What makes Iditarod fun for spectators are the small mysterious elements that today’s technology can’t unravel. As Keaton Loebrich and Emily Ford approached Nome, their markers on GPS Tracker were stacked right on top of each other. With mushers wearing hoods and face gear to protect against the cold, the announcer at the arch didn’t know if it was Keaton or Emily coming down Front Street until the bib number became visible.
Keaton Loebrich claimed 17th place with a time of 13 days, 1 hour and 30 minutes with 11 dogs in harness . He parked along the right fence of the chute knowing Emily would be only a few minutes behind. Emily’s 10 dogs took their place on the left half of the chute. It’s not unusual for two teams to share the chute at the finish. It was the custom for the Berington Twins to come to the chute together when both were racing.
As soon as Keaton finished his gear check and signed off the trail, he departed to the Nome dog lot. It will be a bit of a push for these two to make the Finisher’s Banquet as it will start in just over three hours from their arrival in Nome. They’ll take care of their dogs with the help of their handlers then they might want to shower and put on fresh clothes for the festivities at the Nome Rec Center.
Emily Ford arrive in 18th place five minutes behind Keaton, finishing the race in 13 days, 1 hour and 35 minutes. Ford had 10 dogs in harness who were jumping, barking and wagging tails during the gear check and the arch interview. Being out of doors is important to Emily. She’s no stranger to adventuring in the winter and covering long distances. Iditarod was a way for her to be with the land and with dogs all at once. Iditarod was me and my dogs camping with vets available as needed which she considered the perfect combination.
Loebrich left White Mountain at 03:02 this morning. His run to Safety took almost 7 hours. He and Emily checked into Safety at 10:00 and departed at 10:05. Loebrich covered the 22 miles to Nome in 3 hours and 25 minutes.
Ford left White Mountain at 19:08 yesterday. Her run to Safety took 14 hours and 52 minutes. Her run from Safety to Nome took 3 hours and 30 minutes. From the tracker, it appeared that they stopped at the crest of Cape Nome to enjoy the view, perhaps reflect on the journey and likely snack the dogs.
Loebrich hails from Michigan but now calls Fairbanks home. After serving in the Marines, Loebrich went to school in Colorado for Astrophysics then studied finance in Michigan. His life went to the dogs after a trip to Alaska. He fell in love with the state, met his wife and was introduced to mushing. Mushing has become his passion. Loebrich and his wife operate Star Gazers Racing.
Ford of Duluth, Minnesota has always wanted to live in Alaska during the winter. For Emily, Alaska seemed to be the most wild place to go on wild adventures. She headed to Alaska with her partner, Anna Hennessy, and landed at Shameless Huskies Kennel in Willow for Anna to pursue her dream of running the Iditarod. Emily fell in love with the dogs and the adventures of mushing but felt that being a handler was as far as she’d go in the sport. Her first race, the Goose Bay 150, changed her mind. After completing the Copper Basin 300 and the Kobuk 440, Ford was Iditarod qualified.
Emily is an experienced hiker and skier with lots of miles on her hiking boots and skies. In the winter of 2021 she solo hiked the 1,200-mile Ice Age Trail through Wisconsin. She has also skied across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area of northern Minnesota. Through running the Iditarod, Emily intends to show that the outdoors is for everyone regardless of race, gender Identity or upbringing. She says, “Following in the footsteps of North Pole expeditioner Matthew Henson and Iditarod finishers Becca Moore, Newton Marshall and Ralph Bradley, I want to continue to represent black people in cold places.”
