Category — Iditarod
Iditarod 2017 – Day 9
Mitch Seavey is on track to be the oldest and fastest musher to win the Iditarod. There are only the 77 miles to Nome left and he has a two hour lead. He starts for the finish line at 10:36AM CDT.
Ellen Halverson (30) scratched at Koyukuk.
Mitch Seavey won his third Iditarod at 3:40PM AKDT [6:40PM CDT] in 8days, 3 hours, 40 minutes, & 13 seconds. At 57 he is the oldest winner and the fastest with that time.
Standings at 9:30PM CDT:
Finished at Nome
1 Mitch Seavey (16)
2 Dallas Seavey (18)
3 Nicolas Petit (24)
Beyond White Mountain
4 Joar Leifseth Ulsom (38)
5 Jessie Royer (37)
At White Mountain
6 Wade Marrs (29)
7 Ray Redington Jr (14)
8 Peter Kaiser (25)
9 Aliy Zirkle (41)
10 Paul Gebhardt (57)
Beyond Elim
11 Michelle Phillips (9)
12 Richie Diehl (21)
13 Jeff King (34)
14 Ramey Smyth (44)
15 Jason Mackey (64)
16 Ralph Johannessen (39)
17 Ryan Redington (2)
18 Katherine Keith (52)
19 John Baker (65)
20 Mats Pettersson (33)
21 Hans Gatt (32)
22 Lars Monsen (45)
23 Ken Anderson (59)
24 Linwood Fiedler (6)
At Elim
25 Sebastien Vergnaud (13)R
26 Hugh Neff (50)
27 Robert Redington (70)R
Beyond Koyuk
28 Noah Burmeister (63)
29 Scott Smith (69)
30 Rick Casillo (27)
31 Martin Buser (15)
32 Cody Strathe (5)
33 Ketil Reitan (11)
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March 14, 2017 Comments Off on Iditarod 2017 – Day 9
Iditarod 2017 – Day 8
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)
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March 13, 2017 5 Comments
Iditarod 2017 – Day 7
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)
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March 12, 2017 2 Comments
Iditarod 2017 – Day 6
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)
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March 11, 2017 Comments Off on Iditarod 2017 – Day 6
Iditarod 2017 – Day 5
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)
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March 10, 2017 Comments Off on Iditarod 2017 – Day 5
Iditarod 2017 – Day 4
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)
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March 9, 2017 2 Comments
Iditarod 2017 – Day 3
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)
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March 8, 2017 1 Comment
Iditarod 2017 – Day 2
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)
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March 7, 2017 Comments Off on Iditarod 2017 – Day 2
Iditarod 2017 – Day 1
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
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March 6, 2017 7 Comments
Iditarod 2017 Starting Order
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)
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March 5, 2017 Comments Off on Iditarod 2017 Starting Order
Susan Butcher Day
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.
March 4, 2017 Comments Off on Susan Butcher Day
Iditarod 2017 Trail
A repeat of the 2015 race for the same reason – no snow and warm weather in southern Alaska. This can be a very fast trail, or a pure terror depending on the condition of the ice on the rivers and the Norton Sound. With the Sound, the wind speed can also be a major factor, because if the ice is smooth, the dogs can’t get a grip and the entire team can get blown for miles.
The two numbers reflect the approximate number of miles from the last checkpoint, and the total miles for the race. The 11 miles for Fairbanks represents the ‘parade’ and are not actual racing miles.
As forecast the temperatures are dropping along the route and some snow is forecast for the weekend, so the lead teams should have a fast trail.
Tanana River
Fairbanks 11 11
Nenana 60 71
Manley Hot Springs 90 161
Tanana 66 227
Yukon River
Ruby 119 346
Galena 50 396
Over Land
Huslia 82 478
Koyukuk 86 564
Yukon River
Nulato 22 586
Kaltag 47 633
Over Land
Unalakleet 85 718
Norton Sound
Shaktoolik 40 758
Koyuk 50 808
Elim 48 856
Golovin 28 884
White Mountain 18 902
Safety 55 957
Nome 22 979
March 3, 2017 2 Comments
Red Lantern
Cindy Gallea (73) came in 70th at 9:46PM CDT last night, and Mary Helwig (49) brought in the Red Lantern at 9 minutes to midnight AKDT or 2:51AM CDT this morning. Mary brought Spring with her, but the ITC was too busy counting the proceeds to notice.
Mary averaged 3.00 MPH for the race finishing in 13 days, 8 hours, 51 minutes & 30 seconds.
March 20, 2016 2 Comments
Iditarod 2016 – Day 14
The final four teams are at White Mountain waiting for the last run of the their race. There are 10MPH+ winds to deal with, and wind chills of -15°F. Many dogs will refuse to move under those conditions as a matter of their survival instincts.
Standings at 7:30PM CDT:
Finished at Nome
61 Matthew Failor (63)
62 Elliot Anderson (69)R
63 Larry Daugherty (43)R
64 Patrick Beall (53)R
65 Lisbet Norris (7)
66 Sarah Stokey (71)R
67 Rob Cooke (56)
68 Kim Franklin (34)R
69 Kristin Bacon (42)R
Beyond Safety
70 Cindy Gallea (73)
Beyond White Mountain
71 Mary Helwig (49)R Φ
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March 19, 2016 Comments Off on Iditarod 2016 – Day 14