More Challengers Arrive in Kaltag,Mitch Seavey, Kelly Maixner, Joar Leifseth Ulsom

It is a busy morning here in Kaltag. More challengers are arriving. MItch came so quickly of the river, that I missed him and only saw him pack up more supplies to head down the trail. He asked the checker of how far Tripod Flats cabin is, ” 28 miles ” came the answer. That is the spot where Aliy Zirkle also seems to be resting. It breaks the 75 Mile run to Unalakleet up nicely. I have slept in that cabin a few times myself. It also has the advantage that there is a creek with accessible water in walking distance. And if you get very lucky, someone has been in the cabin overnight and it is warm. In 2009 when I arrived, there was even a half full pot with still lukewarm water on the woodstove. THAT was a real bingo, as it kickstarted making dogfood for the team much quicker.

Kelly Maixner was the next team to come off the river and for a short while both teams were parked next to each other in the checkpoint. Kelly is putting in a very strong race. He also did not linger, dropped a dog and continued down the trail. It must be a very nice feeling for him to run in the Top 10 and to hold his own. He is in very good company on the trail.

And then a face I had not seen since Takotna appeared, no other than Joar Leifseth Ulsom. I had been wondering where he was, after his strong finish last year. Joar decided to camp in Kaltag and pulled in next to Aaron Burmeister.

Aaron seeing me said: ” Hey Sebastian I need your advice “. Governor is limping with a sore triceps, take a look.” So he waked the dog for me to see. It is a dangerous thing to give advice. Govnov… as I lovingly call him is one of the superstars in Aaron’s team. I ran him in 2011. Hell of a dog. Always happy. But undeniably he had a hitch in his gait. I told Aaron,”He is not your superstar anymore when he is limping. ” It is a long run with a lot of moguls for the first 20 miles. Although a triceps issue usually can be massaged out, this next run is tough. So Aaron decided to the safe side and took his harness off and Govnov will get to ride with the Idirarod Air Force. At this point in the race, there is no more room for question marks in your team, neither the time to baby a dog. Aliy Zirkle has been dropping a few, Jeff King left two dogs here in Kaltag. It’s game time. The race is heating up even more!

Enjoy the shots of the 3 teams coming in.