Thursday, March 5, 2015

What people are saying about "Iditarod The First Ten years"

Unsolicited comments some from mushers and other folks who have been
involved with the race over the years stolen from the web page for the book:



"The book is beautiful and SO interesting! I opened the box "just to look at it" when I got home last night. Two hours later I
was still reading! Congratulations. I have it in my lap right now. Thank you!"
Judy

"Alaskan writers and artists with special knowledge of the first decade of the heroic Iditarod race, which pits man and dog against Alaska's vast and icy wilderness, have assembled here a lasting tribute to the dogs, the mushers, and the volunteers of this world-class event."
Dr. Jim Readon

“If you never had Iditarod addiction, you will after this.  Even growing up around the sport, race and people involved, I become giddy with excitement every time I get to tell people about it!”
Lance Mackey


“They say history is written by the victors, and Iditarod: The First 10 Years is no exception; however, this incredible collection of tales from the trail comes mostly from the volunteers and workers who were victorious in making The Last Great Race an enduring and important part of Alaskan life. The book is bursting at the seams with fond memories, hard work, gutsy survival stories, pranks, and 1049 miles worth of amazing Iditarod lore. An important decade of Alaskan history is captured on these pages, but more importantly the Old Iditarod Gang reveals the heart of what makes the Iditarod a uniquely Alaskan event: the people, the dogs, and our sense of adventure.” Don Rearden, author of the award winning Alaskan novel The Raven’s Gift

“The Old Gang has most certainly done it. What a herculean, well-executed endeavor. It will not surprise me if this huge compilation of individually unique experiences by the Iditarod’s first decade participants becomes a stand-alone Northland classic.” Dan Seavey

We are excited to share Joe May's story Edgar as part of the, Iditarod: The First Ten Years', review in the March/April issue of “Last Frontier Magazine Alaska”....Wendy Wesser


I just got my copy – really really really good – thank you to those who took this on – it is awesome....Greg Heister

I received the big book yesterday. It is Awesome! Will be busy for quite some time.
The Old Iditarod Gang rocks. Thank you so much....Inge Van Kasteren

I love this book. I have learned so much about the Iditarod I didn't already know! 
It really is a beautiful addition to my collection of Iditarod books!...Christine Carroll

So awesome...The book is beyond words...FABULOUS!!! I love looking at the old pictures and reading about the hearty people that made this our Alaskan history! GREAT job putting this book together...NO SMALL FEAT!:)...Debbie Lynn Filter

I am in awe of the book – the organization, the sheer mass of information, the credits to virtually everyone involved in those early years, the drawings and photographs, and the incredible amount of work it must have taken to put it all together leave me breathless.
This book will be a resource for generations to come. Thank you to everyone who gave so much of themselves to create this book for the rest of us....Gail Somerville

Oh my Gosh. I cannot put this book down. It is so full of photos from past years and wonderful stories. I'm sure no sleep for me tonight. It's huge—what 7 Lbs? 
Beautiful high gloss paper...beautiful, beautiful coffee table book :-) Great job everyone...
Sue Hafner

I am loving, totally loving the "First Ten Years" book!  The organization of information, and the sheer volume of information (about anything I can think of) is beyond impressive.  The book is a masterpiece.  I am bowled over by the beauty of it and the time and work it must have taken.  You have given a true gift to current Iditarod fans and to generations to come.  Thank you, thank you!! 
Many smiles, 
Gail Sommerville

Well, we received our long awaited book yesterday and Dennis and I spent the rest of the day and the evening devouring it.  What a wonderful and complete anthology of the first ten years of Iditarod history!  Dennis was honored to be mentioned in Brugman's Wien Air "Dogs Fly Free" chapter and Raine, he was really touched on the section paying tribute to Ace. Bravo to the entire Old Iditarod Gang for their labors to produce such an important and cherished historical collection of the truly Last Great Race.  Gail - wouldn't it be awesome to have something produced in a similar vein and format for the early years of flying in Alaska

Thanks for bringing this worthy project to fruition. With much admiration, Maggie & Dennis Gladwin
p.s. The book was originally purchased for my father, a history buff who has always been intrigued with the Iditarod "story".  However, Dennis is not letting it out of his sight, so guess we will just have to purchase another for Dad!

What can I say? Words cannot express Maybe I should just say it like I really feel---IT'S THE BEST DAGGONE DEAL TO COME DOWN THE PIKE IN MY LIFETIME. What you guys have done is beyond words. That I was even a part is a wonder. I now have a problem, we got each of the kids a copy so who do we will it to?? This book will surely be like the family bible and pass from one generation to the next. Cathy and I send our love to all, Dick Mackey

ABSOLUTELY BLOWN AWAY BY THIS BOOK. ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT I HAD PERCEIVED. THANKS TO YOU      
AND ALL INVOLVED FOR YOUR YEARS OF WORK,IMAGINATION,AND THE LOVE THAT WENT INTO THIS PROJECT.      

EVERY ASPECT, EVERY DETAIL, WOW !!    JON VAN ZYLE MY GOD WHAT AN ARTIST.      
ALASKA, SUCH A PERSONAL PLACE TO SO MANY.  AND THE IDITAROD ....''THE CALL OF THE WILD''. ALIVE ON THE        
PAGES OF THIS BOOK FOR GENERATIONS TO ENJOY FOREVER. 
                                                                                                      MY LOVE AND THANKS, Bill Philbin

I DID get my book!  It is really nicely done.  I like it a bunch. 
You all did a super job on it.  My mother is ecstatic with hers.  Another friend and Ophir volunteer, Letta Stokes, is also very happy with her copy. 
It is much more than I expected.  So many great pictures. The quality of the paper and the way it is bound are very high end. 
Thanks so much for all the hard work, I know it will be appreciated by many. 
Cheers, 
Keith Forsgren


Unbelievable accomplishment!!! I had no idea what a grand undertaking this has been for you and your Iditarod colleagues!! 
However, knowing you I should have expected nothing less. 

I am looking forward to seeing you and  “The Old Iditarod Gang” in Anchorage in March! 

Unbelievable! 

Cheers, 

Peter Henning

Your book is simply fantastic.  It is one of the best I've ever seen on any  subject.  I am very impressed with your ability to tackle such a hugely  complicated subject and turn it into a perfectly facetted jewel.   Congratulations, you're the best!  Love,  David Brighton  


The book is truly stunning!!! I can't believe how beautiful it is. The design, the stories, etc. Really amazing.  Laurel Neme


I am slowing working my way through the book. I just want you to know, all your hard work has produced an excellent book. Makes me wish I had been there in the early days. (I did have one small chance in 1978-79 to come up and run a team, but I didn’t do it.) Anyway, this is sure pleasant reading. I would think some movie writer would eventually grab onto this and write a script. 
Congratulations to all of you for a great job. 
Donna  Quante

My work with the book was from a distance … I had little contact with other contributors during its long gestation. When the first copy arrived here. I opened it to the index and was trapped for a day reconnecting with old friends through the names and memories. In essence, I'n reading a 400 page book back to front and still a day away from the introduction … I can't wait to see how it begins. – Joe May







1 comment:

  1. Congratulations, Tim! Labors of love usually turn out well.

    ReplyDelete

Best headlines ever

Naked pair fed LSD gummy worm to dog

Owners of a Noah's Ark replica file a lawsuit over rain damage

In Southcentral Alaska earthquake, damage originated in the ground, engineers say

A headline that could only be written in Alaska: At state cross country, Glacier Bears and Grizzlies sweep, Lynx repeat, Wolverines make history — and a black bear crosses the trail

Man kills self before shooting wife and daughter

Alabama governor candidate caught in lesbian sperm donation scandal

Sister hits moose on way to visit sister who hit moose.

Man caught driving stolen car filled with radioactive uranium, rattlesnake, whiskey

Man loses his testicles after attempting to smoke weed through a SCUBA tank

Church Mutual Insurance won't cover Church's flood damage because it's 'an act of God'

Homicide victims rarely talk to police

Meerkat Expert Attacked Monkey Handler Over Love Affair with Llama Keeper

GOP congressman opposes gun control because gay marriage leads to bestiality

Owner of killer bear chokes to death on sex toy

Support for legalizing pot hits all-time high

Give me all your money or my penguin will explode

How zombie worms have sex in whale bones

Crocodile steals zoo worker's lawn mower

Woman shot by oven while trying to cook waffles

Nude beach blowjob jet ski fight leads to wife's death

Woman stabs husband with squirrel for not buying beer Christmas Eve

GOPer files complaint against Democrat for telling the truth about Big Lie social posts

Man shot dead on Syracuse Street for 2nd time in 2 days

Alaska woman punches bear in face, saves dog

Johnny Rotten suffers flea bite on his penis after rescuing squirrel

Memorable quotations

The best way to know you are having an adventure is when you wish you were home talking about it." — a mechanic on the Alaska State Ferry System. Or as in my own case planning how I will be writing it on this blog.

"You can't promote principled anti-corruption without pissing off corrupt people." — George Kent

"If only the British had held on to the airports, the whole thing might have gone differently for us." — Mick Jagger

"You can do anything as long as you don't scare the horses." — a mother's favorite saying recalled by a friend

A poem is an egg with a horse inside” — anonymous fourth grader

“My children will likely turn my picture to the wall but what the hell, you only get old once." — Joe May

“Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.” — Ernest Hemingway

When I write, I feel like an armless, legless man with a crayon in his mouth. Kurt Vonnegut

“If you wrote something for which someone sent you a cheque, if you cashed the cheque and it didn't bounce, and if you then paid the light bill with the money, I consider you talented.”Stephen King

The thing about ignorance is, you don't have to remain ignorant. — me again"

"It was like the aftermath of an orgasm with the wrong partner." – David Lagercrants “The Girl in the Spider’s Web.”

Why worry about dying, you aren't going to live to regret it.

Never debate with someone who gets ink by the barrel" — George Hayes, former Alaska Attorney General who died recently

My dear Mr. Frost: two roads never diverge in a yellow wood. Three roads meet there. — @Shakespeare on Twitter

Normal is how somebody else thinks you should act.

"The mark of a great shiphandler is never getting into situations that require great shiphandling," Adm. Ernest King, USN

Me: Does the restaurant have cute waitresses?

My friend Gail: All waitresses are cute when you're hungry.

I'm not a writer, but sometimes I push around words to see what happens. – Scott Berry

I realized today how many of my stories start out "years ago." What's next? Once upon a time?"

“The rivers of Alaska are strewn with the bones of men who made but one mistake” - Fred McGarry, a Nushagak Trapper

Many people hear voices when no one is there. Some of them are called mad and are shut up in rooms where they stared at walls all day. Others are called writers and they do pretty much the same thing. – Meg Chittenden

A non-writing writer is a monster courting insanity. – Franz Kafka

We are all immortal until the one day we are not. – me again

If the muse is late, start without her – Peter S. Beagle

Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very;’ your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be. ~Mark Twain Actually you could do the same thing with the word "really" as in "really cold."

If you are looking for an experience that will temper your vanity, this is it. There's no one to impress when you're alone on the trap line. – Michael Carey quoting his father's journal

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. – Benjamin Franklin

It’s nervous work. The state you need to write in is the state that others are paying large sums of money to get rid of. – Shirley Hazzard

So far as I can remember, there is not one word in the Gospels in praise of intelligence -- Bertrand Russell

You know that I always just wanted to have a small ship to take stuff from a place that had a lot of that stuff to a place that did not have a lot of that stuff and so prosper.—Jackie Faber, “The Wake of the Lorelei Lee”

If you attack the arguer instead of the argument, you lose both

If an insurance company won’t pay for damages caused by an “act of God,” shouldn’t it then have to prove the existence of God? – I said that

I used to think getting old was about vanity—but actually it’s about losing people you love. Getting wrinkles is trivial. – Eugene O’Neill

German General to Swiss General: “You have only 500,000 men in your army; what would you do if I invaded with 1 million men?”

Swiss General: “Well, I suppose every one of my soldiers would need to fire twice.”

Writing is the only thing that when I do it, I don’t feel I should be doing something else.—Gloria Steinem

Exceed your bandwidth—sign on the wall of the maintenance shop at the West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center

One thing I do know, if you keep at it, you usually wind up getting something done.—Patricia Monaghan

Do you want to know what kind of person makes the best reporter? I’ll tell you. A borderline sociopath. Someone smart, inquisitive, stubborn, disorganized, chaotic, and in a perpetual state of simmering rage at the failings of the world.—Brett Arends

It is a very simple mind that only knows how to spell a word one way.—Andrew Jackson

3:30 is too late or too early to do anything—Rene Descartes

Everything is okay when it’s 50-below as long as everything is okay. – an Alaskan in Tom Walker’s “The Seventymile Kid”

You can have your own opinion but you can’t have your own science.—commenter arguing on a story about polar bears and global warming

He looks at three ex wives as a good start—TV police drama

Talkeetna: A friendly little drinking town with a climbing problem.—a handmade bumper sticker

“You’re either into the wall or into the show”—Marco Andretti on giving it all to qualify last at the 2011 Indy 500

Makeup is not for the faint of heart—the makeup guerrilla

“I’m going to relax in a very adult manner.”—Danica Patrick after sweating it out and qualifying half an hour before Andretti

“Asking Congress to come back is like asking a mugger to come back because he forgot your wallet.”—a roundtable participant on Fox of all places

As Republicans go further back in the conception process to define when life actually begins, I am beginning to think the eventual definition will be life begins in the beer I was drinking when I met her.—me again

Hunting is a “critical element for the long-term conservation of wood bison.”—a state department of Fish and Game official explaining why the state would not go along with a federal plan to reintroduce wood bison in Alaska because the agreement did not specifically allow hunting

Each day do something that won’t compute – anon

I can’t belive I still have to protest this shit – a sign carriend by an elderly woman at an Occupy demonstration

Life should be a little nuts or else it’s just a bunch of Thursdays strung together—Kevin Costner as Beau Burroughs in “Rumor has it”

You’re just a wanker whipping up fear —Irish President Michael D. Higgins to a tea party radio announcer

Being president doesn’t change who you are; it reveals who you are—Michelle Obama

Sports malaprops

Commenting on an athlete with hearing impairment he said the player didn’t show any “uncomfortability.” “He's not doing things he can't do."

"… there's a fearlessment about him …"

"He's got to have the lead if he's going to win this race." "

"Kansas has always had the ability to score with the basketball."

"NFL to put computer chips in balls." Oh, that's gotta hurt.

"Now that you're in the finals you have to run the race that's going to get you on the podium."

"It's very important for both sides that they stay on their feet."

This is why you get to hate sportscasters. Kansas beats Texas for the first time since 1938. So the pundits open their segment with the question "let's talk about what went wrong." Wrong? Kansas WON a football game! That's what went RIGHT!

"I brought out the thermostat to show you how cold it is here." Points to a thermometer reading zero in Minneapolis.

"It's tough to win on the road when you turn the ball over." Oh, really? Like you can do all right if you turn the ball over playing at home?

Cliches so embedded in sportscasters' minds they can't help themselves: "Minnesota fell from the ranks of the undefeated today." What ranks? They were the only undefeated team left.

A good one: A 5'10" player went up and caught a pass off a defensive back over six feet tall. The quote? "He's got some hops."

Best homonym of the day so far: "It's all tied. Alabama 34, Kentucky 3." Oh, Tide.

"Steve Hooker commentates on his Olympic pole vault gold medal." When "comments" just won't do.

"He's certainly capable of the top ten, maybe even higher than that."

"Atlanta is capable of doing what they're doing."

"Biyombo, one of seven kids from the Republic of Congo." In the NBA? In America? In his whole country?

"You can't come out and be aggressive but you can't come out and be unaggressive."

"They're gonna be in every game they play!"

"First you have to get two strikes on the hitter before you get the strikeout."

"The game ended in the final seconds." You have to wonder when the others ended or are they still going on?

How is a team down by one touchdown before the half "totally demoralized?"

"If they score runs they will win."

"I think the matchup is what it is"

After a play a Houston defender was on his knees, his head on the ground and his hand underneath him appeared to clutch a very sensitive part of the male anatomy. He rolled onto his back and quickly removed his hand. (Remember the old Cosby routine "you cannot touch certain parts of your body?") Finally they helped the guy to the sideline and then the replay was shown. In it the guy clearly took a hard knee between his thighs. As this was being shown, one of the announcers says, "It looks like he hurt his shoulder." The other agrees and then they both talk about how serious a shoulder injury can be. Were we watching the same game?

"Somebody is going to be the quarterback or we're going to see a new quarterback."

"That was a playmaker making a play.”