Race Resources

Engaging lessons based on Insider video clips.


Our four-legged correspondents write for all ages..


Collection of all things Iditarod.

    

    
    
    
    

Latest Race Resources Posts

Zoom Lens – Brazilian Colors

There’s a guy out there with green and yellow harnesses and sled bag. Being from Wisconsin, I thought he might be a Packer backer but such is not the case. Luan Ramos Marques is from Brazil. The Brazilian Flag has a blue starry globe on a background of green and yellow. A banner with the …

Spotlight Unalakleet

Unalakleet, pop. 750, is on the Norton Sound, an inlet of the Bering Sea. The sound was explored by Captain James Cook in 1778. He named the inlet after Sir Fletcher Norton, Speaker of the British House of Commons. The people of UNK are accustomed to winds and extreme cold in the winter. The community …

Zoom Lens – Skiers and Sibes in UNK

Monday evening and two races were going on in Unalakleet.  It’s an annual affair in Unalakleet, both the Iditarod and the cross country ski race.  Ski Instructor, Nancy Persons, and the ski team host their ski race across the slough from the checkpoint.  The children participate in ski school on Saturdays from the first snow …

Zoom Lens – Pizza for Failor

Matt Failor, driving the Buser “B” team parked and went to work making them comfortable. The temperature was in the teens but add the sunshine and it felt much warmer. Matt provided his athletes with plenty of cool water, kibble and frozen snack sticks and well as straw for a recharging nap. He planned to …

Zoom Lens – Sought After Booties

DeeDee Jonrowe is parked next to one of the man-made berms in Unalakleet. She’s changing to a coast sled while the eleven dogs on her team enjoy a nap on straw. A huge shell is printed on Jonrowe’s sled bag signifying Shell Exploaration’s sponsorship. Then I spotted her booties. Hot pink with a shell imprint …

Zoom Lens – Parti-eyed

Take a close look at the eyes of these dog. You’ll see the iris is mostly blue but there is some brown pigment mixed with the blue. It’s not unusual for a dog to have one blue eye and one brown eye. Those dogs a referred to as “bi-colored.” When a single eye has both …

Zoom Lens – Dog Drop Hub at McGrath

A short distance from the checkpoint is the hub for dropped dogs. Dogs dropped at smaller checkpoints are flown to this hub via bush plane. From here the dropped dogs are loaded onto a larger plane and flown to Anchorage. Currently there are about 130 canine athletes waiting to show their boarding pass for the …

Zoom Lens – Red Lantern Leaves McGrath

Cindy Abbott booted her athletes chatting with every dog, offering praise and a little preview of the next part of the trail. Her reward was often a cool wet canine nose nudge and just as often, a big canine, too quick to dodge lick across the face. These dogs are affectionate and don’t mind showing …

Zoom Lens – Chukchi Dogs use Half Harness

It’s the harness that connects the dog power to the sled and there are a variety of harnesses out there. Mikhail Telpin uses a harness called the half harness. It’s really a musher, dog choice as to what harness is used. This style harness is good for preventing harness rub. It’s also sometimes used for …

Zoom Lens – Musher on the River

Consider the dichotomy – following the mushers by Ion Earth GPS Tracker, assuming arrival is imminent then heading outside to greet a human traveling by dog team. On one hand it’s the newest and greatest technology on the other it’s a form of travel dating further back than the beginning of time in Alaska. Last …