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King Claims the Gold Coast Award

Still a Close Race: Swingley Follows 20 Minutes Later

by Andy Moderow

03/12/2006

Surrounded by dozens of people on the Unalakleet ice, a frosted and snow covered Jeff King held up his newly acquired Wells Fargo Gold Coast Award, saying aloud to the crowd: “You guys are awesome!” With his team parked behind a windbreak, Jeff cared for each member of his team as everyone looked on, peering through their fur ruffs, observing every move he made. Bare handed, he lined his team out, put down straw, and fed each dog, making sure that all were settled in for a good mid-day sleep. An outsider to the scene would wonder how Jeff could operate in such cold conditions without gloves on: Yet along the trail it is very common for mushers to remove their gloves, even in sub zero temperatures, because it helps them get chores done quicker. In addition, after several days on the trail, the racers adapt to the conditions they are out in, almost forgetting about the cold: Quite often they can’t even accurately guess the temperature!

With the cluster of people all gathered around King on the sea ice, it almost appeared that a party had been called in his honor. If this was Jeff’s party, Doug Swingley arrived to it 20 minutes late. Parking right next to King, spectators now had two professionals to observe. There was little interaction between the two leaders of Iditarod XXXIV, but this probably had more to do with the wind whipping overhead than with any personal grievances. After completing their dog chores, each trudged up to the checkpoint building, following the unspoken rule of the trail: At a checkpoint, the dogs get cared for first – only then can the mushers care for themselves.

Once inside, the mushers signed autographs, spoke with local friends and prepared food for themselves. While attempting to get an old microwave to work, Doug Swingley answered questions for the flock of reporters that surrounded him, many trying to get an indication of how Doug viewed his chances. Luckily he provided insight in the form of words: If anyone was forced to judge his competitive chances by his ability to operate the microwave, there would be serious doubts in his ability to make this race his 5th Iditarod title.

One word sums up Swingley’s comments: Confident. He noted that just 2 days ago, King had a 4 hour lead over him: Today, he had succeeded in whittling it down to 20 minutes. When asked why he cut rest by blowing through the checkpoint of Nulato, he shook his head, as if the reporter just didn’t get it, and responded that no rest was cut; instead, no rest was planned. Video footage backs up that resting in Nulato wasn’t in his race plan; in Takotna, he revealed his plan for the Yukon River in an exclusive Iditarod Insider video. Doug seems confident that his race plan, unchanged, will have him in the lead by the time he reaches Nome: Until then, he isn’t worried about who is in the lead, and he won’t cut his rest short. The only thing he knows, in his words, is “when he will get to Nome.”

With 11 of the last 13 recipients of the Wells Fargo Gold Coast Award eventually claiming the Iditarod title that same year, probability seems to favor King. Yet Swingley continues to make up time, making a run for first. Both are extremely talented mushers with what appears to be equally talented team. One thing is clear: The winner won’t be clear any time soon, and we can all expect a great race along Norton Sound, as the frontrunners rapidly approach Nome.