Iditarod 2015 – Day 10

by Bryan

8 comments

1 JuanitaM { 03.18.15 at 6:42 pm }

Oh, I didn’t see that Jim had scratched! Too bad, and he was almost two thirds of the way, too. It’s got to be disappointing when you get that far after spending so much money and so much time training. Oh well, I wonder if he’ll be back next year. At some point, he has to decide that it’s time, I suppose.

I wonder if any of the mushers got to see those fabulous northern lights? Wouldn’t that be something to see out in the middle of nowhere? I guess you’ve seen them a lot since you were in Alaska for so long. Maybe one day I’ll have a chance at it.

Noticed that Thomas Waerner is only slightly ahead of Jason Campeau, so it’s a tight race to see who will be the first rookie in. That will be the 18th position which seems very respectable out of a field of 68. I guess he’ll go back to Norway pretty happy with his first race.

2 Bryan { 03.18.15 at 8:54 pm }

It was probably a frostbite issue for Jim, as a lot of the veterans have been talking about it, not just Lance. DeeDee has 6 frostbitten fingers and it slowed her right down. He got pretty banged up last year and there are always circulation problems when you get older.

The aurora provided the main source of light at night for many of the checkpoints. They are really amazing when you see them out the window of an aircraft above 30,000 feet.

Thomas and Jason are setting up a sprint finish.

3 JuanitaM { 03.20.15 at 10:48 am }

DeeDee made it to Nome, frostbite and all. But it makes you wonder how someone can hold onto the sled with frostbitten fingers? Really??? At the first hint of frostbite, you could wave me goodbye. In my opinion, it really isn’t worth it (yeah, that’s probably heretical thinking to a racer), and especially at her age she should be taking as good care of herself as she would one of her dogs. Would she let her dogs run with frostbite?

And I’m not being “age-ist” with that remark. It’s just that it’s harder to bounce back or overcome health issues as people age. It’s a great thing that people of all ages participate in the Iditarod, but caring for yourself should be a priority as well. It’s the only body you’re going to have, so why damage yourself? Curious.

4 Bryan { 03.20.15 at 2:13 pm }

Competition makes people stupid. Frostbite damages nerves and makes you more sensitive to both heat and cold. It will be months before she can get things out of her freezer that wouldn’t affect most people, and she will have to reduce the temperature of the water she washes her hands with. Both will feel like a new burn. I’ve been out of the Arctic for decades but my hands still “remember”.

It has to be very important to you to deal with these problems more than once.

5 JuanitaM { 03.21.15 at 10:53 am }

“Competition makes people stupid.”

Yep, that sounds about right.

It’s not as if she hasn’t finished this very same race 29 times and came in second on two occasions. Woman has nothing to prove to anybody at this point. I think her fans (of which I am one 🙂 ) would rather she take care of herself and come back to fight another day.

Sorry to hear that your hands still “remember” the arctic in that way. A permanent record, so to speak. And here I’ve been complaining about Virginia’s January and February. How in the world did you stand being there for so long? If I ever go to Alaska, it will be for a nice visit in July. Period.

6 Bryan { 03.21.15 at 8:22 pm }

The Air Force has fixed length tours, but you are essentially there as long as they went you to be there. You learn to be careful and you get used to it over time. Hard-core mushers re-injure their hands every winter. with frostbite to take care of their dogs. You need bare hands to do certain things.

If you go in July take a lot of sunscreen , buckets of insect repellent, and a sleep mask. The long periods of daylight produce hot, humid heat at the lower altitudes, and mosquitoes in hordes.

7 JuanitaM { 03.23.15 at 5:58 pm }

” you are essentially there as long as they went you to be there.”

That brings up something I’ve always wondered about. Do you ever have the opportunity with the Air Force to put in for a transfer? Or maybe your skills were so specialized there was no other logical place. You certainly do seem to have led an interesting life. The old “Chinese” proverb would be proud. 🙂

Okay, so apparently there is no good time to visit Alaska. LOL.

8 Bryan { 03.23.15 at 8:41 pm }

May and June are the best times to visit. It’s warm, but not hot, and the long days aren’t oppressive yet. The problem with fall is that there are a lot of wildlife mating battles going on, so you really need to carry a gun outside of the cities.

I was in an extremely specialized field that severely limited the number of places that I could go to about a half dozen in the world. I couldn’t move unless someone else moved or retired and created a vacancy. I went to a lot of other places but it was only temporary duty for weeks or a few months, not an actual change of station.