Linwood Fiedler 2019 Restart in Willow

Linwood Fiedler arrived in Nome at 03:09 on Thursday March 14th in twelfth place.  This marks Fiedler’s 25th race and 21st finish.  He made the run in 10 days, 12 hours and 9 minutes with an average speed of 3.91 miles per hour.  He had 11 very enthusiastic energetic dogs in harness at the Burled Arch.

Fiedler summed up his trip saying that at least 200 miles were really a test for veterans and rookies alike.  He listed a bunch of incidents – 30 miles of no snow and tussocks getting into Iditarod, gangline breaking out of Rohn, 56 miles of overflow between Eagle Island and Kaltag and high winds going over Little McKinley last night.  As Fielder shared all of these challenges with the Insider Crew, his dogs were barking, lunging into their harnesses and just plain showing off for the crowd that was out to greet them.

Linwood says, ”Mushing is what surrounds our life at the Fiedler home.  I have been fortunate to have the support of the best wife and family a person could ask for.  After many runs to Nome with the hardships and victories it has brought me, it’s always been the love of my family and the connection I have with my dogs that get me through.”

Linwood’s Iditarod career began in 1989.  He’s had five top ten finishes.  He took runner up honors in 2001 behind Doug Swingley.  Fiedler recorded his best time to Nome in 2017 on the hard packed trail of the Fairbanks run.

Fiedler is the co-founder of Arctic Paws for Service, a service dog organization which assists Alaskan families in knowing the healing powers of service dogs.  

Wonder how long it took Fiedler’s peppy pups to quiet down in the dog yard.  They were as animated and jazzed as any temps that’s made Nome.