Iditarod
- Thread starter Backwoods Savage
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hossthehermit
Minister of Fire
rottiman
Minister of Fire
bogydave
Minister of Fire
Teams driving to Willow now for the restart.
I follow it, more snow & colder temps this year.
Has been a few years since a blizzard hit the race & everyone got 2 or 3 days of rest. Maybe this year.
I follow it, more snow & colder temps this year.
Has been a few years since a blizzard hit the race & everyone got 2 or 3 days of rest. Maybe this year.
When I was a kid, one of my coworkers was getting ready to to enter the Iditarod after years of training and preparation and thousands of dollars spent. A few months before the race was to begin, his kid got shot in a hunting accident and he had to cancel his plans. The kid eventually recovered and the dad could have gone, but he stayed home anyway as a show of his love for his son. That stuck with me my entire life as a model of what fatherhood was supposed to be all about. I quit that job later on in the year, but I always think of him when the race is mentioned. I hope he went on to eventually compete in what was, at the time, his great dream.
Bocefus78 said:
Beyond whatever snippets might show up in newscasts, I don't believe it is. It would be a challenging thing to try to televise, other than start/finish & maybe a checkpoint(s). I remember a couple years back there was a website anyone could access that showed a map of the trail and the current location of all the mushers out on it (GPS, of course). So far as I can tell, if you want that kind of detail in following the race these days, you'll have to pony up some $$$ and subscribe through the official website. Like so many other things, this race seems to have become a commercial franchise and the owners/promoters figured there was a potential money-making opportunity by restricting the information/coverage available, except to those who are willing to pay for it. Rick
http://iditarod.com/
bogydave
Minister of Fire
Televised here for the ceremonial start in Anchorage & the re-start in willow.
Can get it online.
I got the GPS tracker package tis year so I'm following the race by bib #s overlayed on google earth.
Few of us are posting updates here: (when we are awake
) (I made it to 3 Am last night then was dead)
http://www.iditarodforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3262&p=44150#p44150
Can get it online.
I got the GPS tracker package tis year so I'm following the race by bib #s overlayed on google earth.
Few of us are posting updates here: (when we are awake
) (I made it to 3 Am last night then was dead)http://www.iditarodforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3262&p=44150#p44150
ABC used to have coverage of the race but don't know if they still do or not. Like Dave, I got the GPS tracker so I can follow the race a bit better.
bogydave
Minister of Fire
Backwoods Savage said:
Did you check out the satellite view, top right?
Some areas have a good picture of the terrain.
I'm glad you're enjoying this sport. The last thing I want to see in March is 12 °F and lots of snow.
jimbom
Combustion Analyzer
The Frozen Chosen
New Member
Dennis, keep your eye on Alyi Zirkle .....lookin' good with a strong team and a "plan". Lance took his 24 hr. early but maybe it will pay off. The snow is deep here up to the Y/K delta,or there abouts' not sure after that.
I agree. She has looked good the whole race. The Seaveys got ahead of her so she did not stop in Ruby and right now is almost to Galena. I suspect some will be taking their 8 hour very soon. It sounds like the snow south of Cripple was the worst. I wonder what it is like along the coast. Should be some solid ice for sure. Right now Mitch looks the strongest. I wouldn't count King out of it yet either. But the top 10 really looks good.
bogydave
Minister of Fire
Aliy in the lead but has yet to take her mandatory 8 hrs on the Yukon.
Mitch left Ruby with his 8 hrs done, has gained some ground on Aliy since he left.
Dallas just left Ruby, his 8 hrs done there too. Very fast team.
Next out is John Baker with his 8 done. His best racing is yet to come, he & his team are coastal Alaskans, Kotzebue.
King is fast after a long rest. he may play into it if the top 4 have problems.
JohnBurmiester, home town is Nome, another good coast team.
to me the top 5 are , Zirkle, the 2 Seaveys, Baker & Burmeister.
Just 1/2 way, lots to play out yet.
Weather so far not an issue.
Lots of snow so the trail is soft,
71 yr old Jim Lanier won the 1/2 way gold.
74 yr old Dan Seavey Dad & Grandpa of the 2 front runners. Doing well & having fun. My Red Lantern pick.
http://iditarod.com/race/current-standings/
Mitch left Ruby with his 8 hrs done, has gained some ground on Aliy since he left.
Dallas just left Ruby, his 8 hrs done there too. Very fast team.
Next out is John Baker with his 8 done. His best racing is yet to come, he & his team are coastal Alaskans, Kotzebue.
King is fast after a long rest. he may play into it if the top 4 have problems.
JohnBurmiester, home town is Nome, another good coast team.
to me the top 5 are , Zirkle, the 2 Seaveys, Baker & Burmeister.
Just 1/2 way, lots to play out yet.
Weather so far not an issue.
Lots of snow so the trail is soft,
71 yr old Jim Lanier won the 1/2 way gold.
74 yr old Dan Seavey Dad & Grandpa of the 2 front runners. Doing well & having fun. My Red Lantern pick.
http://iditarod.com/race/current-standings/
bogydave
Minister of Fire
The Frozen Chosen
New Member
No dog gone yet as far as I know, they are all still attached to their harnesses. It did happen last year but they found it fine a couple days later. One musher from Sweden I think (first year in Alaska and running the ididarod) lost one of her dogs in a parking lot in Anchorage getting ready for the race this year. Maybe that counts I guess BG. Some kid lured it into his garage with a PB&J sandwich and slammed the door. Dog was reunited and on the trail now I assume. Probably staring at another dogs butt-hole as punishment.
Most of the mushers have now got in their mandatory 8 hours layover so now it is on to the coast! That is where they will switch to a faster sled and only God knows what conditions they will hit along the coast with some of the route being over the ice.
Zirkle just got in to Kaltag so now it is off the river and head to the coast. It is a fairly long stretch here and there is some dollars to be made for the first one to reach the coast. The top half dozen racers look really good. I do wonder what happened to Mitch Seavey last night as he appeared to stop for a long time but he is back into the thick of things. Just got word that King is back on the trail. Tonight could really get interesting.
Zirkle just got in to Kaltag so now it is off the river and head to the coast. It is a fairly long stretch here and there is some dollars to be made for the first one to reach the coast. The top half dozen racers look really good. I do wonder what happened to Mitch Seavey last night as he appeared to stop for a long time but he is back into the thick of things. Just got word that King is back on the trail. Tonight could really get interesting.
bogydave
Minister of Fire
The climb up & over to Unalakleet is a tough run.
Then mushing on the coast into a 10 to 15 MPH wind will be a big change for dogs & mushers.
Baker won it on the coast last year.
Aliy has a good lead & seems her team needs less rest. She's the team to beat right now.
The Seavys's teams are fast but seem to need more rest. Not sure Dallas has pushed hard yet. Unalakleet will be time to push.
Burmeister grew up in Nome, so he's headed to home turf.
King has a fast team, but I think he needs more rest than the dogs.
Very interesting night, anoter late night with little sleep. I'm exhausted,
The mushers have to be running on instinct, near exhaustion. Mental mistakes now can change the race.
Unalakleet weather:
http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClic...052734375&site=afg&unit=0&lg=en&FcstType=text
Then mushing on the coast into a 10 to 15 MPH wind will be a big change for dogs & mushers.
Baker won it on the coast last year.
Aliy has a good lead & seems her team needs less rest. She's the team to beat right now.
The Seavys's teams are fast but seem to need more rest. Not sure Dallas has pushed hard yet. Unalakleet will be time to push.
Burmeister grew up in Nome, so he's headed to home turf.
King has a fast team, but I think he needs more rest than the dogs.
Very interesting night, anoter late night with little sleep. I'm exhausted,
The mushers have to be running on instinct, near exhaustion. Mental mistakes now can change the race.
Unalakleet weather:
http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClic...052734375&site=afg&unit=0&lg=en&FcstType=text
You are right Dave. The race is entering the point where sleep deprivation can take a huge toll. I also agree about King. I was surprised to see him in the race again this year and it seems others were too. At his age, rest is very important. Remember last year when one racer went off course it seems around 20 miles or so? That was a costly error and that can also happen when they cross the bay if the wind is howling and snow blowing. I recall one year when Butcher won. Racers were going to wait out the storm but she went on all by herself. She was slow but won the race.
I see Dallas Seavey's GPS must not be working as I can't find him. Ailey has had a history of petering out in the second half of the race and it appears this year she very well might overcome that.
I see Dallas Seavey's GPS must not be working as I can't find him. Ailey has had a history of petering out in the second half of the race and it appears this year she very well might overcome that.
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