Alumni Notebook: An Unforgettable Experience at the Iditarod

A diphtheria epidemic in Nome, Alaska, endangered the lives of countless children in January of 1925. The only hope was to get antitoxin to them from Anchorage. A carefully insulated parcel of serum was sent to Nenana by rail and then carried on to Nome by a relay of 20 sled dog drivers and their teams.

 

The Iditarod Sled Dog Race, known as "The Last Great Race on Earth," was started in 1967 to commemorate that life-saving 1925 serum run. Teams travel along the historic Iditarod Trail 1,149 miles from Willow to Nome through 22 checkpoints.

 

Nearly 1,800 volunteers are involved with the race each year in every imaginable capacity, from office staff and security to veterinarians, pilots and residents of remote villages along the trail.

 

A charity auction offers the opportunity to be an IditaRider in the Ceremonial Start. In 2008 our daughter, Lynn Budzak, MD '90, won the privilege of riding with musher Allen Moore. She found the experience so inspirational, she again invited me to join her on the trip to Alaska this year. To expand our knowledge of the sport and the event, we enrolled in an Elderhostel on the Iditarod as well. This year I would be the IditaRider!

 

Kathe Budzak, MD '69, had a chance to experience the Iditarod as an IditaRider.

In considering which musher to bid on, we discovered that Robert Bundtzen, MD, an infectious disease specialist in Anchorage who had done his internal medicine residency and ID fellowship at UW, had entered the Iditarod. As luck would have it, I won the opportunity to ride in Bob's sled.

 

Bundtzen (PG '80) grew up in Anderson, Alaska, having moved there in 1960. Fifteen years ago, he was encouraged to start running sled dogs by another physician, Jim Lanier, MD, a retired pathologist who has competed in the Iditarod since 1979.

 

Robert has run and completed the Iditarod 12 times in addition to other long-distance dog sled races in Alaska and the Yukon Territory. An all-around outdoorsman, Robert also enjoys hiking, fishing and hunting in addition to mushing.

 

Lynn and I first met Robert at the IditaRider pizza lunch two days prior to the Ceremonial Start. Bob graciously invited us to visit his dog yard the following day in the beautiful foothills just outside of Anchorage. What a treat it was to meet and pet some of the handsome, enthusiastic 20-plus dogs in his yard!

 

So, following in Lynn's footsteps, I was an IditaRider in the 11-mile Ceremonial Start from downtown Anchorage through the city streets and park trails to Campbell Air Strip. It was the thrill of a lifetime on the day prior to the "Restart," the actual beginning, of the 2009 Iditarod in Willow.

 

On that morning of the ceremonial ride, Anchorage was alive with activity. Snow had been trucked in overnight to cover Fourth Avenue along the route. Dog trucks lined the side streets as mushers snacked their dogs, then harnessed, bootied and lined them up for the start of the ceremonial race.

 

The excitement in the air was palpable along with the cacophony of eager barking dogs. Each dog had a team of handlers to walk it to the start and to hold it back, as they all are so eager to run. Lynn was excited to be a dog handler-after being a sponsor for several years-for Aliy Zirkle and Allen Moore of Skunk's Place Kennel in Two Rivers, Alaska (to learn more, go to www.aliyzirkle.com).

 

The IditaRide was indeed an unforgettable experience. Snuggled into the sled, sitting on a comfy foam cushion, I was transported into another world. The beauty of the fir trees, blue sky and snow-covered mountains in the distance was exhilarating.

 

Both Lynn and I were amazed at how peaceful and quiet it was in the sled behind a team of 12 dogs. As Bob and I rode along, we reminisced about med school faculty members at UW that we both remembered. In less than an hour, the ride was over but the memories will last forever.

 

The following day, Bob was the 51st of 67 mushers to leave the starting line in Willow. One of 52 to complete the race, he arrived safely in Nome 12 days, 13 hours, 24 minutes and 30 seconds later, with 13 of his 16 starting dogs. What an experience!

 

The majority of the dogs are Alaskan huskies, a mixed breed bred for endurance, attitude, desire to run and the ability to eat on the trail. During the actual race, mushers begin with 16 dogs but a dog can be "dropped" at any checkpoint if the musher has concerns about a dog's weight, enthusiasm, possible injury or illness.

 

Dropped dogs are safely conveyed to Anchorage or Nome by a volunteer air force, where they are cared for by additional volunteers until a member of the musher's kennel can retrieve them. At each checkpoint, veterinarians examine the dogs, as each animal's welfare is the musher's prime concern.

 

The Iditarod mushers must take care of supplies for themselves and their team as they journey through the rugged terrain of two mountain ranges, the frozen Yukon River and the brutal windswept coast of the Bering Sea. Storms can be treacherous and blinding, forcing mushers to break their own trail. Many mushers run at night, guided only by their dogs and a headlamp. On the trail for 10 to 17 days, the dogs and mushers are the ultimate endurance athletes.

 

It was the love of dogs that sparked Lynn's interest in sled dogs a few years ago. Fellow resident in the UW Eau Claire Family Medicine Residency, Ron Cortte, MD (PG '95), had run the Iditarod. While he was a physician's assistant in Bethel, Alaska, Ron ran and finished the race in '80, '82, and '84 prior to medical school and again in 2006 while practicing in Tomahawk, Wisconsin.

 

To follow the 2010 race online, go to www.iditarod.com.

Date Published: 09/28/2009