Posts from — March 2017

Dallas and Mitch are leading, but they are doing it on rest. When Wade is on the trail he has the fastest team. It is going to be interesting as they head around the Norton Sound.

In the awards department Mitch Seavey scored $2000 and 25 pounds of salmon for being first into Kaltag, while Wade Marrs made $3500 in gold for being first to the ‘Gold Coast’ at Unalakleet.

Dave Branholm (60) has scratched at Kaltag.

Standings at 9:30PM CDT:

Beyond Elim
1 Mitch Seavey (16)
At Elim
2 Nicolas Petit (24)
Beyond Koyuk
3 Dallas Seavey (18)
4 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
5 Wade Marrs (29)
6 Jessie Royer (37)
Beyond Shaktoolik
7 Ray Redington Jr (14)
8 Aliy Zirkle (41)
9 Peter Kaiser (25)
10 Ralph Johannessen (39)
11 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
12 John Baker (65)
13 Michelle Phillips (9)
14 Jason Mackey (64)
15 Richie Diehl (21)
16 Katherine Keith (52)
At Shaktoolik
17 Ryan Redington (2)
18 Mats Pettersson (33)
19 Paul Gebhardt (57)
20 Robert Redington (70)^R
Beyond Unalakleet
21 Hugh Neff (50)
22 Lars Monsen (45)
23 Hans Gatt (32)
24 Rick Casillo (27)
25 Ramey Smyth (44)
26 Scott Smith (69)
27 Noah Burmeister (63)
28 Linwood Fiedler (6)
29 Ken Anderson (59)
30 Cody Strathe (5)
31 Jeff King (34)
[Read more →]

Ryan Anderson (8) scratched at Galena with 10 puppies in harness. This is bad news for Ellen Halverson as she gets back the Red Lantern and she has no need for a third one as she is already in the record book as the only person to receive two.

The preliminary report on the death of the dog Smoke during transport indicates that overheating is the probable cause of death.

Standings at 9:00PM CDT:

Beyond Unalakleet
1 Mitch Seavey (16)
At Unalakleet
2 Wade Marrs (29)
3 Nicolas Petit (24)
4 Dallas Seavey (18)
Beyond Kaltag
5 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
6 Aliy Zirkle (41)
7 Jessie Royer (37)
8 Ray Redington Jr (14)
9 Jason Mackey (64)
10 Mats Pettersson (33)
11 Richie Diehl (21)
12 Peter Kaiser (25)
13 Michelle Phillips (9)
14 John Baker (65)
15 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
16 Ralph Johannessen (39)
At Kaltag
17 Paul Gebhardt (57)
18 Katherine Keith (52)
19 Ryan Redington (2)
20 Noah Burmeister (63)
21 Ken Anderson (59)
22 Robert Redington (70)^R
23 Scott Smith (69)
24 Hugh Neff (50)
25 Lars Monsen (45)
26 Ramey Smyth (44)
27 Rick Casillo (27)
Beyond Nulato
28 Jeff King (34)
29 Ketil Reitan (11)
30 Hans Gatt (32)
31 Cody Strathe (5)
32 Linwood Fiedler (6)
[Read more →]

Just to screw up your life, don’t forget that Congress has stolen 2:00 to 2:59AM Sunday from you. They should at least have the decency to wait until the equinoxes to do this sort of thing. There’s barely enough daylight to do what needs to be done, much less save.

It’s a government conspiracy to make you late for church 😈

Mark Selland (23) is the third team to scratch. He left Ruby and then returned to scratch. He was down to 13 puppies and saw something off so he scratched.

With temperatures going above zero, teams are adjusting schedules to rest during ‘the heat of the day’.

Alaska Dispatch notes the death of a second dog:

A 2-year-old dog from Iditarod veteran Scott Smith’s team died while in transit from the Galena checkpoint late Friday, after the musher dropped the dog earlier in the race, said a statement Saturday morning from Mark Nordman, race marshal.

Smith had dropped the male dog named Smoke on Tuesday at the Manley Hot Springs checkpoint, due to a wrist injury, according to the Iditarod Trail Committee. Smoke died while being transported by plane from Galena to Anchorage and was in a travel kennel onboard the flight.

Standings at 10:00PM CST:

Beyond Nulato
1 Mitch Seavey (16)
2 Wade Marrs (29)
3 Dallas Seavey (18)
At Koyukuk
4 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
5 Nicolas Petit (24)
6 Jessie Royer (37)
Beyond Huslia
7 Peter Kaiser (25)
8 Richie Diehl (21)
9 Ray Redington Jr (14)
10 Aliy Zirkle (41)
11 Paul Gebhardt (57)
12 Cody Strathe (5)
13 Ken Anderson (59)
14 Rick Casillo (27)
15 Robert Redington (70)^R
16 Jason Mackey (64)
17 Michelle Phillips (9)
18 Martin Buser (15)
19 Ralph Johannessen (39)
20 John Baker (65)
21 Lars Monsen (45)
22 Scott Smith (69)
23 Mats Pettersson (33)
24 Ketil Reitan (11)
25 Jeff King (34)
26 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
27 Ryan Redington (2)
28 Noah Burmeister (63)
29 Katherine Keith (52)
30 Hugh Neff (50)
[Read more →]

Mitch got the halfway prize ($3000) but he hasn’t taken either the 8-hour or the 24-hour stops. Meanwhile Dallas has completed his 24-hour and is on the trail to Huslia.

From the Alaska Dispatch Iditarod live blog:

A 2-year-old male dog named Deacon, running on Sterling musher Seth Barnes’ team, died outside Galena late Thursday, Iditarod officials reported.

A report from the race said the dog died at about 11:40 p.m. “just prior to Barnes’ arrival at the Galena checkpoint.”

“A necropsy will be conducted by a board-certified pathologist to make every attempt to determine the cause of death,” the report said.

Standings at 10:00PM CST:

At Huslia
1 Mitch Seavey (16)
2 Nicolas Petit (24)
3 Jessie Royer (37)
4 Michelle Phillips (9)
5 Ralph Johannessen (39)
6 Jason Mackey (64)
7 John Baker (65)
8 Katherine Keith (52)
9 Hugh Neff (50)
10 Noah Burmeister (63)
11 Hans Gatt (32)
Beyond Galena
12 Dallas Seavey (18)
13 Nicolas Vanier (26)^R
14 Wade Marrs (29)
15 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
16 Martin Buser (15)
17 Peter Kaiser (25)
18 Richie Diehl (21)
19 Ken Anderson (59)
20 Ray Redington Jr (14)
21 Jeff King (34)
22 Zoya DeNure (42)
23 Ramey Smyth (44)
24 Robert Redington (70)^R
25 Aliy Zirkle (41)
26 Scott Smith (69)
27 Paul Gebhardt (57)
28 Rick Casillo (27)
29 Ketil Reitan (11)
30 Mats Pettersson (33)
31 Cody Strathe (5)
32 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
33 Ryan Redington (2)
34 Lars Monsen (45)
[Read more →]

Mark May (68) decided to scratch at Tanana dropping the field to 70 while the temperatures on the trail might make it into single digits. Rookie Roger Lee is the last team at Tanana and should be leaving at any time.

Nicholas Petit was First to the Yukon by being the first team to reach Tanana on the Yukon River. He picked up $3500 in cash and a 5-course meal with wines.

Linwood Fiedler’s puppies showed up at Ruby an hour before he did. He fell asleep and then fell off the sled. The dogs could see the trail and figured the ‘help’ would show up sooner or later.

Standings at 8:00PM CST:

Beyond Galena
1 Mitch Seavey (16)
2 Jessie Royer (37)
3 Michelle Phillips (9)
4 Ralph Johannessen (39)
5 John Baker (65)
6 Nicolas Petit (24)
At Galena
7 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
8 Peter Kaiser (25)
9 Ray Redington Jr (14)
10 Jason Mackey (64)
11 Jeff King (34)
12 Hugh Neff (50)
13 Aliy Zirkle (41)
14 Robert Redington (70)^R
15 Ketil Reitan (11)
16 Cody Strathe (5)
17 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
18 Hans Gatt (32)
19 Mats Pettersson (33)
20 Scott Smith (69)
21 Ryan Redington (2)
22 Noah Burmeister (63)
23 Paul Gebhardt (57)
Beyond Ruby
24 Katherine Keith (52)
25 Lars Monsen (45)
26 Jodi Bailey (28)
27 Linwood Fiedler (6)
[Read more →]

It’s the International Day of the Woman and after SCROTUS tweeted about it Twitterville came alive with people who feel his ‘kind words’ are less than honest. Being the Internet, cats become involved in the discussion. 😈

It’s amazing how SCROTUS has increased participation in the political process. Mennonites normally avoid all things political as they are firm believers in a separation between church and state. Now they are protesting Trump for his Muslim ban among other things. Groups that came to the US to escape religious persecution tend not to be happy when US politicians begin to head down that road.

People who have studied Muslim Ban 2.o generally look at the changes as cosmetic [different fonts, spacing, that sort of thing] because the intent of the Executive Order remains the same – to keep Muslims out of the US. The state of Hawaii, a major tourist destination, has already headed to court.

They are on The Yukon River this morning. At 119 miles the Tanana to Ruby segment is the longest on this trail. The temperature is holding below zero, so there shouldn’t be too much open water. Getting wet at these temperatures requires immediate action.

More than a dozen teams have already taken their mandatory 8-hour stop on the Yukon River at Tanana which at the junction of the Yukon & Tanana rivers.

Standings at 8:30PM CST:

Beyond Tanana
1 Wade Marrs (29)
2 Dallas Seavey (18)
3 Peter Kaiser (25)
4 Mitch Seavey (16)
5 Nicolas Petit (24)
6 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
7 Michelle Phillips (9)
8 Aliy Zirkle (41)
9 John Baker (65)
10 Noah Burmeister (63)
11 Jessie Royer (37)
12 Martin Buser (15)
13 Richie Diehl (21)
14 Jason Mackey (64)
15 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
16 Katherine Keith (52)
17 Ray Redington Jr (14)
18 Lars Monsen (45)
19 Jeff King (34)
20 Ryan Redington (2)
21 Mats Pettersson (33)
22 Hugh Neff (50)
23 Cody Strathe (5)
24 Scott Smith (69)
25 Ken Anderson (59)
26 Ralph Johannessen (39)
27 Robert Redington (70)^R
28 Ketil Reitan (11)
29 Hans Gatt (32)
30 Paul Gebhardt (57)
[Read more →]

Today marks the beginning of the 60 days of lunacy and dishonest behavior known as the annual session of the Florida legislature. Their only real job is to pass a budget, but they manage to afflict the citizens with myriad types of idiocies and indignities in their quest for higher office.

Things are still being sorted out but Anna & Kristy Berington have linked up as usual to run their race and confuse people at checkpoints. Martin Buser is running his own race by pushing to the front and establishing a lead early.

Standings at 9:30PM CST:

Beyond Manly Hot Springs
1 Aliy Zirkle (41)
2 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
3 Peter Kaiser (25)
4 Michelle Phillips (9)
5 Ray Redington Jr (14)
6 Ryan Redington (2)
7 Richie Diehl (21)
8 Noah Burmeister (63)
9 Scott Smith (69)
10 Jessie Royer (37)
11 Hugh Neff (50)
12 Lars Monsen (45)
13 Martin Buser (15)
14 Ketil Reitan (11)
15 Nicolas Petit (24)
16 Wade Marrs (29)
17 Katherine Keith (52)
18 Jodi Bailey (28)
19 Paul Gebhardt (57)
20 Jeff King (34)
21 Mitch Seavey (16)
22 Dallas Seavey (18)
23 Jason Mackey (64)
24 John Baker (65)
25 Allen Moore (36)
26 Mats Pettersson (33)
27 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
28 Cody Strathe (5)
29 Ralph Johannessen (39)
30 Ramey Smyth (44)
[Read more →]

The actual racing started at 11AM AKST [2PM CST] when Ryan Redington’s team left the chute with the rest of the field following at two-minute intervals. Otto Balogh (3), a rookie from Hungary, scratched after the Anchorage ‘parade’ for health reasons.

Standings at 10PM CST:

Beyond Nenana
1 Cody Strathe (5)
2 Martin Buser (15)
3 Mitch Seavey (16)
4 Jessie Royer (37)
5 Nicolas Petit (24)
6 Mats Pettersson (33)
7 Dallas Seavey (18)
At Nenana
8 Linwood Fiedler (6)
9 Misha Wiljes (4)^R
10 Michelle Phillips (9)
11 Ryan Anderson (8)^R
12 Ray Redington Jr (14)
13 Ketil Reitan (11)
14 Laura Neese (7)^Q
15 Jodi Bailey (28)
16 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
17 Ryan Redington (2)
18 Richie Diehl (21)
19 Hans Gatt (32)
20 Nicolas Vanier (26)^R
21 Jeff King (34)
22 DeeDee Jonrowe (22)
23 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
24 Mark Selland (23)
25 Ralph Johannessen (39)
26 Aliy Zirkle (41)
27 Karin Hendrickson (20)
28 Cindy Abbott (31)
29 Allen Moore (36)
30 Roger Lee (10)^R
[Read more →]

This is the order for the ‘re-start’ of the race in Fairbanks tomorrow. Teams leave at 2 minute intervals and that time differential is adjusted during the mandatory 24-hour stop that can be taken anywhere on the trail. There is a mandatory 8-hour stop that has to be taken on the Yukon River, and the final 8-hour stop at White Mountain.

At Fairbanks
1 Ryan Redington (2)
2 Otto Balogh (3)^R
3 Misha Wiljes (4)^R
4 Cody Strathe (5)
5 Linwood Fiedler (6)
6 Laura Neese (7)^Q
7 Ryan Anderson (8)^R
8 Michelle Phillips (9)
9 Roger Lee (10)^R
10 Ketil Reitan (11)
11 Joe Carson (12)^R
12 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)^R
13 Ray Redington Jr (14)
14 Martin Buser (15)
15 Mitch Seavey (16)
16 Kristin Bacon (17)
17 Dallas Seavey (18)
18 Gunnar Johnson (19)
19 Karin Hendrickson (20)
20 Richie Diehl (21)
21 DeeDee Jonrowe (22)
22 Mark Selland (23)
23 Nicolas Petit (24)
24 Peter Kaiser (25)
25 Nicolas Vanier (26)^R
26 Rick Casillo (27)
27 Jodi Bailey (28)
28 Wade Marrs (29)
29 Ellen Halverson (30)
30 Cindy Abbott (31)
[Read more →]

It is the first Saturday in March which is Susan Butcher Day in Alaska and marks the Iditarod ‘parade’ from Anchorage to the airport. The actual race is set to start on Monday in Fairbanks, sort of the Yukon Quest Part Two.

This trail covers most of the trail used in the Nome serum run that is part of the Iditarod race mythology. The actual run started at the railroad station in Nenana and went to Nome and was a relay race.

Update: The Alaska Dispatch covers basic questions about the race.

In the comments on a post about SCROTUS’s Wall by a former Border Patrol officer over at Crooks & Liars was this lovely piece of prose:

Zimzone: “All in all, it’s just another prick and his wall…”

If you’re unfamiliar with the reference click here.