The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1922-03-02
HOW ASHTON GETS
ON THE MAP ,.

The dog races at Ashton, Idaho
have put that little town on the map
It is a comparatively new town, but
In a few years of holding this an.
nual contest It made for itself place
In the minds of the American people
sufficient to cause untold Thousands
of them to get map or atlas and
look to see just where Ashton is
and that naturally leads to further
inquiry as to what 1t is and what are
Its prospects. A
The 1922 is the flftieth or golden
anniversary Of the discovery of the
great attractions in the Yellowstone
park by the party that went out from
Helena in 1872 to see whether there
was any truth in the wild yarns that
for half century had been leaking
out in little dribs from Indians and
trappers regarding the fire holes and
volcanoes Of hot water and steam
said to have been seen at the head
waters of the several great rivers
that flow from that central eminence
toward the seven seas.
The Ashton people do not SO much
emphasize the presence Of the nation
al park as they do the snow. They
celebrate the snow-the source OF
wealth to all the world of agricul-
ture below. Other places may cele-
brate the harvest, the Goddess OF
Ceres, the Goddess : Of Roses, the
storm God and the others, but Ash
ton celegrates$ the Snow God, the
pure drivenssnow that reigns in mid
winter without any rival In all the
broad empire within sight Of the
grand Tatn. ! They, haye furthet
idoliSed Iii BY Adopting Mashin gton's
birthday as the time for holding their
contest on the great white mantle
lying deep and pure on the face ot
nature. AK sss. 4.
: For: the 1922 contest they had six
dog teams, one of them driven by
a young woman, and the winner OF
the Ashton race, wins the, champion
ship for the United States. The dog
teams make three. drips around an
eight-mile track lying to the south
ward from the town, the drivers rid
ing on the sleds or running by the
side of the sleds as they prefer
They usually take short shifts al
running where the sled runs hardest
The girl, Miss Lydia Hutchinsn, who
engaged in the 1922 race, had
slightly injured her knee two days
before the race, and she limped when
she ran. Her dogs were so excited
at the start of the race that they
bolted the track and ran for Is min
utes off of the route, so that she
was unable, to win anything in the
race.
The Oregon Short Line operated
three excursion trains for the event
two of them coming from the south
with dozen coaches each, and all
loaded even to the aisles, platforms
and baggage cars. Many people went
in on the regular trains, and all the
available rooms nd beds were taken
before the excursion trains arrived.
The citizens made heroic efforts to
take care of the crowds and to make
everybody comfortable.
The races started in the main
street of the town, with thusands of
people lined along the course. Each
team was photographed at the start
ing point and the teams were started
five minutes apart. By the time the
last team was started, the first team
was in sight on completion of it's
first lap, so it became a continuous
performance, with the crowds cheer
ing each team as it came thru, the
dogs seeming to go wild with the eX-
element. Indeed it was the, en-
thusiasm from the cheering that sent
the girls team bounding away across
the bench toward Snake river when
they should have curved to the
southwark, and she had to let them
run out into space and silence be-
fore she could get control of them
Once back upon the race course they
made a wonderful record, and the
crowds were wild with interest and
regrets that she did not get the dogs
to expend all Of their running power
on the race course, as it would prob
ably have given her the champion
ship, Notwithstanding the lame knee
Peoples interest in the lame knee
was further intensified by the fact
that she received the injury in an
efford to find and rescue another
driver who was supposed to have
been lost in a storm on his way
down. from Yellowstone station with
his dog team to compete in the races.
He telephoned when he started, and
when he did not cover the distance,
some fifty or sixty miles, according
to what route he took, people con-
cluded that he was lost in the storms,
and she loaded her sled with bedding
and prvisions and started out to find
him. He had an accident on the
road, crippled one of his dogs, and
returned to Yellowstone, unable to
get thru, and when this message was
delivered to the girl out on the hunt
for him, she returned with the lame
knee.
BY the time the races were over,
thousands of people were interested
in Lydia Hutchinson and men passed
thru the crowds taking up popular
collection to make up purse for her.
She was given expressions Of appre-
citation on every hand and asked to
keep her dogs in training for the
1928 derby. There were many press
representatives there from distant
states, and big dailies in many east
Ill 4