Editor's Note: Thank you Barbara for your nice comments. It is always nice to hear positive feedback (nudges and suggestions often lead to new ideas and improvements so those are welcome too!).

However, I would be severely remiss if I didn't point out that like most wonderful North Wapiti experiences - the website is a team effort :)

I would have been lost (and Karen's coverage suffered) if it weren't for Kim Berg stepping up to the plate for this year's Iditarod. As I've mentioned before I had a S.A.D. winter (Seasonal Affective Disorder - aka "Not enough sunlight"....) I felt fine, but so very tired and basically hibernated from December thru February. Kim helped me get caught up on entries from before the race (which I read during the race and kept having the weird feeling of "where was I when this came thru") and took on the task of posting Diary Entries during the race. That left me free to rejoin the living in time to work on coverage links while getting my bearings on what's been going on with those lovely fur-babies from Perryvale.

Heather Walls is also a MVA (most valuable asset)!! She is the website's #1 fact checker and grammar editor. She has also been a very friendly and prompt sounding board for NW ideas.

Penny has added such a spark of fun with her cartoons and long hours on the Cafe Press merchandise. I know her wonderful cartoons have made me burst out laughing sometimes and added energy & fervor to the whole NW update/coverage process.

We all enjoyed the Iditarod photos for this year from:
June Price - Ceremonial Start
Robert & Sue Wilkens - Ceremonial Start
Theresa Daily (Dogsled.com) - Ceremonial Start
Teresa Barnes - Ceremonial Start, Restart & Finger Lake!! Plus a story to share in the Diary
Donna Quante - Open House & Willow Restart
Photos below by Dan Rehak - Cache Valley K-9 (Thanks Heather for sending us the photos!)
Photos below by Don Rosebrock - Cache Valley K-9

Insider stories from:
Old Friends Just Met by Belinda Marshall
Karen In Finger Lake by Teresa & Richard Barnes
Sheep Mountain - Jamie's Report
Sheep Mountain - Donna's Report

Jamie West - What a nice lady to regularly open her BEAUTIFUL home to Karen and all of us who straggle in as NW fans every year as Open House visitors or rookie handlers. Alaska had worn me out by the end of my trip and I stumbled just a bit going downstairs to pack up on my final evening there (I didn't hurt anything, but it was enough to convince me that I needed a nap after dinner) ...I crashed hard and then left early in the morning so I never really got to express my personal thank you's to her & Harry. THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!! Her husband Harry burned my pictures to cd before I left so I could share them with another fellow rookie musher from the mid-west

Janet (the mind goes blank...as I should have been out the door for some work already! Shhhh don't tell anyone!) - her behind the scenes help with Karen's dogyard at Jamie's and her blurbs like from Karen's leaving yesterday

Donna Q - her video, her photos, her insight, so much an asset!

Mark - I don't know him very well having only experienced a mild dose of his wit while he was restrained by his cast last year, but what a supportive husband!! Karen & I (both with all too infrequent happy 20yr marriages) have
traded emails about how lucky we are over the years :)

There are others that Karen would/will ( & I should) add. We've discussed a "Friends of North Wapiti" page for just such thank you's, but like the Orange Collar page...it's on the to do list.

Now I really MUST fly!

Ann