Who’s leading the race? In the early days and miles of the race, it’s a mathematical challenge to know who’s leading the race. But once the teams have taken the long twenty-four hour layover, the picture comes into focus. When a driver declares the team’s mandatory rest, they’ll be staying put for a full twenty-four …
The Siberians and a whole lot of other teams are resting in McGrath. Hank Debruin came off the Kuskokwim RIver Wednesday afternoon at 16:52 followed by Karen Ramstead at 17:26. Folks tend to flock to the checker’s station to see the handsome Siberians. Both teams came in with a lot of spirit – tails and …
Eight hours after the PenAir Spirit of Alaska award was presented, thirty more teams have made their way into the checkpoint of McGrath. John Baker followed Aliy Zirkle by about half an hour. Baker, Zirkle and nearly the entire front half of the field continued right on to Takotna, 18 miles up the trail. It’s …
Next to the checker and vet team that would greet Zirkle stood PenAir Excutive, Danny Seybert holding the coveted Spirit Mask that’s presented to the first musher to McGrath. PenAir has presented the award since the mid 90’s. He confirmed that Aliy is the first woman to earn the award. The spirit mask was …
Flying over the Alaska Range in a Cessna is a trip! The two hour flight is filled with incredible scenery on clear days – including an awesome view of Denali. The mountain wasn’t out today but there was plenty of scenery going over Rainy Pass. Traveling above the trail as it runs above the Dalzell …
In just a couple of days, teams will be passing through the Yentna Station checkpoint at mile forty of the 40th Iditarod. Sixty-six mushers drew bib numbers night at the Musher Banquet. Joe Redington, known to all as the father of the Iditarod has a pair of grandsons who’ll be the bookends of the mushers …
The Juniors arrive at Yentna Station Roadhouse about the same time the snow begins to fall. They’ll take a ten-hour rest before running seventy-five miles to the finish at Willow. The trail from the Knik Lake to Yentna Station was hard and fast. These dogs are looking forward to a hearty meal and a …
The Junior Iditarod mushers have drawn their bib numbers and will be heading to the staging area on Knik Lake for the 10:00 start on Saturday February 25th. The mushers ranging in age from 14 to 17 will take a seventy-five mile route out to their layover at Yentna Station Roadhouse. After resting for ten …
Rookie musher, Silvia Furtwängler, has been mushing for twenty-seven years and was inspired to do the Iditarod after completing the 2003 Yukon Quest, another 1,000-mile race. Silvia was born in Germany and has since immigrated to Norway where she owns a tour guide business and thirty-seven sled dogs. Currently she and her sixteen Iditarod dogs …
As the sun sets this evening, there are two days left before the start of the Junior Iditarod and only 10 days until the restart of Iditarod on Willow Lake. Right now it seems to be snowing all around us except for this break in the clouds to the west. Musher Kirk Barnum from Idaho …
