Landed in McGrath and was mighty happy to be on the ground where the action is. The first person I saw at the airport was DeeDee Jonrowe. DeeDee never lacks for words but today she shared a condensed version regarding her decision to scratch. Before the race, she promised herself and her family that if she had any doubts about traversing the technical portions of the trail safely, she would scratch and that’s exactly what she did. She chose to put family responsibilities ahead of her own personal desire to complete the race. DeeDee said, “I’m bruised but I’m not broken and I will be back on the Iditarod trail. For DeeDee in this particular Iditarod, discretion was the better part of valor.
I hiked to the checkpoint to see who was camped between the Community Center and the Kuskokwim River. Seriously, I thought I was seeing double when I looked at the first two mushers but no, it was the Beringtons. Kristi attributed her success on the “challenging” portion of the trail to her dogs being in tune with what she asked of them. They understood “EASY” and they understood “WHOA” and they understood EASY-WHOA.” Together they made it through and it was a real team effort. Asking Anna the same question, she replied that she was successful because she gets on and off the sled in tight situations to maneuver the sled and keep from crashing. As a musher, she’s very nimble and quick – just like her athletes. The Berington dogs were up off the straw and ready to leave. A little earlier, the athletes were offered a broth with fish chunks that was ravenously devoured. The Beringtons have yet to take their long required rest.
Charlie Benja was parked right behind the Beringtons. He had a lot of gear neatly organized on the ground next to his sled, sort of unpacking, sorting and repacking. His sled was damaged and he’d be changing sleds before he left for Takotna checkpoint. Charlie seemed to have one or two of everything in his sled and I suspect his wheel dogs were keeping an eye on what he chose to transfer to the new sled and what he chose to send home by return mail. From his comments, Benja would definitely error on the side of survival rather than leaving something behind that might make a difference in his health and well-being later on. Did he need three neck gators to get from McGrath to Takotna? Probably not. Should he leave two behind and wear one? He chose a compromise, wear one, put one in the sled and leave one behind. I thought of stories I’ve heard about Joe Redington Sr. who was known for heavily loaded sleds and carrying everything including the kitchen sink. Redington was asked when he was going to quit carrying so much in his sled. Joe smiled and simply replied, “Well, I’m alive yet aren’t I?” Charlie attributed his success on the trip through survivor land to “being one step ahead.” Let down for even a second and the next decision you made would be either wrong of too late. Charlie put new runners on the borrowed sled, finished packing and followed the Beringtons out of the checkpoint at 15:44 with 15 dogs.
Travis Beals was camped right across the road from the checkpoint. He’s easy to spot with his red and white sled bag. He indicated he was feeling bruised up and wanted to give his dogs a good rest along with some extra special care. Travis spent some time massaging the shoulder of a leader then activated some hand warmer packets and slipped them into pockets sewn inside a dog coat. It might have been my imagination but I think the dog actually smiled at Travis.
In other good news, Karen Ramstead announced that her hand isn’t broken but sprained. She’s sporting a splint to allow the damaged tendons and ligaments to heal. After the injury, she had pretty limited use of her left hand. Routine tasks like opening zip lock bags and putting booties on require the ability to close and grip with your fingers. And then there is the small issue of hanging onto the sled.
Mike Williams Jr. arrived late afternoon. Hugh Neff and Mike Ellis departed McGrath during the supper hour and Newton Marshall who arrived early evening is tending to his dogs. A couple hours from now he’ll be inside enjoying a hot meal and then taking some rest for himself.
Late this afternoon, I noticed a man and woman approaching the checkpoint. The man was pulling a little plastic kid’s sled and the woman a plate. The sled was loaded with very precious cargo – four cream pies. The plate the woman carried held a tall stack of raspberry crisp. Mushers and volunteers appreciate the generosity of the McGrath community in hosting the checkpoint and providing such delicious treats as this couple did.
