Jr. Iditarod Bio

Ilsa, 17, a freshman at the University of Oklahoma became interested in mushing at the age of 8 in Colorado from her friend Megan and her mom who were involved in sprint racing. Over the years Ilsa has been able to gradually obtain 2 sleds and a team of dogs, mostly from other people’s cast offs. First Ashes, then Rosie. then Penny and so on. She had a bonus 4 years ago when a supposedly fixed female had a litter of 8 puppies. Her team now consists of 14 happy little dogs.

This will be her third Jr. Iditarod. She ran last year but scratched after 60 miles when her main lead dog became a little too interested in two females that just came into heat.  Most of Ilsa's dogs are now fixed and there has been a greater focus on training others in the team to work in lead.

Being the only musher in a previously non-mushing family, there has been a lot to learn, like when and how to put on dog booties, what happens when a dog chews on the gang line or convincing a leader to Gee when it wants to Haw. One of the hardest jobs was convincing the parents to let their daughter take off on a solo training run at 20 below zero in the dark of the night. She has managed to enlist her father into being the assistant trainer who helps by running a second team or adding ballast to the sled when running one large team.

Ilsa is a graduate of Wasilla High School and now a bio_chemistry major at the University of Oklahoma in Norman OK where she is a freshman in their pre-med program.  She had a month off between semesters and spent as much time on the sled working with the team as she could and will take a break in her studies to fly home for the Jr. Iditarod.  She hopes that she will continue to have the wonderful opportunity to keep running with her dogs.