Hello Boys and Girls,

There’s not a quiet moment at Race Headquarters!  No matter where you look, any time of day, something is happening that signals that the race will soon be starting!

An example of that today was the arrival of a big truck that was filled with race communications supplies!

The big truck pulled up and volunteers immediately went to work unpacking the truck and stacking big, black,  bins of equipment along side the outside wall of the Millennium Hotel.  I quickly grabbed my camera and took a couple pictures because I was witnessing the power of the Iditarod volunteers!

The volunteers are the backbone of the race!

Quickly the volunteers set about the task of emptying the truck of the black bins, better known as ‘COMMS’ boxes.  COMMS is the nick name for Race Communications.

What’s in side the bins?

Boys and Girls, the answer to that is interesting.  The bins or COMMS boxes are filled with important equipment that goes out to each checkpoint along the Iditarod Trail.  The equipment is needed to help bring the information from the Iditarod Trail— to your classroom.  Volunteers work in COMMS and relay the information (time in or out, number of dogs) from the Iditarod Trail back to Anchorage.

So, the boxes are filled with lots of important gear— supplies of all kinds– like tools, wires, lap top computers, routers, phone equipment, tape, pencils, paper, and anything and everything that the COMMS volunteers might need to do their job.  When setting up and maintaining race communications, there are bound to be problems.  The bins contain supplies needed so the volunteers have resources and tools to trouble shoot, fix, keep race communications working so there is a direct line of communication from the checkpoint to the Iditarod Headquarters.

There are COMMS volunteers in every checkpoint.  They make sure that you know important race information!

Lots of Tail Wags,

Zuma