Politics

Minto locks arms to honor Mallott with ultimate political tossup

As the 2014 election nears an end—with Bill Walker and Byron Mallott about to become the next governor and lieutenant governor—Alaskans look back on a campaign filled with unexpected ups and downs.

The biggest was the merger of the Walker and Mallott campaigns on Labor Day weekend, a combination that created a powerful coalition in the nine weeks that followed. You may not have heard of the second biggest — it took place on a summer night in Minto in June.

Mallott had just finished giving an impassioned address to the annual Elders & Youth Conference of Denakkanaaga Inc. when about 15 people decided to raise him up. The annual conference by the group of Alaska Native elders had brought hundreds together under the theme of "Preserving Our Past to Strengthen Our Future."

"As I was walking through the crowd someone said something, I don't know what it was, and all of sudden I was picked up by this group of people," Mallott said. "They tossed me in the air several times."

In some cultures, people celebrate by throwing their hats in the air. In Minto, they celebrate by throwing honored guests in the air.

It was a show of respect, one that required strength on the part of the honoree and great faith in the strength of those who locked their arms below.

Mallott, 71, is a down-to-earth guy who has decades of experience with major and minor customs in Alaska. But not this one.

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As he found himself going up and down in rapid fashion, he said, he heard sage advice: "Someone said to me 'Stay limp.' Someone else said, 'Stay stiff.' "

Mallott said he doesn't know if he stayed limp or stiff, but he probably tried to do both. He didn't have time to think as the hastily assembled group propelled him up with enthusiasm. Through it all, he stayed levelheaded and more or less parallel to the floor with his arms extended.

While it may have lacked the drama of Walker's exploits flying down the course of the Arctic Man Ski and Sno-Go Classic in April, Mallot was happy—when his aerial tribute ended—to get back on his feet. Everyone cheered.

He is no stranger to the flying end of a blanket toss, but Mallott said he had a few anxious moments when he was head and shoulders above the room. Still, he trusted that the people who had chosen to honor him would not falter.

He said he's learned over the years that there are mental, physical and even spiritual benefits from surprise encounters with others—even on those occasions when you are swept off your feet and lifted to unexpected heights.

Dermot Cole

Former ADN columnist Dermot Cole is a longtime reporter, editor and author.

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