Koyuk—Blogging 8 a.m. the checkpoint, There’s an uprising—-Seavey awake, alarm bells for Zirkle by Joe Runyan Our three top mushers in the checkpoint are dodging each other as Seavey prepares to exit (we think after a very welcome five hour rest) at around 8 a.m. Simultaneously, Aaron arranges to have some of his clothes stuck in …
5AM Koyuk, Aliy tests Seavey In a race that remains up for grabs, Aliy coasts into Koyuk 45 some minutes after Dallas Seavey. Discounting difference in strategy since Unalakleet, I see the end result this way: Dallas gained twenty minutes since UNK. That’s it. Aliy is still very much in the game despite the …
3 a.m. Koyuk—-Unusually Calm, lights on the ice, Seavey the Younger approaches Koyuk by Joe Runyan
3 a.m. Koyuk—-Unusually calm, lights on the ice, Seavey the Younger approaches Koyuk by Joe Runyan Flash, Dallas into Koyuk , check out the photos , and a few observations. At the checkpoint, first hand reports from local teenagers give a graphic snapshot of the storm that hit Norton Sound this winter (remember the news …
5 p.m. Shaktoolik—Seavey out of the hills and on the ice, 8 miles from Shaktoolik by Joe Runyan Our GPS experts in COMMS, plus pilot reports have Dallas out of the Blueberry hills and on ice, about 8 miles from Shaktoolik. On the map, it appears that a long spit communicates from the mainland to …
3PM Sunday Shaktoolik—Seavey mushing this way, local information in Shaktoolik by Joe Runyan
3pm Sunday Shaktoolik—Seavey mushing this way, local information on trail to Koyuk by Joe Runyan We arrive Shaktoolik at 2:30PM, about two hours after the departure of Dallas the Younger Seavey, and Aaron Burmeister. According to comm personnel here in the Shaktoolik Armory (always the most regarded sources of information because they have continuous access …
1PM—-Momentum changes, Burmeister out first, Seavey the Younger follows, next Aliy by Joe Runyan Please refer to all the exact times using the wonderful resources of the Insider, and suffer my approximations. I was in the dog yard as Burmeister and Dallas Seavey booted dogs, at the same time noting that Zirkle was behind in …
10AM UNK Sunday—Zirkle, Seavey the Younger, Burmeister, and Baker to Unk by Joe Runyan If we had our way, cameras would be running constantly to keep the pulse of what is now an extremely tight race—-featuring Aliy Zirkle, first into UNK, Dallas Seavey, 52 minutes in arrears and in appearance capable of closing the gap, …
7AM—Unalakleet—Pensive Fans Peruse Postings—Aliy maintains lead thru night by Joe Runyan Update summary: Linda, who is manning the gps computer and also recording data, is under tremendous pressure to provide second by second info. She withstands the onslaught of questions and reports, according to official times, that the gap between our race leader Aliy …
9:30 PM Saturday, Unalakleet—The Bering Sea Coast In late evening we land in Unalakleet, first village on the Bering Sea Coast. Here it feels like Hercules with yet another challenge. As we neared the coast on our airplane trip, the thick stands of spruce thinned, and gradually disappeared, revealing low brush tundra, and ice and …
2 pm Kaltag, Zirkle moves ahead of pack to Unalakleet and the Bering Sea Coast by Joe Runyan
5 PM Kaltag, Saturday Evening—-Seavey, Burmeister, Baker set to challenge Aliy on Portage to Unalakleet Zirkle made attacks from Takotna to Galena, camping obscurely outside checkpoints for 4 hour breaks, and emerged on the Yukon with what seemed like a three hour lead. Others, including Dallas Seavey, Aaron Burmeister, and Jeff King played the math …
