Jessie Holmes reached Unalakleet checkpoint on the Bering Sea at 09:27 with 13 dogs in harness. He is the recipient of the Ryan Air Gold Coast Award. The Awards consists of $2,500 worth of gold nuggets from the Bering Sea region, a carved loon by artic Mark Tetpon and a gold pan plaque commemorating this accomplishment.
If there’s been a consistent theme for Iditarod 54, it’s been cold, Cold and COLD! Mushers say they can’t remember a race when it’s been this cold. It hasn’t been just a little below zero but it’s been significantly below the zero mark. Surprisingly, there is an upside to the cold. When it drops to frigid at night, daytime temperatures stay well below the freezing point. The cold has really helped the dogs in that they haven’t had to deal with “Heat of the Day” issues of 40 degrees but instead they’ve enjoyed daytime temperatures at zero or not much above that have been ideal for distance dogs.
There’s been a major milestone achieved in Iditarod 54. With all teams through the Galena checkpoint, there has been only one scratch. Perhaps the cold has contributed to this milestone. Back in Rainy Pass Jaye Foucher scratched citing personal reasons. She had experienced poor trail out of Skwentna, high winds near Finger Lake and a crash on the Happy River Steps that damaged her sled and caused her to lose a piece of mandatory gear. With that in her rearview mirror and the infamous Dalzell Gorge just ahead, Jaye thought it wise to call Rainy Pass her finish line.
Back in Iditarod 2024, all teams stayed on the trail to Ruby when rookie Erin Altemus from Grand Marais, MN scratched in the best interest of her dog team. The one scratch record at Ruby set in 2024 has now been extended to Galena!
Pete Kaiser of Bethel was talking dog care with Insider, specifically dog care in cold weather. He shared a couple of his strategies. First, See what the dogs need when they need it. Second, rest just before they need it. Pete says in cold weather it’s important to get calories into the dogs. Dogs with ravenous appetites do well in the cold. Personally, right now he’s hoping for slightly warmer weather and lacking that he appreciates the sun that which makes the days quite enjoyable for the humans but still cool enough for good dog performance. Pete, who earned his 10th win in the Kuskokwim 300, holds the record for most Kusko wins.
Riley Dyche, the guy who provides the ride concession at Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla, packed for taking his 24 at either Ophir or Cripple. He wanted to get as far out in front of the race as possible to get a primo resting spot. Ophir met this requirement plus he’d just completed two longer runs. While Riley was talking about how well his dogs were eating, he was interrupted by Altimus who was chewing on a bowl as if to prove the point of how well they’ve been eating. Riley commented to Insider that -35 isn’t crazy cold for the interior but it’s been many years since it’s been consistently cold for so long. He was quick to add, “But it’s better than being hot.” Riley shared his theory about leaving the 24 hour rest saying, “Never run more than 4 hours after the 24. You refresh the dogs during the 24 with rest and calories. Don’t deplete what you’ve gained. Build back with shorter runs then push hard later.”
Matt Hall has claimed 2nd place for two years running. In 2024 he finished as runner up to Dallas Seavey and in 2025 he was runner up to Jessie Holmes. He had his eye on the prize this year but currently sits in 10th place about 40 miles behind Jessie Holmes. His dogs have been eating on the light side during the first half of the race but that’s improving. During training he worked at speed of 8-8.5 mph but has been running at 7.5 mph thus far into the race. He feels the trail would support an 8 mph pace but his team is lacking energy due to fuel intake. Matt is about 3 hours off his planned schedule. Always optimistic, Matt said, “I’m trying to build up their reserves so when we get to the coast, I can play my cards.” Hall, wearing one of his trademark sweaters that he has handmade in Norway, said, “Ryan, Pete, Jeff Deeter and Wade Marrs have really nice looking teams.”
Canadian Michelle Phillips is currently running her 14th Iditarod with a perfect 13/13 record on the line. Are those her only 1,000 mile races. Nope! Michelle has done the Yukon Quest ten times. With all that long distance experience, Michelle like Jessie Royer is a veteran’s veteran. Phillips is focusing on keeping her dogs healthy and eating well while trying diligently to avoid the virus that has plagued a few teams. Michelle doesn’t think about the race. She feels it’s a mistake to look ahead, instead she prefers to run the team and the trail in front of her. What she likes best about the Iditarod is traveling with dogs. She says this her last long distance race. It’s been a tough winter and she’s tired of working so hard to get to the race. She hopes in the future to do some shorter races. Being in the middle of nowhere has allowed her to enjoy the raw beauty that surrounds her.
Gabe Dunham has a special passenger in her sled for this race. She is carrying her father’s ashes. In his time of need, Gabe put training on hold for almost six weeks to be with him. It was his desire to go to Nome, but not be spread there. He simply wanted to go for the adventure.
Sydnie Bahl’s husband, Nick, is a physician at the Mat-Su Regional Medical Center. He wanted to surprise Sydnie during her 24 in McGrath. He finished his shift at the hospital and then hopped a plane to McGrath. Sydnie would be departing McGrath at 10:48. Upon Landing in McGrath at 10:35, he sprinted to the dog year and arrived just in time to see Sydnie put her last booties on and secure the tug lines. They had time for a brief kiss and she was off. He doesn’t plan to surprise her at any other checkpoints but looks forward to seeing her under the burled arch. Nick served as the medical doctor for the recent Jr. Iditarod. Thanks Nick!
