We met with Mellon Shea and her dogs at her Dog Kennel where she has 15 dogs. She was in the Iditarod in 1992. We asked her some questions about the Iditarod. Here is our interview and pictures of us with Mellon and her dogs.
Q: What year did you mush?
A: 1992
Q: Did you get any bad dog food at any of the checkpoints?
A: No, I was in the Iditarod on the coldest year that they raced the Iditarod.
Q: Do you think that the El' Nino will effect the race this year?
A: Yes, I do, but it will be good for the dogs.
Q: Who were your sponsors?
A: I have lots of sponsors, teachers, friends, Raes Harness Shop, Dr. Hinckley, Co-Shot Kennel, and K-9 Castle.
Q: How do you get your food to the checkpoints?
A: By air and by ship.
Q:Where do you sleep during the race?
A: It depends on where you are and the weather conditions.
Q: How many dogs did you run?
A: I ran 18.
Q: How many dogs did you send back to Anchorage?
A: Four
Q: What place did you get?
A: 55th
Q: How many years have you run?
A: I have run one year.
Q: What race did you enter to qualify for the Iditarod?
A: I did the Knik 200. I placed 20th out of 36.
Q: How much did you train your dogs for the harsh weather?
A: I trained as much as I could. Anchorage doesn't have harsh enough weather to train properly.
Q: Why did you want to run the Iditarod?
A: I wanted to run the Iditarod because I knew people who had run the race.
Q: Would you do it again?
A: Probably not.
Q: Did you ever get frostbit?
A: No, but I was frost nipped.
Q: Did you ever have any trouble?
A: Yes, I put too much stuff in my sled and when I was going through White Mountain to Safety a wind tunnel started to pick up and it was so bad I had to sleep in my sled for 18 hours.
Q: Did you ever get hurt?
A: Yes, once I was holding on the my sled so hard that I kind of got Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Q: How many racers were mushing when you ran?
A: There were 77 or 78 racers.
Q: What was your lead dog's name?
A: I had four. Wilber and Adikis went together, and Butch and Friend went together.
