Many people see Kassen and Balto as the heros because they were the ones who did the last part of the relay and delivered it to Nome. However, I think that Leonhard Seppala and his team of dogs, with Togo as their leader, are the true heros of this run. They had run a total of 216 miles – the longest distance travelled in all the teams – in the terrible conditions when sometimes they couldn’t see through the mist and all L.Seppala could do was to trust Togo’s insticts. Also, Seppala bred Balto and lent him to Kassen because Balto’s body did not have a good racing shape – at that time, racing was a sport that made money.
The Story of Togo
Togo was bred by Seppala and since a pup, he would always nip of the legs of Seppala’s sleddogs. He would keep chasing after them when they went out with Seppala and annoy them. Seppala thought he couldnt be taught and so sold him to a woman who was looking for a pet. However, Togo had managed to escape and go back to find Seppala’s team. Seppala decided to take him back although he did not really know what to do with him. One day, when the dogs were going out, Seppala ordered that Togo be tied up and ordered that he must not escape, but somehow, Togo broke the rope, jumped the fence and found the team. Seppala could not leave him there so he decided to put Togo in the back of his team. Togo then turned himself into a different dog – serious about his work. This was when Seppala realised that all Togo wanted was to be part of the team. During the day, Togo was taken a step futher towards the front line and soon he was placed next to the leader! Togo had logged seventy-five miles on his first day in harness, which was unheard of for an inexperienced young sled dog, especially a puppy. Seppala called him an "infant prodigy". And later added that "I had found a natural-born leader, something I had tried for years to breed".
Why I think Kassen was not a hero:
Seppala and all the other mushers involved in the serum run despised what Kassen did – taking all the glory, because they themselves had a part in the Serum Run and just because he reached the finish line doesnt mean that he is a hero. After all, it is said that Kassen was supposed to stop by a camp to let another musher take on the serum but he said that the musher was asleep and so he kept going. However, the musher said he kept waiting all day and as it was quite a good day, he did not find any tracks made by Kassen and his dogs.
After getting the fame from the Serum Run, Kassen sold his dogs, along with Balto, to a man who would make them into living displays for people to pet and look. at They were mistreated and abused for a few months in the dark room. I think that all Kassen wanted was the gold and the fame – he didn’t really care about his dogs.
Balto
Balto has become a very famous legend – people have made cartoon animations of him and when people talk about the serum run, they all remember Balto. I cannot blame Balto and say that I don’t think that he is a true hero because in every way, he has put all his effort into the Serum Run, but he just had the misfortune to land with a terrible owner.
This is Balto’s preserved and stuffed body on display.
What happened to Togo?
After the Serum Run, Togo was worn out and in a ripe old age of 12. He could no longer race and so was taken to retirement by a close friend of Seppala’s ,Elizabeth Ricker. She took care of him and when he was 16, he was put to sleep to ease his passing. Seppala also frequently visited his dogs after they had left him.
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