They’re Off!
The teams left Willow starting at 5:00PM CST [2PM local AKST] with Linwood Fiedler (2) and finishing at 7:20PM CST with Judy Currier (72). That means that Judy with have a mandatory 24-hour layover, while Linwood will have to stay 26 hours and 20 minutes.
The temperatures have been trending a bit lower, and there has been some light snow, but it still looks like a warmer than normal, rough course on both sides of Rainy Pass.
There will be a traffic jam on the trail to Yentna as the pace-setters move to the front and the rookies try to get out of the way. This something that has to take place early as the opportunities become limited once the teams encounter the mountains.
The first position changes won’t be official until the Yentna checkpoint.
Note: This post will be updated during the day, and the map changed on all posts to reflect the current situation.
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