Charlotte Mattheis, 17, started mushing in 2004 because “I loved dogs and was a big fan of the Iditarod. She was a handler for a local musher in 2004 and got her own dogs in 2005. She started the Jr. Iditarod in 2006 and scratched in Yentna. And eleventh grade student at Nome Beltz Jr/Sr High School, she participates in varsity volleyball and says she enjoys many outdoor activities and hanging out with her friends. She plans on graduating a semester early and either work or start college in the spring. She says she does plan to continue mushing after graduation. “I have my own dogs, but this year, I’ll be mushing a close friend’s dogs, Dempsey Woods. I have two other younger siblings, Chloe, 15 and Cass, 12.