Before the 1970s, it was unheard of for a woman to compete and do well in sled dog racing. That changed in 1974 when Lolly Medley and Mary Shields both finished the Iditarod, a 1,150-mile race through Alaska's interior. In 1985, a three-time winner said, "No woman could ever win the Iditarod." That year, Libby Riddles, a little-known musher from a small town outside Nome, Alaska, became the first woman to win the race, and Susan Butcher won it four times after. No women have won the Iditarod since, but several have entered and done well.

I was 3 years old the first time I was on a dog sled. My dad runs Oregon's Trail of Dreams Sled Dog Rides, and I would ride along with him on training sessions. When I first started racing, I competed against men and women of all ages in the novice class. My dad and I decided to move up to the four- and six-dog class after I ran races around Oregon and won all of them. Suddenly, people didn't think it was so cute anymore; I was 12 years old, legally blind, a girl, and doing well.

Frank Teasley, the director of the International Pedigree Stage Stop, a sled dog race in Wyoming, heard that I was interested in running his race and invited me to run when I turned 16. He also promised that, because of my blindness, he would make any necessary adaptations to the race rules as long as it wouldn't give me an unfair advantage. I always thought it was ironic that being blind would give me an advantage.

For the next two years, I trained hard and got into any race I could. I joined the high school track and cross-country teams and took two weight lifting courses. I had to get in shape for running up hills behind the sled and handling the dogs.

My dad and I discussed several solutions for getting me a visual interpreter on the trail. MUSH! RACHAEL AND HER DOGS RACE TO THE FINISH LINE.

We decided the option that wouldn't slow me down or draw too much attention was to have someone ahead of me on a snowmobile. Our long-time friend, Dan MacEachen, volunteered. Dan had run the race five times, so when he offered to lend me three lead dogs, I said yes. They knew the trail well.

I finished 19th out of 22 and met some wonderful racers from all over the world. It was interesting that many people who race in the very small Oregon/Washington races had a huge problem with me because I'm blind, but the big-time world class racers in Wyoming thought it was great that I was racing. I learned a lot in Wyoming about my physical and mental limitations. I learned about elite world class sled dog racing. I learned that I can compete at the top! Most importantly, I learned that nobody can tell me that I can't compete in the sport I love. The Americans with Disabilities Act is part of the United States Constitution. It's not a "feel good" suggestion to make adaptations for disabled people; it's the LAW! I am very proud of who I am. I want to compete against the best in the world, and I will never let anyone or anything stand in my way!

Rachael, 16, lives in Oregon. She is training for the Athens Paralympic Games in 2004. She enjoys singing, track and field, and public speaking. She dreams of winning the Iditarod someday.

Read about Jessie Arnold, girl sled dog racer, in the mystery book murder on the Iditarod Trail by Sue Henry (Avon 1996).