Idaho's Iditarod Musher Races for Nome via Uganda and the Classroom
Completing the Iditarod is always a team effort, and not just between the musher and dogs. Handlers are part of the uncelebrated workforce behind each musher, as well as family, friends and all the race volunteers. Trent Herbst's team, based in Idaho, stretches from the equator to the arctic.
The Iditarod commemorates the 1925 'great race of mercy' across Alaska. In many parts of the world, the race for rescue continues, often silently and without recognition. In Uganda, best estimates are that at least 5000 Ugandans drown every year on its many lakes and rivers. 1.5 million Ugandans are employed in the fishing sector. For every fisherman drowned, an average of 7 dependents are left behind. The only organization dedicated to drowning prevention and search and rescue in East Africa is National Lake Rescue Institute (NLRI). In March 2009, Trent will take part in his third Iditarod sled dog race to raise funds and awareness of behalf of NLRI, in project called Race for Rescue www.raceforrescue.com. It seems a improbable pairing, but the Race for Rescue project would argue it encompasses all the same ethics of teamwork, co-operation and lifesaving as the original Iditarod, albeit on a global scale.
The connection came about as former director of NLRI, Joanna McDonald of Scotland, watched the 2008 Iditarod start and saw one team wearing bright orange booties, NLRI's color of choice. It is taken from the international rescue orange of lifesaving devices and is the color of the fabric used in the life jackets, called Megafloats, they train fishing communities to make using locally available materials. The vibrancy also suits the African spirit. The idea was born. Between stints in Uganda, Joanna spent time in Homer, Alaska, learning to mush at the same kennel Trent had once worked in. A post Iditarod conversation was had, and Trent visited Uganda in June 2008 for two weeks.
Trent has an unusual approach to the Iditarod in any case. His 4th grade students participate fully in his preparations. During checkpoint bag sorting day, they are busy measuring, weighing, dividing, counting and sorting the many piles of kibble, gloves, medications, dog jackets and booties. Homework one night is to make a musher meal for Trent to have during the race. They also are adept at making dog jackets, pee guards, necklines and even his sled. This year's class is currently making snow shoes which has brought in many project based maths and technical challenges. Last year one student flew to Anchorage to be his helper at the startline. Trent will be presenting at this year's Iditarod Education Winter's Conference to share his experiences and ideas about Iditarod in the classroom, being both teacher and musher.
Having traveled widely through South America, and taught for 2 years in the Dominican Republic, where he also met his wife Candida, Trent was very at home in Uganda. He also understood the development challenges he witnessed and liked the holistic, grassroots, small scale approach that NLRI has developed. It includes teaching farming techniques for the widows of fishermen to help self sufficiency, a children's water safety club which includes aspects of hygiene and sanitation, as well as making life jackets and establishing a network of search and rescue stations. Trent also saw the possibilities of cross cultural exchange between his classroom, Alaska and Uganda. Efforts were made to bring a Ugandan member of staff to Idaho to be his teaching assistant in a unit called 'endangered cultures', as well as have them learn to be a dog handler. Sadly, US immigration proved too large an obstacle, but nonetheless, the mushing links in Uganda were established.
In workshops at NLRI's Kampala HQ, ganglines were made from string and staff members took up positions on the team. The distance between the 'lead dog' and musher quickly made the point about good communication and trust. Further ideas of teamwork, the need for a diversity of skills and clear common goal were also explored by talking about dogs their characters, strengths, weaknesses and positions in the team. Staff watched the DVD made in Trent's classroom of his students helping with all his preparations, and Eight Below. There is a small but informed and avid Iditarod audience in Uganda now. It is hoped that next year the dog booties can be made by the life jacket sewing teams, providing them with a small income. The aim is also to have a couple of senior students help in Uganda as part of their final year projects.
The Iditarod is an ambitious undertaking at any time, but Trent's team straddles efforts inside and outside his classroom, and Uganda and Alaska. Despite the 60 degree shift north, and the 40 degree Celsius drop in temperature, some aspects of life is not so different between the two. Living “off the grid” as many Alaskans, and most Ugandans do, there is commonly no running water, or electricity without a generator. Outdoor latrines are normal. Dogs howl at night as packs roam Kampala's slum suburbs, or celebrate the moon in the dog yard. Showers are irregular at best and can feel pointless in the hot orange dust or constant round of dog chores. People are problem solvers, prepared to live by their own wits and take responsibility for their safety. The radio concerns itself with the smallest business of the town and is used to talk across villages. Maybe these are reasons why both Trent and Joanna have lived between the equator and arctic with ease.
The team is the core of this project and any Iditarod participant. The Race for Rescue logo combines African animals with huskies on the gangline, and Trent has morphed into Uganda's iconic gorilla. The fun of the logo reflects the enjoyment and slightly eccentric tone of the project which underlines its serious aims. Sales of stickers and t-shirts with the logo have been going well and it is hoped some money can be sent back to Uganda to support their projects. It costs around $20 to cover production, administration, awareness campaigns and logistics for each lifejacket and its accompanying education program. The major aim though is to create awareness about the issue of drowning in rural Africa.
Through Trent, in a small but significant way, those miles to Nome are testimony to a cross cultural, cross generational, cross species, team effort in the ongoing race for rescue.
