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TGIF: One Last Day of Deceptive Calm

The Friday before the ceremonial start

by June Price

03/02/2006

The Friday before the ceremonial start is a deceptively calm day. The musher banquet is over and most have largely disappeared from public view. Race volunteers and officials are frequently huddled behind closed doors dealing with last minute details, while fans are left to fill their hours with shopping or socializing with new and old friends.

Don’t let the air of calm fool you, though. There’s nothing sedate about this day. As noted, a host of last minute details are being attended to out of public view, while upstairs, many gather to listen to the likes of Gary Paulsen and Mitch Seavey, as well as the Iditarod’s chief vet, Stu Nelson. These presentations are part of the Winter Conference for teachers, but tickets were made available to the public.

Paulsen spoke last year after being forced to withdraw, so his presence today, with the start of his first Iditarod in twenty years looming in less than 24 hours, was a real perk for attendees. For those like me, whose introduction to the race came through his book “Woodsong,” his presence brings us full circle. Six years ago, had someone asked me if I ever expected to meet Gary Paulsen, I would have laughed. No way. He’s a writer. He’s famous. He must be untouchable and, most likely, snooty.

The real Gary Paulsen, however, is anything but snooty. If you’re expecting to find an entourage surrounding him, think again. He’s down to earth, not at all pretentious, and apologizes to me periodically with a smile for “ruining my life” by sparking my interest in the race. He also has decided that my name should be Sue for reasons known only to Gary, so I drew a laugh from him introducing myself to someone at his banquet table last night as “Sue.”

He can also be brutally honest, however, especially when it comes to looking at his own life, something those attending his presentation quickly discover. I wrote up his presentation last year, so will direct to that link rather than recap this year’s talk, but despite differences, it’s safe to say no one walked away from his presentation without some food for thought about celebrity and overcoming obstacles.

Mitch Seavey is a different kind of speaker. Mitch tends to be quiet, almost shy appearing, but provided food for thought, too. As an Iditarod Champion, you can rest assured that audience members were listening carefully, hoping he might forget and drop some race strategy. Even those of us who have no real clue what we’re talking about when it comes to competitive strategy like to think we have an inside angle, so this was fun.

Of course, that didn’t happen, but it was an interesting, insightful presentation nevertheless. The Seavey Family has long been involved with the Historic Iditarod Trail development, a natural tie-in for educators. In addition, although if it was mentioned at either of the presentations, I didn’t catch it, there’s an intriguing link this year between Paulsen and Seavey. Gary, an avid reader and historical buff, now owns what was largely the Seavey “B-Team” last year, the one driven to Nome in 2005 by Tyrell Seavey.

Outside the doors of the conference room, of course, life goes on. Volunteers scurry around. Fans are shopping at the merchandise tables. Officials meet. Children’s questions pour into the Zuma email room. Mushers still around take the opportunity for one last relaxing moment in the lounge, smiling for photos and signing autographs, knowing human contact will be limited after this weekend. The dogs of the Iditarod are about to take the stage.