Funny River Fire, Day 2, in pictures

The fire that was just a few acres has grown close (if not over by now) 8,000. It's hit Tustumena Lake. According to last reports it is still 0% contained. No homes, people, or structures have been harmed. Winds could shift and all that change. Pray for rain.

Iditarod Willow ReStart in jeopardy

With the unseasonably warm weather of January, talk for the last several weeks has surrounded around the Iditarod and what the trail would be like - or if there was even enough snow to put on the race. February has been significantly colder in most parts of Alaska, but no snow has followed. It prompted a lot of rumors that the Iditarod would relocate to Fairbanks as it did in 2003. The Iditarod Trail Committee (ITC) took to facebook answering the questions late in January to say that it was too soon to make a decision. It didn't stop the rumors and talk, but fans at least had an official answer to go with.

The ITC went to facebook once again to make the announcement Saturday morning that the Ceremonial start will be in Anchorage. At this time, they said, they are still planning to go to Willow for the restart. However, while Anchorage and Willow have enough snow, the early part of the trail is causing concern. The ITC will monitor the situation and make an announcement mid-February as to whether or not they will need to move the race north.

Their post follows:

RACE PLANNING UPDATE: The Ceremonial Start of Iditarod XLII will be held in Anchorage on Saturday, March 1, beginning at 10:00 am as planned. At this time we are planning to stage the Restart in Willow on Sunday, March 2 beginning at 2:00 pm, also as planned. We do have trail concerns, particularly from the top of Rainy Pass to Nikolai. If conditions are not deemed acceptable by February 17, we will stage the Restart in Fairbanks on Monday, March 3, time yet to be determined.

Should they move the restart to Fairbanks, this will be the second time in race history that the Iditarod starts anywhere other than South Central Alaska.

Join Iditarod Champion Dallas Seavey, promote his sport!

Dallas Seavey is the youngest Iditarod Champion at age 25, and is working hard to bring the Iditarod and mushing into a more global awareness. This is the new generation of musher and hopefully the new face of mushing. Dallas is pushing for mushing - especially the Iditarod - to embrace social media and other forms of technology to branch out. The Iditarod's made it 40 years, it's time to make sure it continues.

Dallas' passion definitely helped me become completely obsessed with following the sport, so hopefully everyone else who sees this catches the bug as well. Be sure to share this video with everyone!

Real Big Wild Life

While a sight like this would have Anchorage Alaska media and "newer Alaskans" (and I use Alaskan soooooooooooooooooooooooo sarcastically here) would freak out and scream for these animals to be moved to "the woods" so they can't "hurt us", here in Kenai we welcome and embrace the wildlife. Such a bizarre notion, I know.

I took 100 pictures today, went to upload them and realized that photos I downloaded to the computer earlier today were corrupted. So I'm in a very gloomy mood. Not sure I'll be sleeping tonight or not. UGH!

Four drop out of T200, slots open for last minute registration.

Organizers for the T200 posted via facebook yesterday that four teams had withdrawn from the race. Since the checkpoints had already been set up to handle twenty teams, they have openned registration for last minute mushers to take the - now unused - spots. Registration remains as a $200 fee and closes Friday when the mandatory vet check and musher's meeting is set to begin.

Teams that withdrew are Jessie Hendricks, Zoya Denure - citing health issues, but she also posted on facebook that they were having vehicle trouble, and the Clarkes - who hit a moose earlier this week, totalling their dog truck! General registration closed on Monday with a final entry by Colleen Robertia a local Kasilof musher and veteran of the race (as well as the Quest and Iditarod).

Vet Check begins tomorrow at noon at the Aspen Hotel in Soldotna, with a musher's meeting to follow. The race takes off at 9 am on Saturday with the Junior T followed at 11am by the main event. The race begins at Mile 112 of the Sterling Hwy.


**Please note that while I am going to be shooting as the volunteer photographer for the event nothing I post is an official communication with the race. Follow them via their website, facebook and twitter for official updates during the race. I will tweet and post photos as internet and time allows over the weekend. The organizers will try to post my photos of the start as soon as I get them to them.**

30 Days of Disney: Day Twenty-Two

Day 22: Underappreciated Film

I guess I'd say Brother Bear. It's about Inupiat legend - I'm sure incredibly Disney-fied - and it does a great job bridging the many different groups. It has a bit of Alaska (what with the bear river, and of course Sitka, Denali and Kenai), you've got the Canadian moose (not really sure what that's about, eh?), and I'm sure those that are "across the pond" are also well represented.

The animation is pretty spot on, too, for a computer 2d adventure. I love the storyline too. It's so sweet. Yes there's a lot of Native Spiritualism, but even with that I recommend it to families (Christian families can use it as a teach/talking tool afterwards, IMO. To identify where the culture/spiritual beliefs differ from ours).

30 Days of Me: Day Seventeen

Day 17: A piece of artwork (painting, sculpture, etc)

Okay, I couldn't figure out one piece that I liked most, so I went with a favorite artist. Jon Van Zyle is an Alaskan artist (seeing a pattern, yeah, you should) who is the official artist for the Iditarod. He doesn't just paint sled dogs and mushing, but he documents all of Alaska. He's an amazing talent.

Check out his website here: http://www.jonvanzyle.com/index.html

In other, somewhat related, news: the Iditarod Idita-rider Auction is up and running. This is a huge event as it's a great way to raise money for the race, while giving fans a once in a lifetime opportunity to run with their favorite musher for the first eleven miles of the race. You get to ride through Anchorage, AK in the ceremonial start of the Iditarod and hang out with your musher at the Musher banquet. Visit their website here: http://www.iditarod.com/ for more information on the race and the auction.

Alaskan... spring?

Sitting in my room watching the large, clean white flakes fall from the light grey sky, I have to ask: where is spring?

This happens every year - for at least as long as I can remember - the battle between spring and winter starts late february and goes all the way through May until, quite suddenly, summer comes out of nowhere. While most of the rest of the world enjoys four distinct seasons, Alaska is a mystery. There are only two true distinct seasons - summer and winter - with fall and spring meshing interestingly with winter. Who knows why God works it that way up here, but I think it's mirrored in the Alaskan emotions...

Or, well, at least mine.

I am ready for spring/summer. Warmth. Biking. Walking. Taking the dog to the dog parks and letting her romp, off leash, without the worry of moose sticking to the trail - or the dog getting too cold five seconds after getting there.

At the same time, there's an excitement and joy I get watching the large flakes come down - if they're small it's not as pretty, nor is it as much fun to watch - I'm not sure if that comes from the fact that I'm having a hard time letting go of my childhood, or if it's because it's a strictly Alaskan thing that snow means a whole lot more than cold.

Sure, I gripe about it right along with the next guy, but deep down there's something special, beautiful and exciting about the event of a freak spring snow storm.



Though if it all melts by morning so the roads are clear so I can get to work, I won't be complaining.

Favorite Sled Dog Books

So I got an email from some random person asking if there were any good Iditarod books out there. The short answer is - yes there are - though most seem to be more sled dogs in general written by Iditarod super stars. However, reading a few is a fantastic way of getting into the spirit of the race.

Danger the Dog Yard Cat, written by 1985 Iditarod Champion Libby Riddles is a fun children's book about Riddles' cat. The story is a fictional look at Riddles' win on the Iditarod. Obviously the first woman to win the race did not have a tabby cat for a lead dog, but it's cute none the less. Growing up this was my favorite children's book (along with Thunderfeet, about Prehistoric Alaska), not only because of the storyline or the fact that my favorite musher of all time wrote it, but because it came with a wonderful audio cassette with a soundtrack written by Hobo Jim, the story - of course - was read by (who eles) "Danger" himself. It's a great first look into a musher's dog lot, and if you ever doubted that sled dogs were well loved by their caretakers, this book proves that wrong. Libby shows great love in her tribute to her four legged friends - feline and canine.

Author Gary Paulson might be most famous for his tween books like The Hatchet (still one of my favorite adventure novels for any age), but to Alaskans he's the Iditarod author. Winterdance is his semi autobiography and a humorous look at how Paulson trained for his first Iditarod. He gives an "outsiders" perspective on this very Alaskan race and does so with gusto. If you're looking for a clean, family friendly novel - this is not it. There is quite a bit of language - musher's rarely censor themselves - and he leaves no stone unturned. While most of the book is about the magic of the race, Paulson also delves into the brutality of it all from the dangers on the trail to the one unethical musher he comes across in the race. The book, like the race, is joyous and exhausting and not for the faint of heart. I read Winterdance at least once a year (always before the start of the race) to get into that Iditarod mood/mindset.

If novels aren't your thing, and picture books are more your speed then Dogs of the Iditarod will do it for you. The book is by the official Iditarod photographer, Jeff Schultz, and brings the faces of the real athletes of the Iditarod to light. Puppies and adult dogs are the stars of this book and the photos warm your heart (as well as captivate your imagination). Jeff Shultz is one of my favorite photojournalistic styled photographers and I envy him for his position with the Iditarod as the official photographer - that being said I don't think I could handle the extreme weather and temps he faces to get those amazing shots. He's one in a million, that guy, and the Iditarod (and fans) are lucky to have him following the race every step of the way.

Ever wonder what it is that makes a man (or woman for that matter) get the crazy notion that running dogs, and entering the Iditarod Sled Dog Race, is a good idea? Jeff King's Cool Hands Warm Hearts explains it all in the classic Jeff King style. It's humorous but full of heart - much in the same way as Winterdance is, but with one major difference: winterdance is written by an author first, musher second... Cool Hands is written by a champion musher. period. Jeff King is beloved by just about all in Alaska (except maybe fish and game, but that's another story for another day) and you'll know why as you read this book. It's a quick read that I am - so far - truly enjoying. I've not yet finished, but already it's among my favorite athlete autobiographies and definitely worth the add to any book collection.


On a side topic, working at the Iditarod Sales Table at the Millenium Hotel (Iditarod Headquarters this time of year) has brought to light that many don't know what Mitch Seavey's new book, Lead Follow or Get Out of the Way, is about. Many believed it would be an autobiography and have expressed disappointment that it was more technical than anything else - I blame the publisher for this as they don't really warn you with the description they provide on the jacket (or back of the book). This book is part of a series (hence the volume one portion of the title) that Mitch is working on to educate newer mushers as they begin their journey into sled dogs. I've not read the book yet (it's on my to get and to do lists) but knowing the bit I do about Mitch it's no surprising when people tell me that it's dry. Well, yeah, that's kinda who he is. He's not flashy like Lance Mackey, or overly charismatic like Jeff (or even Dallas Seavey), he's just a matter of fact kind of guy. Not that he's got no sense of humor, but with this book he's not about entertaining - but informing. Look for his autobiography towards the end of the book series. Now THAT's the one I'm waiting for.