Herbie Nayokpuk (June 12, 1929 – December 2, 2006)[1] (Iñupiaq pronunciation: Niiqpaq) nicknamed the "Shishmaref Cannonball", was an Inupiaq musher, known for his cheerful and straight-ahead demeanor[2] It is said that "no musher in Iditarod history has been more admired, more respected or better liked than Herbie Nayokpuk."[3]
| Year | Position | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 5th[4] | 21d 11h 0m 19s[4] |
| 1974 | 3rd[4] | 21d 18h 28m 42s[4] |
| 1975 | 4th[4] | 14d 20h 29m 7s[4] |
| 1979 | Scratched[4] | |
| 1980 | 2nd[4] | 14d 20h 32m 12s[4] |
| 1981 | 7th[4] | 12d 22h 17m 45s[4] |
| 1982 | 7th[4] | 16d 14h 8m 21s[4] |
| 1983 | 4th[4] | 12d 22h 4m 28s[4] |
| 1985 | 8th[4] | 18d 17h 20m 0s[4] |
| 1987 | 25th[4] | 13d 10h 27m 47s[4] |
| 1988 | 6th[4] | 13d 3h 26m 44s[4] |
Nayokpuk was born in Shishmaref in 1929. He was one of the original mushers to run the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 1973.[5] He also represented Alaska at the presidential inaugurationofRonald Reagan in 1981.[5] He ended up running the Iditarod 11 times.[6] He never won, but he made some notably daring attempts in extreme weather conditions. He suffered a stroke after one race and competed in another despite having just recovered from a heart attack.[6] He was also an accomplished Inupiaq artist.[7]
Nayokpuk died at the age of 77 at the Alaska Native Medical CenterinAnchorage, Alaska after suffering a massive stroke at his home in mid-November and then lapsing into a coma.[2] He is buried in Shishmaref.[6] Each year since 2007, an Iditarod musher is awarded with the "Herbie Nayokpuk Memorial Award", which goes to the musher "who best epitomizes Herbie Nayokpuk's spirit of mushing the Iditarod"[8]
