In getting into the spirit for the winter carnival, I hit the Minnesota Historical Society’s archives, looked at photos and read stories of winter carnivals past. The most notable of these, in 1917 featuring the Winnipeg to St. Paul Dog Derby. The 1917 race was the basis for the 1994 movie Iron Will. The movie is actually a romanticized version of the real event. The central character Will Stoneman is based on real life legend Frederick S. Hartman born in Troy N.Y. attended the University of Saskatchewan at Saskatoon and left school at 21 to become a gold miner at Le Pas Manitoba. The main difference in the versions is that Fred (Will) actually finishes last. It is because he finishes the race in spite of setbacks he was called Iron Fred. Hartman was actually in the lead three times and believed he would win the race, but losing his lead dog early in the race, the remaining dogs suffering from dysentery and getting lost in a blizzard made others believe he would not even finish the race. Archival photos reveal either toboggans or carioles (a toboggan bent a couple of extra times with hide or canvas sides and a chair back looking handlebar). These were hooked to teams of five dogs trap line fashion (single file, double trace).The mushers would walk in front of the team and break trail, if they were on an established trail walk behind the toboggan and hold on to a tether or at times surf on top. The course was the old Pembina trail from Winnipeg through North Dakota and Minnesota as far as St. Paul. Much of the landscape was treeless and flat although there are some rolling hills in Minnesota. At times the trail paralled the railroad

tracks at times it was on existing roads. The temperatures were well below zero the winds were high and the snow was deep. A crowd of 15,000 spectators assembled to witness the grand finale at Como Park. Of the 15 starters, 5 finished the race, Albert Campbell being the first to cross the finish line at 12:45 pm. Three of the remaining four drivers followed in relatively short intervals. Four hours behind his nearest rival Fred crossed the finish line cheered on by a crowd of 5,000 who had waited for him, and collapsed in the arms of one of the judges. In the end Fred actually received more attention and substancially more money than he would have in the event he finished first. This race was the first international sled dog race in history. This was the first organized sled dog race in the United States and the longest race of it’s kind in the world at 522 mi. (the Alaska Sweepstakes at 412 mi. was held earlier but Alaska was still a territory).                                                                                                                                       In 1977 Dennis LaBoda and Randy Herman ran the race route from St. Paul to Winnipeg. Not much went on in their leaving St. Paul but they did arrive to much fanfare in Winnipeg. Brainerd and Detroit Lakes papers carried the story, unfortunately Minneapolis and St. Paul did not.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Sources / Further reading                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              *Hapless Hero:Frederick S Hartman and the Winnipeg to St. Paul Dog Race, Minnesota History V42 no.8 (Winter 1971) Jarchow                                                                                                                                                                                                  *Iron Fred!                                                                                                                                Mushing Magazine (July 1994)    Jerry Vanek D.V.M.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        *A Piece From The Past                                                                                                                       Tugline (June 2005)     Sally O'Sullivan Bair