I am very pleased to announce our next edition of "Ask the . . . " in this case, it's "Ask the Checkers." I am very pleased to welcome Joe and Norma Delia to our forum. Norma has agreed to be a part of our forum for a few weeks to answer any questions we may have. We are going to begin on November 11, and we will continue through December 4. That will give Norma plenty of time to answer our questions.
I've asked the moderators to lock this topic for now. Starting November 11, the topic will be unlocked, and you can begin asking your questions.
I was privileged to "interview" Norma (via Facebook) and write an article about Joe and Norma for Iditablog. Unfortunately, Iditablog is currently having server problems and can't be accessed, so I am reproducing the article here, as an introduction to the thread.
Joe and Norma Delia: Thanks for the Memories
Mention Skwentna and most fans immediately think of Joe and Norma Delia. For many years Joe has served as postmaster of Skwentna (population 75 in the winter and 250 in the summer, according to Zuma’s Paw Prints). Norma joined him in 1983. The two of them are the “heart and soul” of the Skwentna checkpoint, a place you can only reach by airplane, boat, snow machine or (of course) dogsled.
For years Joe was the main checker and Norma did all the menu planning, cooking and cleaning. The Delias “retired” after the 25th running of the race, but still remain at the center of the action, assisted by Cyndy Fritts and her family, Todd and Scott Silver, the “Skwentna Sweeties” from Eagle, and a crew from Tacoma, Washington. Without the 30-plus volunteers, the checkpoint would not be the same, Norma said.
“We have developed some very strong bonds with a whole lot of people we otherwise would have never met,” Norma said. “The friendships stand the passing of time. How many can say Donna deVarona has visited their home?”
Norma said her most vivid memory was the year that Susan Butcher had a moose go through her team on the Rabbit Lake Trail. “It was heartbreaking to see an old friend have this happen,” Norma recalled. “She would only scratch to checker Joe, and I can still see them sitting, hugging and crying together.”
Her favorite memory was the year that Dodge gave a truck away to the first musher to Skwentna. The women volunteers formed themselves into a dog team—complete with sled and a young boy as the musher.
The race has changed through the years, Norma said. She’s thankful for the well-groomed trail and the excellent dog care in today’s race, and seeing the second-generation mushers on the trail makes her smile. But sometimes she misses the “old days.”
“Personally, I loved the older races when there was so much anticipation and not so much instant information,” she said. “You had to wait for the evening news to know what was going on, and we’d gather around the TV to watch. Heck, for some years we didn’t even have a TV and radio was our means. In the early years the race was in here for four to five days; now it’s gone in two hours.”
Sadly, this will be the last year the Delias will be at Skwentna. Several factors have contributed to their decision. “Aging isn’t conducive to living this life-style, as nothing is easy to keep things going,” she said. They’re looking forward to being on the road system again.
Living at Skwentna and being an integral part of the race has been like watching a part of a small history being unfolded right before their eyes, Norma said. To the young mushers she says, “If you see an ‘old timer’ out on the trail, thank them for all of the improvements they contributed over the years . . . and be kind to them. Without all the effort of those who have walked before you, your dreams may not have been possible. Let’s not forget ‘our’ history of the Last Great Race.”
Photo by Kristin Bacon. Used with permission.
Photo by Sara Michaud. Used with permission.