Ice Island (16 page)

Jr. Iditarod Sled Dog Race:
This race began in 1978 to permit male and female mushers age fourteen to seventeen to complete in a shorter version of the Last Great Race on Earth. The junior route is approximately 160 miles and takes two days.

kass’aq
: A Yupik word meaning “white man.”

kuspuk:
A traditional long-sleeved overshirt worn by Eskimo men and women. A summer kuspuk is lightweight, typically made of cotton. Winter kuspuks are made of heavier material and may be lined with fur.

lead dog(s):
A single dog or pair of dogs that runs in the front position. Lead dogs must be both smart and fast.

mandatory gear:
Certain items that, according to race rules, mushers must carry in their sled or on their person to ensure good care and safety for themselves and their dogs.

mukluk:
A soft, high-top boot made from leather, reindeer skin, or sealskin, and worn by Eskimos.

“Mush!”:
This command comes from the French word
marcher
, which means “to walk” or “to march.” It’s rarely used today.

musher:
A person who stands on the back of a sled and drives a team of dogs.

neckline:
A short line that connects a dog’s collar to the gangline.

nenglu
: The Yupik word for “igloo.”

qamiiyek
: The Yupik word for “sled.”

quyana
: The Yupik word for “thank you.”

quyanaghhalek tagliusi
: The Yupik phrase for “welcome, thank you for coming.”

Red Lantern Award:
A red lantern is awarded to the last musher to finish the 1,049-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The longest time for a Red Lantern Award recipient was thirty-two days, fifteen hours, nine minutes, and one second, recorded by John Schultz in 1973.

rookie:
A musher participating in a race for the first time.

runners:
Two long bottom pieces on a sled that come into contact with the snow. Mushers stand on the portion of the runners that extends behind the sled basket.

serum run:
In 1925 untold numbers of Eskimo children in Nome were exposed to diphtheria, a highly infectious disease. A hospital in Anchorage had the only serum in the
territory. The serum was put on a train to a native village called Nenana. From there, twenty mushers and their teams of huskies transported the serum 674 miles in a relay. It took approximately five and a half days. The lifesaving serum arrived frozen but still usable.

Siberian Yupik:
Indigenous people who live on St. Lawrence Island in Alaska. They also reside on the coast of the Chukchi Peninsula, in the far northeast portion of Russia.

sled bag:
A cloth sack that fits into the sled basket and holds the load.

snow hook:
A heavy piece of metal with two U-shaped prongs attached to the snub line. Hooked around a tree or stuck into ice, it’s used to anchor the team for a short time.

snub line:
A rope attached to the sled to secure it to a stationary object, such as a tree.

swing dog(s):
A single dog or pair of dogs hooked directly behind the lead dog(s). They help “swing” the sled around curves.

tugline:
A line that joins the back part of the dog’s harness to the gangline. It’s also called the backline.

ulu:
An all-purpose knife with a wide, flat blade. An ulu knife has many uses, including skinning animals, cutting patterns from skins, and shaving blocks of ice to build an
igloo. Today, a steel blade is common and handles are typically antler or carved wood.

wheel dog(s):
A single dog or pair of dogs directly in front of the sled. These dogs are trained to pull the sled around corners and trees.

“Whoa!”:
A call for the team to stop. It’s often used with pressure on the drag brake.

Sherry Shahan is the author of more than thirty books, including the Alaska-based adventures
Frozen Stiff
and
Death Mountain
. Her young adult novel
Purple Daze
was written using journal entries, interconnected free verse, and traditional poems.

When she’s not snorkeling with penguins in the Galápagos or riding horseback with a herd of zebras in Africa, she can be found studying ballet or competing in West Coast Swing at a dance convention.

Sherry holds an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives in a laid-back beach town in California. Visit her on the Web at
SherryShahan.com
.