HUMAN
Name: Todd Silver
Age: 69
Residence: Tacoma, Washington
Occupation: One of the owners of the company that makes Rite in the Rain paper products
Years involved with Iditarod: My first year has been 1993, so coming up on my 30th year.
Iditarod Roles: I am a checker at Skwentna and done that for the last, oh, gosh, 15 years or so.
Current Location: Skwentna, Alaska
Date of Photo: March 6, 2022
Temperature: 34 F Outdoors
What, who or how and when did you first get involved with the Iditarod?
Well, I first got involved, our company makes products for the Iditarod. We made the musher journals, the check sheets, Rite in the Rain sheets, and also trail signs. And back in 1993, Jim Strong, who was the race manager, invited me up as a guest to the race, came up and could only be up here about five days, so ended up stopping at Skwentna because we couldn’t fly any further North. Got to know Joe and Norma Delia and just said, “What can I do? Can I wash dishes, move bales of hay, and etc.? “So did that. And the next year, they invited me up. And my brother and business partner, Scott, said, “You’re not going up without me.” So the two of us came up, and that was in ’94. In ’95, there were then four of us. In ’96, 6 of us, and because it was a nighttime checkpoint, we could really step in and really organize it because it’s so difficult running. We have up to 1000 dogs at a time. So we are able to help Joe and Norma and Rob and Cyndi Fritz. And so that, and then in the 25th anniversary, they kind of handed the baton over to us, so we became checkers. We just fell in love, involved in the Iditarod because for one, my first visit here was amazing. You see the crazy… I mean, what a event, so fun in Alaska, the dogs, the mushers, it was tremendous, plus the people. And so I began to bring others up.
What is your Why? Why are you here TODAY and involved with the Iditarod?
My why? It’s all about relationships. We have a great team. Everybody works their heinies off and has a ball.
Tell me about just one of your most memorable Iditarod experiences.
Most memorable times in Iditarod, I think, is when I brought my daughter Kelsey and son Kent as 13- and 15-year-olds together. And they worked their hearts out here and just had a ball. So it’s become a family event. They’ve been up here many times. So it’s just totally fun.
What do you know for sure?
For sure in life is that love is tops, that is if we serve, nice people win, and if we come up and work and share, that it’s a taste of heaven. So that’s what I know for sure.