DAY #7 IDITAROD SATURDAY MARCH 9, 2024

An upper level trough was expected going towards GALENA and NULATO bringing cold air to Northern Alaska. Overnite temps expected -20 to -40 degrees. On the Arctic Plains, along Eastern Beaufort Sea coast expect -75 to -80 degrees (wind chill). The mushers will have to wear eye protection from snow blindness. The camera in GALENA froze. 

KATTIE JO, commentator, mentioned a rookie meeting in December/Anchorage. Didn't matter where in the world you lived, you had to be there. Some of the veterans spoke and they had talks on what to expect etc. They spoke about THE WALL!!! This is not an actual wall, its a mental wall. Around RUBY--1/2 way point you can have doubts--why am I doing this, should I quit, can I make another 500 miles, questioning your ability. When Kattie Jo was a rookie, she did experience these feeling around this area. She said it's REAL! 

In GALENA: Teams coming in look frosty. All parka hoods are UP!! Can't take your gloves off to work or you may get frost bite. 

The musher has to have the trust of the dogs. This is done with repetitious training. The dogs get the idea that if they work hard their "boss" won't push them any further than they can handle. There will be rest and food after that hard work. If the musher deviates from this the dogs loose his/her trust. 

No injections or meds are allowed for the dogs as this could mask an injury. The dogs are all tested by the vets during the race as are the mushers for any drug use. The common joint injuries, for the dogs, are with the shoulder and the wrist. The musher can use something like emu oil and rub into the muscle. There is a "shirt" with small holes in it where they can put heat packs to keep that muscle warm. 

FYI: There is a bird called the GREY J--or "camp robber". They are all around the checkpoint and are fearless!! They are in the dog food and looking for scrap left behind. Someone said one stole her arctic char off her plate!!! 

NULATO: 350 people live here. Today its sunny but -20 degrees. GALENA to NULATO is 37 miles. Teams coming thru these checkpoints generally go thru or stop for a very short time. Its amazing that there have been no scratched (eliminated) teams so far. There are 16 rookies this year and they are keeping up, not saying they tend to scratch but some do as it wasn't what they expected or they weren't prepared.

LARRY DAUGHERTY is a familiar name in the IDITAROD. His son, CALVIN DAUGHERTY, is running this IDITAROD. This year he also climbed Mt. Everest. (sounds like good prep for the race!!)

This above info was from this afternoon: it is 11:30 pm EST now. NULATO and KALTAG are very busy now. It was sunny here today but again very cold and windy.

NOW the report for the trough has calmed. The temp will not be as exaggerated and the winds not as strong. Good news but it cold change!!!

TRAVIS BEALS was the first to KALTAG and received the Bristol Bay Native Corp Fish 1st Award. He receives 26 lbs of fresh Bristol Bay Salmon filets, $2,000 and a wood burned art piece by artist               Apay'ug Moore.  Bristol Bay is the home of the world's largest wild sockeye salmon fishery. 

There is roughly 143 miles separating the leader from the last team. All teams have taken their 24 hour mandatory rest and there are 13 teams left to take their 8 hour rest.

As of 11:45 EST the standing are:

TRAVIS BEALS (out of KALTAG), JESSIE HOLMES(in to KALTAG), MATT HALL, PAIGE DROBNY, RYAN REDINGTON, DALLAS SEAVEY, PETE KAISER, JASON MACKEY,                WALLY ROBINSON, HUNTER KEEFE (all in KALTAG).

From KALTAG to UNALAKLEET it is 85 miles. I believe on this run is OLD WOMAN'S CABIN where many teams stop to rest, 85 miles is a distance!!!

I'll try more pictures. Think I'll spend this summer figuring out this glitch in my blog!!

Cont'd with Pictures:

RUBY checkpoint

NIC PETIT

CHEFS' preparing 1st to YUKON winner dinner

MATT HALL leaving RUBY

NIC PETIT meeting Chefs

CREME BRULE--dessert for NIC

MENU

 

 DAY # 6 IDITAROD FRIDAY MARCH 8, 2024

Weather is now changing. Getting much colder and windy. The cold is much better for the dogs. They eat better and rest better with these temps. Also with colder temps the trail will get faster and packed down as opposed to the soft snow that the teams have been experiencing. 

There are four parts to the Iditarod race: The Alaska Range, The Interior, The Yukon and The Coast.            They all have their own special challenges and beauty. 

NIC PETIT, the lucky one, was the first to The YUKON. His award is a delicious one!!! The chefs, from Anchorage, come to prepare a 7 course meal for the winner. A few of the delicacies were a big beautiful steak and a delightful looking creme brule, to mention a few. I don't know how you can get up and go after that!!!

From CRIPPLE to RUBY its 70 miles. Now the logistics and plans are starting to be realized. Teams seem to be preparing for their trip on The Yukon. It is a very flat, windy, cold and boring part of the journey. When dogs are rested, well fed, and prepared they can do well on this stretch. Of course, no one can predict the weather. 

I hear RYAN REDINGTON did fall asleep and fell off his sled. PAIGE DROBNY came along and gave RYAN a ride to help find his team. They did find them and they all got to the checkpoint no worse for the wear.

JASON MACKEY is in the top 10 and took 11 hours from CRIPPLE to RUBY. He said there was a lot of hill climbing so he did take stops to rest the dogs and feed them. 

JESSIE HOLMES is in RUBY. He said he will put coats on his dogs when he leaves RUBY. This is to keep the dogs muscles warm. 

MATT HALL was going through RUBY and  possibly taking his 8 hr. mandatory rest by GALENA. 

It is now time to decide where, within these next few checkpoints, to take that mandatory 8 hr. stop.

The two commentators BRUCE LEE and GREG HEISLER were in RUBY reporting and interviewing. They thought TRAVIS BEALS' team looked great. TRAVIS' dream, since childhood, has been to win the IDITAROD. BRUCE said he thought TRAVIS pushes the edge. That seems to be the mantra of the top contenders. One has to step up both physically and mentally and push just a bit further than everyone else. He thinks thats what makes the contender/champion. Then again, you can't "push" too soon or the dogs and the musher may loose that edge those last difficult 200 miles. YOU NEED A PLAN!!

BRUCE LEE, commentator, is an experienced musher who has won the YUKON QUEST and has been very competitive in the IDITAROD. He passes a lot of his knowledge and experience on to all of us (couch contenders).

KALTAG is reporting temps of -20 and 30 mile an hour winds!!! Ouch!!

Standings at 11pm EST are: TRAVIS BEALS (in to GALENA), MATT HALL, DALLAS SEAVEY, PETE KAISER, JESSIE HOLMS, PAIGE DROBNY, RYAN REDINGTON are all out of RUBY.     NIC PETIT, HUNTER KEEFE and JASON MACKEY are IN RUBY. 

Not having much success with pictures tonight so I'll try on another page.

nice dog photo

CRIPPLE checkpoint

NIC PETIT 2nd into CRIPPLE

DALLAS SEAVEY

"Sticks" I spoke of: markers for the teams--orange reflectors, blue ribbons for wind

CRIPPLE checkpoint

                                              
         

 #5 IDITAROD THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2024

DALLAS SEAVEY covered 73 miles from OPHIR to CRIPPLE in 14.5 hours with a 4 hour rest. That was at approx  7mph.  His team came in very energetic and hungry. This area is flat and quite monotonous. Difficult for a tired musher who, in the past, has fallen off the sled. Can't quite remember who that was. 

Now we will see a lot of leap-frogging as some teams have had their 24 hour rest, others traveling on and a few with 3-4 hour rests. 

**I will show you a picture of the "sticks" that mark the trail. They have an orange reflector on them to make them visible in the dark and a blue loose band that can indicate wind for the mushers as they travel the trail. Crossed sticks are closed trails, two sticks together indicate a curve--right side sticks show a right turn and v.v. These sticks can be a vital sign for teams at night, in a storm and many other reasons. Pic on next page--hopefully.

CRIPPLE is at 475 miles with 500 to go to NOME. The temp have begun to drop  -7 degrees leaving a starry night sky with perhaps an aurora in the works??? Let's hope.

TRAVIS BEALS received some antibiotics in TAKOTNA and has begun to feel a bit better. Thats good news.

The standings as of 11:30 pm EST (6 to finish their 24 hr. rest, one is DALLAS with the penalty adding 2 extra hours for him). 3 teams are in MCGRATH, 6 teams in TAKOTNA, 9 in CRIPPLE and the rest in OPHIR.                                                                                                                                                                

STANDINGS:

NIC PETIT, TRAVIS BEALS, JESSIE HOLMES, PAIGE DROBNY, DALLAS SEAVEY, RYAN REDINGTON, PETE KAISER, MATT HALL, HUNTER KEEFE, JESSIE ROYER. 

MILLE PORSILD is in 13th place and climbing--she was 17th. Just FYI --JASON MACKEY 12th. 

I will print some pictures now from ROHN to CRIPPLE.

ROHN checkpoint

Extra sleds at the checkpoint

IDITAROD trail

OPHIR checkpoint

ROHN checkpoint- burning straw

 Day #4 IDITAROD WEDNESDAY MARCH 6, 2024

Some teams will rest here in MCGRATH checkpoint. There is an airplane hanger for shelter with cover pads on the floor for resting. There are snacks, drinks, power for GPS, phones, music, headlamps and earbuds. They also have huge water tanks the mushers can use for cooking, dog meals etc. Good facility to stop for a dog and musher rest. Then 18 miles from MCGRATH to TAKOTNA. 

As of 5:30 pm EST DALLAS was out of OPHIR in first place then JESSIE HOLMES, MATT, JEFF, NIC PETIT all in OPHIR. 

There were 14 in TAKOTNA, 8 in MCGRATH, rest of the teams are in NIKOLAI. JOSH ROBBINS, a rookie, is in last place. This is unusual!! At least the last 5 or 6 usually are quite far behind, but in this race they seem to be grouped together. 

 Mushers can send extra sleds to checkpoints large enough to have planes land to bring larger equipment like sleds. Drop bags are sent, before the race, packed by the mushers themselves, for anything they think they may need. 

ISAAC TEAFORD was in MCGRATH with a broken sled. This happened in The BURN. DALLAS sent a sled here but didn't need it and gave the sled to ISAAC to use.

KATTI JO FALLER interviewed SEAN WILLIAMS in MCGRATH. He will take his 24 here. He has had some experience in the IDITAROD. 3 years ago he was ready to go and his Mom got sick so he had to pull out on the day of the race. The next year he was one of the mushers that got STUCK in a major storm at WHITE MOUNTAIN and had to be rescued. That meant he had to scratch (disqualified) along with many others like KATTI JO. Then last year he had a baby so he was home. This year he saw that a few of the teams that he was in the storm at WHITE MT with were signing up. That inspired him and he began his preparation for this race.  He said there was a lot of snow in The Gorge and one open water area. He was astounded when he lead dog just easily jumped over the water and, as he was the leader, the others did the same. He had never seen that before. He mentioned The BURN was full of exposed dirt and not a fun ride. He was still smiling through it all!!

TAKOTNA is mile 329 with 646 miles to go to NOME. As I have said, many times, TAKOTNA is one of my favorite places. Hank and I spent a week here some years ago volunteering. The people in the community were so friendly and fun. I helped cook!!! This is a popular stop for a 24 hour mandatory layover as the facilities are great and the food is wonderful. Used to be known,and still is, for the pies. I remember MITCH SEAVEY coming in and requesting a steak. They grilled up one huge hunk of steak for him!!

JESSIE ROYER will take her 24 hr layover in TAKOTNA. JESSIE said all went well till NIKOLAI and on to MCGRATH. She said the trail was bad and could only go about 2 mph. Then from MCGRATH to TAKOTNA she was carrying two dogs in her sled--130 extra pounds with her, not pulling. She said SHE got "beat up" on the trail that was bad--not so much the dogs.

PAIGE DROBNY was in TAKOTNA and was very happy her team seemed very strong and doing well. The area of The BURN was most difficult for her. She was glad to be in TAKOTNA.

MILLE PORSILD is in 15th position coming into TAKOTNA. This info is for HENRY--he is cheering for her. 

TRAVIS BEALS' team is doing fine but TRAVIS is sick. Haven't heard any more. 

The big news today was about DALLAS SEAVEY'S penalty. The authorities said he did not dispatch the moose properly. He tried his best to gut the animal but apparently it was not cleaned to their satisfaction. The laws in Alaska on this type of situation are very strict. The meat has to be dressed properly to give to the community. His penalty is two hours added to his 24 hour mandatory rest.

It is now 2am EST (I know!! I stay up late!!) and the weather in MCGRATH is 17 degrees and snowing lightly. Same weather in TAKOTNA. Only a difference of 18 miles. 

The standings have changed a bit:

DALLAS remains first into CRIPPLE where he received the GCI Dorothy Page half way award. He has a choice of $3,000 in gold nuggets or a smartphone of choice and a year of free GCI mobile service. This also comes with a trophy. I'll let you know what his choice was. 

NIC PETIT  is out of OPHIR and JESSIE, MATT and JEFF are into OPHIR. 6 other teams are in OPHIR, 17 are in TAKOTNA and the rest are in MCGRATH. 

coming into MCGRATH

still looking for an aurora--may be too warm

sunset by MCGRATH

 I will have more pictures tomorrow. 

 (cont'd) TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2024

After leaving the ROHN checkpoint they travel up the KUSKOKWIN RIVER then a short distance back on land then headed to THE BURN. This can be a tough area to travel. Usually there is little to no snow for 30 miles which is typical for this area. There are also some very narrow areas which makes any deviation from the trail almost impossible. Some veterans say do The Gorge and The Burn in one run to get most of the treacherous parts out of the way. 

MILLE PORSILD was the first to arrive in NIKOLAI and won the Alaska Air Transit Spirit Award. Her gift was a pair of beaver fur musher gloves with beadwork on moose hide. These were handmade by a NIKOLAI resident. 

One of the mandatory rests will be coming up, probably between MCGRATH, TAKOTNA, OPHIR and CRIPPLE. Then a mandatory 8 hour rest on the YUKON.

They will be traveling through the BUFFALO TUNNELS , POST GLACIER and the FAREWELL BURN. This area can also be difficult with the incessant winds blowing any snow leaving icy rocks to dodge. The warmer temps are also making any snowy area soft. 

I always wondered if there really were any buffalo in the buffalo tunnels. You can ask MITCH SEAVEY, DALLAS' Dad. He came upon a buffalo in the tunnels that caused him some difficulty during a race. There is a "taste" of everything in this race!!!

The standing have changed a little since this afternoon:

JESSIE HOLMES, MATT HALL, TRAVIS BEALS, RYAN REDINGTON, DALLAS SEAVEY, HUNTER KEEFE, MILLE PORSILD, PETE KAISER..... Most of these teams will be headed or are in MCGRATH. 

Running last is JOSHUA ROBBINS. He is still in ROHN. 

Drone view around RAINY PASS

DALLAS SEAVEY in ROHN

ROHN checkpoint looks like a nativity scene!!!!

coming into ROHN