Iditarod
Insider interviews with mushers today in McGrath has revealed a common thread – mashed potatoes. If they had been talking about dinner that would have been a good thing but they weren’t. The mushers were talking about the trail – soft trail that slowed teams down heading into Nikolai and again from Nikolai to McGrath. …
Iditarod Race Marshal, Warren Palfrey, convened a three-person panel comprised of race officials today to discuss (bib #7) Dallas Seavey’s encounter with a moose early Monday morning enroute from Skwentna to Finger Lake. After further investigation, the details of the event are as follows: A moose was dispatched approximately 14 miles from Skwentna on …
Nikolai to Ophir accurately describes the position of teams on the trail – EXCEPT, Dallas Seavey has departed Ophir for Cripple and is resting out of Ophir. Maybe the extra/unplanned rest his dogs got while he dealt with the previously mentioned moose 14 miles beyond Skwentna set him up for a longer run to his …
It’s mid-afternoon on Tuesday. While Insiders Greg Heister and Bruce Lee gave an update from Nikolai, they both agreed that the champion for 2024 would likely come from the group of 12 mushers that have reached Nikolai at this time. Statistics from past races support that statement. Time will tell but I did take a …
As the first musher to arrive in Nikolai, Mille Porsild received the Alaska Air Transit Spirit of Iditarod Award. Mille, wearing bib #12 arrived in Nikolai at 09:09 on Tuesday March 5th with 14 dogs in harness. Mille received beaver fur musher’s mitts with beadwork on moose hide (handmade by Loretta Maillelle of McGrath), a …
Veteran musher Mille Porsild (bib #12), of Denmark was the first musher to reach the Nikolai checkpoint at 9:09 a.m. today with 14 dogs in harness, winning the Alaska Air Transit Spirit of Iditarod Award. First presented in 2019 and given to the first musher to reach the McGrath checkpoint, this award will now …
Some teams have been checkpoint hoping and others have been trail camping. It’s all about preference. The only time a musher MUST stay in a checkpoint is for the mandatory rests. The 24-hour rest is coming soon – probably between McGrath, Tokotna, Ophir and Cripple. Then there is a required 8-hour rest on the Yukon …
Photographer Siri Raitto has landed on Puntilla Lake, more commonly known as Rainy Pass Checkpoint. Teams have been on a steady climb since departing Skwentna. The mountains surrounding Finger Lake give evidence of being “IN” the Alaska Range. Visit the Iditarod Photo Gallery. Enjoy this photo essay created with Siri Pics. At …
Finger Lake got its name because of its shape – long and narrow with a slight bend just like a finger – very much like your pointer finger. At one time, the checkpoint was across the lake from where it’s located today. Now the checkpoint is located right beneath Winter Lake Lodge. Back a few …
Race Officials were notified at 1:43 a.m. that Veteran Musher Dallas Seavey (bib #7) was forced to dispatch a moose in self defense after the moose became entangled with the dogs and the musher on the trail. Seavey and his team were 14 miles outside of the Skwentna checkpoint on their way to …
