Whether you saw her team at one of the Iditarod starts in Anchorage or Willow, or managed to catch her team along the trail, you’ll notice something interesting about the dog team Jody Potts-Joseph leads.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Whether you saw her team at one of the Iditarod starts in Anchorage or Willow, or managed to catch her team along the trail, you’ll notice something interesting about the dog team Jody Potts-Joseph leads.
Trotting along like many of her competitors, Potts-Joseph’s arrival is marked by a distinct jingle. Bells ring from bead-clad blankets adorned by her lead dogs that represent centuries of history. “Everyone went to work and cranked out some beautiful, beaded blankets that are what our people use to put on their dogs as they come and go from villages,” she said. Potts-Joseph, the first woman of Gwich’in descent to ever run the Iditarod in its history, now arrives and departs every checkpoint with the blankets on her main drivers.At the ceremonial start in Anchorage, all 16 of her original team dogs could be seen wearing their own. All of them were handcrafted by people like her mother and many others“I just put this call out Facebook in December, and within 24 hours, I had like 30 women that wanted to make one and they just loved the idea,“ Potts-Joseph explained. “I’m just so incredibly moved and touched by all the work that these women put into it. They said they put a lot of prayers with every stitch and to have a safe journey.” Much of that support comes from Eagle, Alaska. Potts-Joseph grew up in the area running bush trails since she was very young. “I grew up in the basket of a dog sled. My parents were trappers, so we traveled all over by dog team,” she said. “My brother, he had a race team and he used to take me out on training runs on the weekend and he’d take me to school by dog team. I was always in his sled basket.” Over 400 miles into the race, this year marks the first year Potts-Joseph has run in the last great race. Prior to her run this year, her experience included appearances in the Kobuk 440, Yukon Quest Alaska, and Copper Basin 300, amongst countless other races. However, she added at the ceremonial start in Anchorage that her time on the trail means more than just her spot in the final standings. “For me, it’s not so much a sport as it is a way of life and an important part of my culture. I’m just really happy to be here.”“That’s what it’s all about. Just making sure our tradition of dog mushing carries on in the future. I don’t want it to die with me. An elder told me once to take care of these dogs like your own family members. There’s a lot of important lessons and teachings around caring for a team. I hope being out here, maybe there’s a kid in a village that sees that.”2026 Iditarod Live Blog‘We had 60 pounds of bacon delivered’: Unalakleet checkpoint awaits mushers as teams approach West Coast
Iditarod 54 Iditarod Beaded Blanket Gwich'in Eagle Alaska Sled Dogs Native Musher Alaska Native
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