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.
He was one of the original mushers to run the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 1973.
[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] 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]