-A Dog-Mushing Pioneer-
Early Days...
It’s 1957, a pet Saint Bernard pulls 11 year old Deborah Molburg across the finish line of her first race. The duo did not win the race that day but the event is remembered fondly as the day Deborah’s addiction began. No one could have guessed that that day would be the beginning of a life long journey into the world of sled dogs and racing ranging from World Championship Sprint racing to the challenges of the 1000 mile Yukon Quest and Iditarod Trail.
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Hitting Her Stride...
Hard work and stubborn determination proved to work for Deborah as she worked her way to the top of her game. Being one of the only female mushers of her time, Debbie had more of her fair share of challenges on and off the trail. But nothing slowed her down and by 1969 Deborah had made herself noticed by claiming two fourth place finishes and one second place finish in the open World Championship Sled Dog Derby in Laconia.
Ready to delve deeper into the dog world, in 1970 Debbie headed north to work for Earl Norris in Willow, Alaska. This stay was only one season but even in her short time there Debbie made her mark by finishing third in the the Willow Winter Carnival Race.
Upon her return home, Deborah, once again put her focus on improving her racing and the work paid off. In 1976, Deborah won the Canadian International Championship in Nepean, Ontario, she was the first woman to be awarded the unlimited team medal by the International Sled Dog Racing Association, she was nominated as outstanding athlete of the year by Union Leader and was featured as “Musher of the Year” in Team and Trail Magazine.
1979 brought Deborah back to the start line where it all began with Pavlov, but this time things went very differently. Deborah placed first in the World Championship Sled Dog Derby, and was the first woman to ever do so. Her success was compounded the following year when Deborah returned to and won the race to defend her title.
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The Build-Up...
A move to Alaska in 1981 created the first and longest break in Deborah’s dog career as Juneau’s moderate climate was not desirable for training. Deborah put her focus on a canvas business that stays successful to this day. In the early 1990’s Deborah bought property in Tagish, Yukon and once again returned to her first passion of running dogs with the new vision of mid distance racing. After being the third woman ever to complete the Percy DeWolfe, a 210 mile race from Dawson City to Eagle, Deborah was uncertain about the idea of mid distance racing.
To no one’s surprise but her own, Deborah continued to train and run mid distance races which eventually led her to the challenging 1000 mile Yukon Quest, which she completed in 2000 at the age of 55 earning herself the traditional Red Lantern for being the last musher to cross the finish line. Deborah was 21st of 29 participants, the others having scratched earlier in the race.
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The Last Great Race...
Deborah’s newest interest began to take form in 2006 when she and her husband Sandy flew into various checkpoint of the Iditarod Trail. A few months past but it was not long before Deborah had set her sights on running another 1000 mile race. She made her first attempt in 2007 with a leased team from Agata Franczak, and completed 300 miles before she decided that the trail conditions were too hazardous to continue. This did not deter Deborah, it only made her want to finish more and so for the 2008 season she has purchased 14 of her old dogs back and borrowed 5 dogs from William Kleedhan in hopes of training a successful Iditarod team. Deborah is both nervous and excited about the upcoming race but as always she carries with her the confidence of an experienced dog driver. When the announcer says go, Deborah will do what she knows best and drive her dogs towards Nome.