Jeremy Keller’s small kennel in Knik harbors big Iditarod dreams

It’s midweek in mid-February, and the Keller family is busy readying drop bags. The food, dog booties and multitude of other supplies Jeremy Keller and his dogs will rely on during the 2019 Iditarod fills the room of the family’s Knik home.

Much work must be done so the bags can be taken to Anchorage the next day. It’s exhausting and exhilarating all at once.

“I love Iditarod madness,” 8-year-old Liam Keller screams gleefully.

Dad Jeremy, mom Alison and 14-year-old Bjorn agree as they prepare for Jeremy’s second Iditarod — the first of Liam’s lifetime — and Bjorn’s first Junior Iditarod.

It’s not just madness, Jeremy says, “The word ‘mayhem’ was also thrown around a time or two.”

Amid all the chaos — both organized and unexpected — Jeremy never loses sight of his return to The Last Great Race and the family affair the experience has become.

He has spent nearly 30 years in Alaska and has dedicated much of that time to running dogs. He ran his first Iditarod in 2007.

Now he’s back in the race, and he’s bringing Bjorn and Liam along for the ride.

“When Bjorn was 6 weeks old, he rode home in a dog sled in his grandmother’s arms,” said Jeremy, 47. “He had that foundational experience. In the last two years, he and Liam would randomly ask about owning our own dog team. I told them there were about a million reasons why we shouldn’t, but they persisted.

“Life just has it own way of working itself out.”

Today, the Keller kennel, aka All Roads Lead to Dog, consists of nine of the family’s dogs -- one is recovering from a shoulder injury and is doubtful -- and a litter of nine puppies. Another six dogs have been leased from 1984 Iditarod champion Dean Osmar.

Jeremy expects his final lineup to consist of eight of his dogs and four of Osmar’s for a team of 12 -- two below the maximum 14.

“We’re playing small ball,” he said. “It’s an exceptional little group, very pragmatic like a military platoon.”

Born in Iowa, Jeremy lived all over the Lower 48 before a true sense of adventure consumed him. Like so many, he followed that sense to the Last Frontier and spent the early 1990s assisting with dog teams.

By the time the 2007 Iditarod rolled around, he was poised to become a full-time musher. But the financial commitment needed to that race led to a moment of clarity.

“Running that race nearly bankrupted us,” he said.

Jeremy and Alison met in McCarthy in 1999 and married in 2003. The family spent about 20 years living off the land in the Interior, and Jeremy set aside his long-term Iditarod dreams.

The latter part of Jeremy’s time in McCarthy was spent as a cast member on Discovery Channel’s “Edge of Alaska,” which ended its run in 2017, around the same time the family got a chance to move to Knik.

“It was time,” Alison said. “It was kind of calling us. McCarthy is where we met and we had followed our nose and our gut, but we saw where we were going in our lives.

“We realized we wanted Bjorn and Liam to have access to certain things. The move really allowed Jeremy to get back into dogs, and it just seemed natural.”

Jeremy likes to say dogs have shown him the world. With Alison’s help, the couple has made dogs a focal point for the family. Jeremy and Alison homeschool Bjorn and Liam, and running dogs is a huge part of the daily routine and education.

“We’re all involved, spiritually and emotionally,” Jeremy said. “We’re with our sons and it’s the most beautiful thing we can do.”

Bjorn’s excitement for the Junior Iditarod, held the week before the 1,000-mile Iditarod, is palpable. He can’t wait to drive his team 150 miles in a race.

“He’s a tough boy and probably had more wilderness prep than many of his competitors,” Jeremy said. “But he might have some of the least experience running dogs.

“He’s my first-born and I’ll worry about him. At the same time, he knows if anything goes sideways, he can drop the hook and wait for me to show up.”

Father and son are well-trained. They’ve spent many days during the last few months on long camping trips in the wild. Using connections made in his reality show days, the Kellers worked with camera and media experts to film, produce and document their training and their life in Knik.

The hope is there are many more Iditarods to come.

“I’d love to be 87 and competing in Iditarod races,” Jeremy said. “Alison and my boys see how natural this is. Running dogs — it’s what makes me tick.”

To be mushing with his family so close and so involved makes it even better,

“We do everything together,” he said. “We’re quite the little team.”

Matt Nevala co-hosts “The Sports Guys” radio show, Saturday at 11 a.m. on KHAR AM-590 and FM-96.7. Find him on social media at @MNevala9.