Mark Nordman, Grand Marries, Minnesota Forty-one year old Mark Nordman was born and raised in Minnesota where he lives with his wife Sue and two daughters, Andrea, 18, and Sarah, 12. Mark has been mushing dogs for 20 years. He was one of the original founders of the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon in Minnesota. He has raced the Beargrease many times as well as Montana’s 500 mile Race to the Sky, which he won in 1987. Besides racing he has been involved with officiating of sled dog events, having been race marshal for the Beargrease, Race to the Sky and Iditarod. His love of mushing and the great wilderness has drawn him back many times to participate in mushing events.

Michael Nosko, Wasilla, Alaska Mike, 32, grew up in Union City, Pennsylvania. His love of dogs began with coon hunting in the woods surrounding his family farm. One of his grade school teachers had visited Alaska and spoke of it frequently. Consequently, Mike grew up dreaming of moving to Alaska. He eventually joined the army as a means of getting to Alaska. It took two tours of duty but he finally received the much desired orders for Ft. Richardson, Alaska, located just outside Anchorage. Once here, he and his wife, Tracey, were immediately drawn into the world of dog mushing. They visited Tozier Track in Anchorage to watch the races and Tracey volunteered as a time keeper for the kids’ races. One day Mike returned from a long field exercise to find five dogs, a rickety old sled and a very excited wife. "You have just got to try this," Tracey told him. So they loaded up the dogs and sled and headed to the Tozier Track. Mike was hooked on his first run. They met a retired musher, Lloyd Haessler, who spun spirited tales of the Iditarod Trail whenever they visited. Soon Mike realized that long distance mushing was where he wanted to go with his dogs. After being politely asked to move their now 10 dog team out of the Anchorage suburb where they lived, Mike & Tracey moved to Wasilla and purchased a home where they could pursue their Iditarod dreams. They now own a kennel of over 60 sled dogs and run dog sled tours to help make possible their racing goals. Mike has raced several mid distance races and has finished in the top 10 in each. This year he will be facing his biggest challenge as an Iditarod rookie.