HUMAN

Name: RANDY JOHNSON
Age: 67
Residence: ILLINOIS
Occupation: I’M SUPPOSED TO BE RETIRED, BUT I’M FLUNKING RETIREMENT. I’M WORKING AS A SECOND CAREER DOING FABRICATION WORK.
Years involved with Iditarod: THIS IS MY 12TH YEAR
Iditarod Role: TRAIL CREW
Current Location: MCGRATH, ALASKA
Date of Photo: MARCH 8, 2019
Temperature: 32F / OUTDOORS

What is your Why?.. Why are you here today and involved in Iditarod?:

WELL, I FIRST CAME UP HERE FOR THE LOVE OF THE DOGS. AND I KEEP COMING BACK FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THE PEOPLE I’VE MET ALONG THE TRAIL.

Tell me about your most rewarding experience on Iditarod?:

THERE’S BEEN SO MANY THINGS. PROBABLY THE MOST REWARDING FOR ME IS HELPING WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH. ONE OF THOSE TIMES WAS WHEN I HAD TO TAKE A SNOW MACHINE FROM HERE, AT MCGRATH, WHEN THE PLANES COULDN’T FLY BECAUSE OF THE WEATHER. AND ME AND TWO OTHER GUYS TOOK RACE JUDGES AND VETERINARIANS UP THE TRAIL TO TAKOTNA AND OPHIR. AND THAT WAS THRILLING. THAT WAS AN OVERNIGHT-TYPE OF THING, AND WE WERE IN A RUSH. AND THE BEST PART: WE CAME BACK OUT OF TAKOTNA AND WE WERE ABLE TO SEE THE FIRST TEN MUSHERS COMING UP FROM MCGRATH GOING UP THE TRAIL. AND WE STOPPED OUR SNOW MACHINES AND IT WAS A CLOUDY OVERCAST KIND OF EERIE NIGHT. AND WE WERE ABLE TO HEAR THE MUSHERS AS THEY CAME BY IN THEIR TEAMS.

What do you know for sure?:

THE MORE I DO THINGS IN LIFE, THE MORE I’M DOING THINGS REVOLVED AROUND MY DOGS AND DOG-TYPE ACTIVITIES, SO IT’S BECOME MORE OF A PASSION THAN EVER BEFORE.