IditaProject Forum

I am honored to welcome 2004 Iditarod Champion and 2008 All Alaska Sweepstakes Champion Mitch Seavey (with the assistance of son, Danny, himself a 2-time Iditarod finisher) to our forum. They will be with us from Wednesday, Dec. 10th thru Tuesday, Dec. 16th.

Mitch competed in his first Iditarod in 1982 and in every race since 1995. He won the 2004 Iditarod in 9 days, 12 hours, 20 minutes, and 22 seconds. On March 28, 2008 Mitch won the All Alaska Sweepstakes in 61 hours, 29 minutes, 45 seconds, shattering the 1910 record.

Learn more about Mitch and his family (most are avid mushers) at http://www.ididaride.com/index.php and be sure to check out the shop on their website.

Welcome Mitch & Danny!

2004 IDITAROD CHAMPION, MITCH SEAVEY
WITH GOLDEN HARNESS LEADERS, ZEBRA & TREAD
Photo by Peggy Fagerstrom



MITCH AT ITC PICNIC Photo by June Price

MITCH & HIS LEAD DOG, EAGLE Photo by Danny Seavey



MITCH WINS THE ALL ALASKA SWEEPSTAKES Photo by Jan DeNapoli



MITCH AT THE 2008 IDITAROD CEREMONIAL START (Video) Courtesy of J.J. Keller & Assoc.


All photos used with permission

Hello Mitch, and welcome to our home on the web.

You've been racing for many years - how do you keep up the motivation?
(I hope you're not planning to retire anytime soon.)

When will you win the Quest?

You were born in Minnesota - do you perhaps have any Norwegian relatives?

Thanks for your time and all the best to you and your team this coming season.

S. Olsen/Norway

Welcome Mitch, it is great to have another Iditarod Champion on our forum! Congrats also on your awesome record breaking win in the Sweepstakes!

I've read that your Dad was involved in the Iditarod from the beginning and you helped train his dogs so I'm curious how the training differed back then?
The trail wasn't groomed was it?
Did the dogs have less miles on them prerace than they do now?
Was it more of a camping trip than a race?

Can you tell us a little about your Sweepstakes Race, what do you feel worked to your advantage?

I was pretty excited to see on your website that you've written a book, when can we expect to see that available?

Thanks so much for your reply!

Hi all, this is Danny. My dad is currently in Glennallen training on Lake Loise. It rained here in Sterling over the weekend, so he had to load up the team and find better training conditions. I just got off the phone with him, they (he and his handler Jake) finished a 80 mile run this morning. They're training a total of 26 dogs, and every dog finished the run doing well. They get to rest today, then tonight they're going on a 120 mile trip. We're training the dogs just like it was a race.

This is hands down the best team we've ever trained, last year's stars Payton and Ditka are still going strong, and we had two puppy teams graduate to the A team, so he's loaded with talent. Just like sports team, you have your up years and your down years.

In response to your questions - and this is my dad talking and me typing...

You've been racing for many years - how do you keep up the motivation?
"Since I was a kid, this (running dogs) has been my lifesyle, and I really love it. I can't think of anything else I'd want to do."

When will you win the Quest?
"I've never had any interest in the Quest. Now that they've changed the start date, I may consider running it, but winning it would be another matter..."

You were born in Minnesota - do you perhaps have any Norwegian relatives?
"My grandparents came straight from Sweden, so we came from the other side of the tracks from where the Squareheads live "

Hi Mitch! Hey, thanks for coming all the way to New Hampshire in October and giving the Northeastern sled doggers a chance to meet you. We spoke briefly just before your first presentation. When I introduced myself as just a recreationalist, you said something to the effect that, well, aren't we all in it for the recreation!

Danny, thanks for popping in here, too. I enjoy your posts over on SDC and usually learn something, big or small. And the photo of your dad and Eagle is absolutely lovely. Is photography a hobby or avocation?

So, a couple of questions: Your large kennel, your "off-season" business, fielding and conditioning multiple teams, and the racing must make for some very long days, weeks, months, seasons. Are there ever days when it's Just A Job, just your workaday rut?

Dallas and his new wife have both signed up for the Iditarod. What's the trail plan? Is this sort of a honeymoon , an introduction of young dogs to the trail, or do one or both of them expect to make it a race?

Here's the big question, Mitch: Did you do something special, something extravagant, something you might not ordinarily have done, with your Sweeps winnings?

Thanks Di:)

I've read that your Dad was involved in the Iditarod from the beginning and you helped train his dogs so I'm curious how the training differed back then? Did the dogs have less miles on them prerace than they do now?
"we didn't know how to train back then. we didn't build up gradually like we do now. we'd do monster runs; go 10 miles, then 20, then 90. we thought we were supposed to go slow.
my dad worked full time as a teacher. so we could only run on the weekends and evenings, and there aren't good trails near Seward, so it was difficult to have a real training regime. "

The trail wasn't groomed was it?
"the Iditarod Trail didn't have near the traffic then it does now, no Iron Dog, and as the few trailbreakers there were often got stuck. they didn't use booties either until the second Iditarod. My dad only used one bootie on the entire first race."

Was it more of a camping trip than a race?
"the first race no one knew how to race. no one even knew if it was possible to make it, much less race. remember even the serum run was a relay, very few people had ever mushed a single team that far. they didn't have headlamps or cookers either, which mandated stopping most nights. cooking required a wood fire, and many hours to make water.""the feeding is another huge difference. we didn't have high performance dog foods. we fed $3.95 a bag food, with halibut heads and beef. the native guys were the only mushers who really knew how to feed."

Can you tell us a little about your Sweepstakes Race, what do you feel worked to your advantage?
"the athleticism of our dogs is second to none. we moved very fast, which is the main thing that contributed to our success. our speed enabled us to add a whole extra four hour break over Jeff and Lance. basically we outrested the other teams. it turned out to be the right schedule on that particular race. Also, we were very well organized, which helped us get a few minutes here and there."

I was pretty excited to see on your website that you've written a book, when can we expect to see that available?
"we should have the proof back from the publisher by Friday, and the book ready to go by Iditarod."

Mitch,

It's an honor to have you on our forum. Congratulations on your win in the All Alaska Sweepstakes. I was one of those crazy fans who stayed up to see who won that close race, and I ended up calling Breakers Bar at 3:00 a.m. (my time) to ask who won.

You are known as a mushing family, and I am so impressed with the way you all work together and support each other. What role does Janine play in your racing career (both you and your boys)? I read on your website that you homeschool, correct? Why did you decide to homeschool, and how has this impacted your mushing career and family life? (I homeschool my kids too, BTW.)

thanks moose, but i have a grey and black camera, and if i turn the dial to the green box and push the silver button, it takes pictures. that's the extent of my photography.

Are there ever days when it's Just A Job, just your workaday rut?
"I have a lot of good help. It's not like I have to do tours all summer. During the actual training season, it takes a lot of discipline to do go out and do everything that has to be done. But my sons always ask me 'what do you think jeff and lance would do.'
Most jobs have a beginning and an end, but developing the worlds best dog team is never finished. It's always exciting to push the limits and see what these dogs can do."

Dallas and his new wife have both signed up for the Iditarod. What's the trail plan?
"Dallas bought everything from dog #17 down, and is starting his own competitive kennel. He has a lot of race experience, with two Iditarods, and some very competitive Kusko finishes. Our kennel is really deep right now, there isn't much difference between #5 and #25, and he has 3 of the dogs off the Sweepstakes team. I hope and fully expect that if I stumble, he'll run me over."
"Jen came to Alaska with the dream of running Iditarod, and she's been helping us for 3 years. This is her first racing season, so she'll be running the puppy team, just going to finish."

Did you do something special, something extravagant, something you might not ordinarily have done, with your Sweeps winnings?
"I put it in the bank. It's the first time we've ever had anything extra, always just enough to get by. We had a very good season last year, with wins at Kusko and Sweepstakes, and a good Iditarod. We were able to pay the bills and still have most of it left over. It's nice to have a cushion right now with the economy the way it is."

As a side note, he did give $10,000 to fund the '09 Seppala Heritage Grant at the finish line. But no new cars

Welcome Mitch and Danny! Glad to have you here. I have a couple of questions:

What is your favorite food on the trail? How about your Dogs'?

Danny: Are you going to ride the trail again on the Snow Mobile?

I want to thank you both so much for joining us here! We are a dedicated group of armchair mushers!

Eagle is a very striking looking dog! What bloodline is he from?

A couple of favorite questions:
What was your scariest moment on the trail?
Do you have a favorite checkpoint?

Thanks!
Candy Smith in Texas
aka flowerpower