you show any signs of soreness or favoring those hips, Randy will yank you out of the line and you will ride in the basket. You understand, Doc? We do not want you to be crippled. You have nothing to prove here. You are a true champion, so do not take chances that will endanger your running with your teammates again. That, my friend, would not be fair to your buddies.”

Doc barked once, agreeing to what Mike said.

“Randy, it looks like you have an 11 dog team for this race. Doc will run solo lead with Christmas and Brownie in the swing position. That will give you three lead dogs up front. Next, run Stormy and Sky then Tundra with Ugly. Nitro and Fin will run together, so that leaves Rivers and Lakota in the wheel.”

Mike kept talking as Randy worked to put us in our dog boxes. “That setup will make sure that there is very little pressure on Doc to pull. Keep in mind that he is stubborn and proud. He probably will not give you any clear sign that he hurts. Use your instincts and watch the other dogs. Both will give you a good indication if you need to pull Doc. If you do, bring him home in the basket. Do not drop him at the checkpoint. You have plenty of power to give him a free ride for the entire race. If he wants to run this one so much, then he deserves to finish it.”

“Speaking of power,” Mike said, I have never told you my magic word. If you yell the magic word at this team, they will give you a blinding burst of speed and power that you might need to get out of a jam. Use it only in an emergency. The magic word is ‘Banshee.’ For some unknown reason that word that just cranks them up. However, it does drain them so use it only in an emergency. Understand, Randy?”

“Yes Mister Mike, and thanks for letting Doc run the race with us. I was hoping he would be able to.”

“Well, Randy, you need to thank Tundra. She convinced me, when she started to bark on Doc’s behalf. That surprised me.”

“Momma, did I do something wrong when I barked at Mike to let Doc race with us?” Tundra asked her mother, Christmas.

“No honey, you did a very good thing. I am proud of you,” Christmas said.

“And so am I, Tunny. Thank you,” Doc said.

“By the way, Mister Mike, what is a Banshee?” Randy asked.

“I think it is an Irish witch,” Mike replied.

“Hmmm, maybe your dogs are Irish Alaskan Huskies.” Randy said as he started to laugh.

“Now you are a comic, Randy?” Mike said as he laughed.

The talk stopped. The truck started. We were on our way.

It was a beautiful day for racing: great temperatures and fresh snow, which just made race day even more exciting. While my buddies and I had been through the excitement of starting before, Christmas and her pups had not. We let them jump and bark, but we did rein them in a bit, but still allowed them to enjoy these exciting moments of their first race. Running 60 miles on a trail is one thing. Racing 60 miles is another, and you need every bit of your resources to get the job done. Yes, it is a job, but one that we all love.

Randy put our harnesses on us. Lakota told me that we had changed team colors from Mike’s green and gold to Randy’s red and blue. Mike had also given Randy a new, smaller sled made by Mark at the Grateful Sled. While the new sled was as long as Mike’s, the driving bow was shorter to accommodate Randy, who is a lot shorter than Mike. We had practiced with this sled and I can tell you it was fast and light. The shorter driving bow fit Randy perfectly and he could drive this sled very easily. Lakota told me that there was a new red and blue sled bag with Randy’s name stitched in it.