Mushing Radio: Iditarod Redington's Run

Join hosts Robert Forto Toni Reitter and Michele Forto as they talk about Redington's Run on the Iditarod podcast. 

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Redington's Run

Well, he did it. It took 51 tries, but a Redington has finally won "Redington's Run". Joe Redington saw his dream of a long distance sled dog race come to fruition in 1973 when he literally bet his house against the odds and mortgaged it to the hilt to be able to pay for the "First Great Race". Originally believing The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race would be a loop out to the Ghost Town of Iditarod and back to Anchorage, it was suggested that it would get more attention if it started in Anchorage and went to Nome. 

Joe's vision didn't happen overnight, he'd tried as far back as the 60s to get this hairbrained idea off the ground. He enlisted his mushing friends (names like Mackey, Smyth, Seavey, and others) to share in his vision and he kept that dream alive until finally he was told to either get it off the ground or give up. It took him from the fall of 1972 to March of 1973 but he did it (with a lot of help from his friends). Originally set to run the inaugural race himself, Joe had to withdraw as this little thing of not having secured the funds to pay out the promised purse was something Joe was tasked to figure out.

Originally thought to be "Joe's Folly" (we like to label things as someone's folly up in these parts. Secretary Seward could tell Joe a thing or two about it, I'm sure), the Iditarod stood the test of time. It has battled anti-mushing propaganda, several economic busts, global warming, increasing changes to trail due to population expansion... but the love of dogs and the dream of doing "the impossible" spurs the imaginations of mushers in each generation.

Though Joe Redington is the Father of the Iditarod, he never won the race - never really even came close. His sons ran the race and got closer. His grandsons have run, with grandson Ray coming closest a few years back. Each year the media would pressure whichever family member(s) was in the race - was this the year they'd bring a win home for Dad/Grandpa? Joe Redington Sr passed away in 2002 and it became a "will this be the year you win it for Grandpa's memory?" The pressure from fans and other outside sources had to be immense, and then the added of the personal desire to get that bust of Joe on the mantel also weighed no doubt heavily.

Ryan Redington has steadily climbed the ranks in the mushing world. He's a multi-time Beargrease champion, but he couldn't quite take it all the way in The Big One. Last year was supposed to be the year. It was the 50th race, he titled it Redington's Run. He finished 9th in an incredibly difficult final leg. 

This year Ryan tried a little bit of a different tactic, probably brought on by the crazy warm temps the first few days of the race gave the teams. The slower pace seemed to level everyone out, though Ryan told Insider several times he wasn't sure his team was ready to win this year. Whether that was mind games or what Ryan was seeing at the time, one can't possibly know, but it felt like this would be yet another Iditarod without a Redington leading the charge.

Until Kaltag. Brent Sass had exited the race, Jessie Holmes had stalled, Nic Petit had never materialized. Suddenly Ryan found himself in front - not by a lot - but he was in front. Peter Kaiser was hot on his heels and had all of the analysts salivating over out good his team looked (stop I don't mean they were hungry for sled dog). But Ryan had been given an opportunity and he took it.

Before the race began, Ryan found a note in a fortune cookie that would give him the same sort of magic inspiration that Lance Mackey got in 2007 during a Bib draw. For Lance it was drawing bib 13, the same number his father and brother wore when they won their Iditarod titles. For Ryan it came down to his fortune cookie telling him the number five would be very lucky for him that week. Ryan drew Bib #5.

And so as he lead the way from Kaltag to Unalakleet he never looked back. Yes, there were bigger, stronger teams that all of the past Iditarod mushers and analysts were talking about. Yes, he'd crashed and burned on Iditarod before, but this time he told himself he needed to stay focused and keep the pace.

And then he was first to his mother's home village of Unalakleet - a first in the Redington and race history. Then first to Shaktoolik. Kaiser still close behind and gaining. Then Koyuk. And then the big move. Ryan and team ran straight for Koyuk into White Mountain. A "monster" run of 88 miles. His dogs and he looked beat. Mentally the dogs were in need of a break and Ryan needed a nap. So he fed and bedding the dogs for an 8 hour rest. While Ryan ran all the way, Peter stayed in Elim resting his dogs and giving Ryan a five hour cushion - or so fans thought until Pete made his way to the check point of White Mountain and he was only four hours behind. Still plenty of time between Ryan and Pete to give Ryan some breathing room. He contemplated staying past the mandatory eight.

But then 12:12am came around and Ryan was ready to pull the hook. Reports of those watching the feed grew concerned as Ryan's dogs seemed to need help waking up, but they started down the trail and while not a blistering record setting pace, they made their way to the checkpoint of Safety through wind that were forecasted to gust up to 40mph. Slowly they made their way through the Topkok Hills, through the blowhole and into the checkpoint. They continued on to the finish line coming in at 12:12pm. His small team of six dogs looked better coming into Nome than they had the night before, but are most definitely excited for warm beds and fresh snacks. They did their job and made their musher proud.

This was a long time coming, we've all said it, and watching Ryan achieve a lifelong goal was the perfect way to kick off "the next fifty years." Joe's grandson brought this race full circle not only achieving the Redington family dream and legacy, but inspiring the mushing community. Ryan is Inupiaq, holding up a long standing tradition of mushing that was passed down for thousands of generations of Native Alaskans.

Congratulations, Ryan, on completing your Redington's Run.

"Here's to Joe, and it's off you go
In the land of the midnight sun
They call this race the Iditarod Trail
But to me it's Redington's Run
In my heart it's Redington's Run!"
                                -Hobo Jim

Redington with four hour lead in White Mountain

For the first time in race history, there is a Redington sitting first (and alone) in White Mountain. At 4:12pm Alaska time, Ryan Redington and team checked into the checkpoint outside the village of White Mountain for their mandatory eight hour rest. The Beargrease champion came in looking tired after he and his team essentially ran the entire way from Koyuk to White Mountain in a gamble to put distance from his closest competitors of Peter Kaiser and Richie Diehl.

Leaving Koyuk, Ryan had a 35 minute lead running to Elim. While Pete ran close behind cutting the 6 mile gap from the run before to 3 miles, Ryan continued out of Elim on his way to While Mountain. Peter Kaiser stayed behind.

And stayed.

And stayed.

Then stayed some more.

In fact, Pete stayed so long that Richie Diehl came into Elim and rested a couple of hours before leaving again and THEN Pete left. Diehl's lead was short lived and Kaiser made his way in front of his "best friend"'s team. The Kusko Boys ran from Elim to White Mountain together coming in just a few minutes apart. Pete's run into Elim was an hour and seventeen minutes faster than Ryan's, but his team has a four hour and seventeen minutes deficit to make up on Ryan. With only 77 miles to the finish line there may not be enough time for that to happen. Richie Diehl is only eight minutes behind Peter Kaiser. We're looking at having a "mini Kusko" finish for second place.

That being said in the Iditarod Insider evening report out of White Mountain from Bruce Lee, Lee reported that in talking with Ryan Redington there may be a longer rest in store for the current first place team. Redington ran the 88ish miles from Koyuk to White Mountain in one shot with no significant rest. That was a monster run that is completely doable but it can be taxing this late in the race. It was gutsy, but as Ryan's team came into the checkpoint of White Mountain they were visibly exhausted mentally (and the musher physically). At one point the team kept trying to jump off the trail onto a snowmachine trail and Ryan had to stop and reroute them at least three times, after the third correction his lead dog gave the signal that they were done leading. That's not a good sign for how his race may go tomorrow morning, so it makes sense that with a four hour cushion the veteran musher allows his team a couple of hours "extra" rest. Two hours is still a big gap of time to make up in the roughly 10 hour run to the finish.

It should also be noted that Pete Kaiser had not planned on running the Iditarod this year. His name was noticeably absent from the roster for several months before he slipped in before the deadline. Sure, it wasn't last minute like Ramey Smyth who waited until February to throw his hat in the ring, but Kaiser let it be known that it wasn't something he'd seen himself doing until he did it. Now, here he is in second place with the possibility of winning his second Iditarod if Ryan's race goes to Hell.

And let's not forget Richie Diehl. He's been working for this for nearly a decade now and he's giving a former Iditarod Champion and a "legacy" musher a run for their money. If either one of them hiccups, he's poised to jump on them. He's no doubt excited to be having a magical run and challenging the favorites - plus his team just looks good (so does Kaisers).

In 50 runnings of Iditarod there's never been a Redington in first. In 50 runnings there's only been a handful of Alaska Native champions. In this, the 51st running of Iditarod - barring them all having their race blow up in their face - there will be a Native Alaskan champion (last done in 2019 by who else but Peter Kaiser the first Yup'ik champion). In the 51st running that Champion could be a Redington. In 1973 when Joe Redington's race first kicked off on its way to Nome, Joe hoped that it would inspire a new generation of Alaska Native mushers to keep with dogs and hold to their thousands of years old tradition. Sadly in the race's history that has been lost as sponsorships went for easy to access teams on the road system and it became increasingly more expensive and difficult to get to races from the villages. In 2011 John Baker ended a decades long drought and joined the small ranks of Alaska Native champions, in 2019 Pete Kaiser won and inspired a new generation of mushers in the Kuskokwim Delta, which has a healthy mushing community that holds an entire series of mushing competitions as well as a dog food co-op of sorts.

This is Joe's dream and legacy coming full circle 50 years and 51 races later. As Jeff King said at the start of Iditarod 51, here's to the next 50 years of Iditarod. Let's add to it - we made it, Joe. Your dream is realized. 

No matter who comes under that burled arch tomorrow, this is what Iditarod was made for. Yes the roster was small, and yes the legends of the last 50 years are all but retired, but it's in good hands.

*For those wanting to know when to expect the champion, Redington can leave out at 12:12am Tuesday, IF he leaves at that time it'll be an almost 10 hour run for most, last year he ran it in 9hours and 45ish minutes. So start checking in around 9:30am (this is all ALASKA time and yes we follow Daylight Savings). IF Ryan chooses to stay longer in White Mountain (not a bad idea) then it may be later in the morning or early afternoon. As always keep to social media and this blog and we'll keep it updated as we can.*

Redington still leading the Iditarod

Fans woke up and frantically checked the tracker (if they slept at all and didn't just will those little flags to move all night) this morning to find Ryan Redington maintaining a three mile lead over Peter Kaiser as the teams ran to Elim. Both had spent about three and a half hours in the checkpoint of Koyuk in the wee hours of the morning. Kaiser has a slightly faster team and has eaten up several minutes in each run from Unalakleet, what was a six mile lead last night is now only a three mile lead.

Redington reached the checkpoint of Elim checking in at 8:35am, Kaiser is making his way into the checkpoint now and it will be interesting to see if he's gained any time on the legacy musher. GPS shows Ryan as moving out of Elim though the current standings do not show him leaving (updates sometimes take time). It's 46 miles to White Mountain and their final mandatory 8 hour rest. It could be that both teams decide to make the run from Koyuk to White Mountain without stopping (a "monster" run at 88 miles). 

Depending on how the teams fare on the run to White Mountain we'll either have a clear favorite to win, or we'll be seeing them in some sort of ski pole duel down Front Street Tuesday afternoon.

Mushing Radio: The Third Third of the Race

 

Join hosts Robert Forto, Michele Forto, and Toni Reitter as they discuss the third third of the race. 

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Redington rests in Shaktoolik as Kaiser, Diehl draw closer

Ryan Redington had an impressive 5 hours and 13 minute run time from Unalakleet to Shaktoolik before apparently taking a break in the checkpoint on the edge of the Norton Sound. Redington had nearly an hour lead over the next team of Peter Kaiser, but now as Ryan sits just about a half hour into his break in Shaktoolik, Pete is coming into the checkpoint. There are no live feeds in Shaktoolik so we have no real idea of how teams are looking as they come into a very windy run to then head back out into even stronger winds.

Speaking of wind, they expect a steady 25mph wind leaving Shaktoolik according to the morning report by Greg Heister and Bruce Lee. That isn't the most terrible weather we've seen in this stretch, but hard cold wind gets to even the most hardened of dog teams. The Norton Sound sea ice is still the trail they are planning to run, though yesterday there was concern about open water that does not seem to be the case today.

Both Kaiser and Redington will need a little bit of rest at the very least for the dogs to recover from their runs. Kaiser has just rolled into the checkpoint and Richie Diehl will be into Shak soon. If Ryan can keep his speed, he most likely has this race and Peter seems to have second in the bag in this case. Mushers like Bruce Lee and Dallas Seavey aren't counting Peter Kaiser out for the win, though, as both have been extremely impressed with how Kaiser Racing dogs look in Unalakleet.

The race. is. on.

We have a dog race

We've reached the West Coast of Alaska and you know what that means - the race is on! Ryan Redington chose to run the 85 miles from Kaltag to Unalakleet in one long run keeping his lead gained on the run from Eagle Island to Kaltag. Redington stayed in Unalakleet (his mother's "hometown") for just shy of four hours before heading to Shaktoolik Sunday morning. That's right, folks, a Redington is in command of the race... for now.

Pete Kaiser and Richie Diehl have kept pace with the lead pack from day one, and with their race strategy both are in good position to make a push on the Coast. This is their kind of trail as they are from the Coast (just a little further south as Barb Redington likes to point out). The famed winds are an every day no big deal thing for their teams and they thrive on the third leg of the race.

The weather looks... calm... for the front runners. Sure, there's the ever brutal wind, but they don't expect any snow storms or ground storms to wreak havoc on the leaders. There's still no word on trail conditions out of Shaktoolik, just that they expect some heavy wind (but when is that not expected) at a steady 25mph. The wind could play a factor as many sled dogs dislike running into the wind (does anyone?) and it could stall a team if they aren't on their game.

Richie Diehl just blew through Unalakleet chasing down his best friend and competitor Pete Kaiser. Both are hoping to keep within range to take the lead if Redington falters. The best chance of that is the run out of Shaktoolik. Redington is in somewhat unknown territory - he's never led this part of the Iditarod - but he's got an entire family's history worth of knowledge on the race his Grandfather started. As long as he can stay focused on his race and his dogs and not panic or focus on what the others are doing we could finally see what the entire IditaFandom has wanted to see since the beginning - a Redington just might take this race.

Mushing Radio: The Champ Scratches

Join hosts Robert Forto Toni Reitter and Michele Forto as they discuss the 2022 Champ, Brent Sass scratching, and much more on this episode of the Iditarod 2023 podcast.

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Ryan Redington first to Kaltag

Ryan Redington and his team of twelve dogs were first off the Yukon River and into the checkpoint of Kaltag a little before 1pm Saturday. The third generation Iditarod musher parked his dogs and quickly went to watering/feeding and bedding down his team before meeting with the Bristol Bay Native Corporation to receive the Fish First Award given to the first team off the Yukon. Ryan recieves $2000 and 25lbs of Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon (to be delivered this summer).

Iditarod released the statement:

"Iditarod musher Ryan Redington  (bib #5), of Knik, Alaska is the first musher to arrive at the Kaltag checkpoint at 12:47 pm with 12 dogs in harness.  

In doing so, Redington claims the Bristol Bay Native Corporation Fish First Award.   BBNC employee and shareholder Christine Brandon traveled to Kaltag to present the award, which consists of 25 pounds of fresh Bristol Bay  salmon filets, $2,000 and a wood burned art piece by BBNC shareholder artist Apay’uq Moore. 

“Bristol Bay Native Corporation congratulates Ryan and his team for a great race so far and for being the first into Kaltag,” said Jason Metrokin, BBNC President and CEO. “Both dog mushing and fishing are longstanding traditions in Bristol Bay, and we’re excited to honor both with the annual Fish First Award. We wish Ryan the best of luck and hope they enjoy the taste of Bristol Bay this summer.”

Bristol Bay is home to the world’s largest wild sockeye salmon fishery. BBNC has endorsed a  Fish First value for land and resource management in Bristol Bay. In all land management and  resource development decisions, adequate protections for fish and fish habitat will always be a  priority."

Soon after Ryan bedded his team down, Richie Diehl came into the checkpoint and is now parked beside Redington. Eyes are on the tracker and live feeds as Pete Kaiser should make his way into the checkpoint in the next few minutes.

Brent Sass scratches from Iditarod in Eagle Island

Fans learned this morning in a hasty live feed on The Iditarod Facebook Page from Greg Heister that reigning champ Brent Sass had scratched from the race due to "some type of infection where he felt he could not care for his team the way he needed." Heister went on to report that the race was trying to get a plane to Eagle Island to pick up the veteran musher and fly him to Unalakleet for treatment. 

At around 8:40am The Iditarod released an official statement on the scratch:

"Veteran musher and 2022 Iditarod Champion, Brent Sass (bib #14), of Eureka, Alaska,  scratched at 7:42 a.m. today at the Eagle Island checkpoint as he didn’t feel he could care for his team due to current concerns with his periodontal health.

Sass had 11 dogs in harness when he arrived in Eagle Island, all in good health."

Thankfully dogs don't really care if they finish a race, and they no doubt are being treated like the good dogs they are. We wish Brent a speedy recovery.

Mushing Radio: The Mighty Yukon River

Join hosts Robert Forto Toni Reitter and Michele Forto as they talk about the Might Yukon River and much more on tonights Iditraod podcast 

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Made it to the Yukon

Jessie Holmes and team during the Ceremonial
Start of Iditarod 51. March 4, 2023.
Anchorage, Alaska.

Jessie Holmes was first to the Yukon this morning and his five course meal from new race sponsor the Marx Bros Cafe. Holmes chose to take his mandatory 8 hour rest on the Yukon in Anvik to fully enjoy his meal and give his dogs as much rest as possible before heading down the river where reports of overflow were the talk of much of the day. 

As the front pack hit the mighty river, many chose to take their 8 relatively early in the first two checkpoints of Anvik and Grayling. The middle of the pack were all out of the checkpoint of Iditarod and on their way to Shageluk and Anvik, while the back of the pack finished up their rests in the checkpoint to hit the trail this evening. Only Gregg Vitello remains on his way to Iditarod where concern grows that he will be cutting his race short by way of race withdrawal being deemed non-competitive. Time will tell if things improve for the rookie.

In Grayling, Iditarod veteran and Kusko Champ Richie Diehl was surprised by his family as he pulled into the checkpoint. Declaring his mandatory 8 the very tired musher spent time with his partner and their new baby boy which was no doubt the perfect morale boost for the musher. Diehl has run the majority of his race alongside best friend and competitor Pete Kaiser and both teams are poised to make a move as they get closer to their "home turf". Both left Grayling as the sun was setting Friday chasing after Jessie Holmes, Brent Sass, and Nicolas Petit.

Speaking of Petit, he is "very happy" with how his team looks and it seems that Petit is trying to play around with some semblance of strategy. He isn't just burning up trail, took his mandatory rests early, and has been giving the team more rest. Petit says HE'S the one doing more sleeping and that's why, but maybe - just maybe - he's listening to those that have told him to have at least the outline of a game plan.

Brent Sass is currently leading, being the only team to have made it to Eagle Island close to 9:30pm according to the trackers. Eagle Island is one of the most remote checkpoints and it is hard to get information in and out quickly - you won't see Insider broadcasting live from the little spit of land growing out of the Yukon River. This is the first time in a long time Iditarod has even had a working checkpoint here as in 2019 weather kept them from being able to get the drop bags and other infrastructure to the Island. 

Of the front runners, only Brent Sass has yet to take his 8 - which he will have to take in Kaltag if he doesn't stay on Eagle Island as it is the last checkpoint on the river. Eagle Island seems more Brent's speed as it's far less busy and noisy than that of the village checkpoints. In the chase pack, Kelly Maixner, Mille Porsild, and Christian Turner are all still needing their 8. 

The top rookies are still showing strong with Eddie Burke and Hunter Keefe battling for not only that top ten finish (Burke is currently 10th, Keefe 11th) but that coveted Rookie of the Year. KattiJo Deeter is also hanging out in the top fifteen which is a huge improvement from last year when she was running her kennel's younger team as her husband ran the a-team. She didn't have to share this year and other than her broken sled issues in Rainy Pass, Deeter has shown just how tough she is. 

Tomorrow will be a race for the Coast and then from there on out the finish order will shake out as teams shed all extra weight to run up the coast to Nome. The teams are so close together still it's not quite for certain just who, if any, will truly break away from the rest. Don't plan on cat napping much from here on out - at least not until they reach White Mountain. 

Mushing Radio: Takotna Pies

Join hosts Robert Forto Michele Forto and Toni Reitter as we discuss the famous Takotna pies,
24 hour rests and much more on our Iditarod show. 

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Shhh! They're all sleeping on the Iditarod today!

It was a quiet day on the Iditarod trail. Oh, sure, there was the occasional howling team and the airplanes buzzing around, but no one was really moving. That's because Wednesday was the day most teams chose to took their 24 hour mandatory rest. Teams stretched from Nikolai to Ophir with only two mushers by the end of Wednesday choosing not to take their 24.

Wade Marrs blew through each of the busy napping checkpoints and is now on his way to the half-way point of the ghost town Iditarod. Iditarod was once a bustling community, one of the biggest "cities" in Alaska, during the Gold Rush Era and was the original goal of Joe Redington's race (hence the whole Iditarod Trail Race). Redington's original goal was something similar to what we saw back in 2021 (the Gold Loop Trail) where teams would leave from Knik or Anchorage and head to Iditarod before turning around and coming back. As of Wednesday afternoon Wade was the only musher who had decided to head that direction.

While the first few days of the race slowed teams and thwarted their plans because of the hot sun beating down and warming things up and melting the trail - Wednesday's trail saw cloudy skies that quickly turned to wet snow and freezing rain. It was anyone's guess what sort of trail Marrs and team would find past Ophir and every musher interviewed about what they expected were noting they were waiting to see how Wade did. According to a very recent report from Wade's facebook page, snowmachiners drove all over the trail to Iditarod and so it has been slow going as the dogs and musher try to find the packed trail.

In the back of the pack, Mike Williams Jr. may be the last one on the GPS, but he was one of the first to finish his 24 back in Nikolai. He will now be able to slingshot ahead of others who are still resting in McGrath if he so chooses. Next to last is Gregg Vitello who has yet to take his 24 and if he isn't declaring it now in McGrath he's looking at falling even further behind. 

Richie Diehl was the first out of Takotna after his 24 with Ryan Redington out three minutes later. Both teams were amped as they left, Redington's team angrily barking when Diehl's team left without them. Before they left as the teams started to rise as they prepared the dogs to go the entire dog yard of Takotna broke out into the most beautiful howl. Bruce Lee estimated there were around one hundred dogs there singing.

Nicolas Petit took his 24 back in Nikolai and has flown up the trail since leaving the checkpoint this morning. He is out of Takotna and very close to Ophir. He's rested on the trail in what looks like an attempt to break up the run to Iditarod in 3 runs. Petit, though, doesn't follow the norm and it's anyone's guess what he and his team actually do.

Teams will continue to leave throughout the late night/early morning hours. This is where the race truly begins. Hold on tight, folks!

Mushing Radio: First to McGrath

Join hosts Robert Forto Michele Forto and Toni Reitter as they discuss the First to McGrath and much more on tonights Iditarod podcast

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Leaders blow through McGrath, Petit 24s in Nikolai

Ryan Redington waves during the Ceremonial
Start of Iditarod 51. March 4, 2023. 
Anchorage, Alaska.

McGrath was busy and then it wasn't tonight as the top nine teams are into Mcgrath and eight of those are out of the checkpoint. Only Kelly Maixner sits in McGrath right now having declared his 24 (after saying yesterday he was shooting for Takotna). Ryan Redington was first into the hub checkpoint, receiving the Spirit of Iditarod award along with a pair of beaver mitts and fur hat. The musher did not stay long in the amenity filled checkpoint and chose to continue to run twenty miles to the next checkpoint of Takotna.

Soon after Redington left, Jessie Holmes reached McGrath choosing to take a few minutes to grab some items out of his drop bag before giving chase. Diehl was hot on Holmes' heels spending almost no time in the checkpoint before continuing on down the trail. rounding out the top five were Brent Sass and Pete Kaiser who spent even less time in McGrath before continuing on. 

It's the point in the race where it's anyone's guess where the leaders will take their 24. Many expected more to stop in McGrath, but everyone save Kelly has so far blown through on their way to Takotna. Some will stay in the checkpoint known for its food (especially pies), others will continue to Ophir, and one or two may be very ambitious and run to Iditarod (breaking it up in two runs). The trail report coming into McGrath says the trail is slower than expected. That is most likely due to the trail deteriorating in the near 40 degree temps during the day melting away the packed trail and turning it into... well... mush. Not only does the sun do a number on the snow all day, it also quickly overheats working sled dogs so more breaks are needed to let them cool down. Jessie Holmes reported he took at least ten small breaks to let the dogs cool off.

While teams continue to make their way up the trail, Nicolas Petit declared his 24 in Nikolai. It's unclear if this was his plan from the get go, or if he needed the time to fix sleds or give his dogs a long rest and hope they bounce back for the rest of the race. Nic likes to go fast and fly by the seat of his pants so it's anyone's guess, but he will be coming off his rest mid-morning Wednesday and if temps remain as they have been the last couple of days he will be running in the heat of the day to catch the lead pack who will all most likely be on their 24s. If he is hoping to sling shot ahead of others he needs to hope that his team rested at the right time and recovered from their runs in the heat earlier in the week... and he has to hope that the warm days do not zap the team's energy - and that the mushy, punchy trail does not create sore muscles on his dogs.

As of 10:30pm, there are now six teams in Takotna - though Holmes and Sass are in and now out of Takotna on their way to Ophir where it is expected they will declare their 24s. Richie Diehl and Ryan Redington (who was first to Takotna) chose to stay and it's unsure if they declared. Pete Kaiser came in just moments ago and his team did not want to stop with many still banging against their harness and barking up a storm - Bruce Lee of Iditarod Insider mentioned that his team looked as strong and beautiful as they did in Anchorage. Huge praise for the 2019 Iditarod Champion's team. Kaiser likes to 24 in Takotna and it was predicted he would do so again this year. Matt Failor just pulled into Takotna and it looks like he will stay for a spell.

Tonight and into tomorrow is all about teams making it to the checkpoint they plan to reset and recharge on their 24. Remember, this is also where they will equalize their time differentials, so Pete Kaiser in the front of the pack needs to rest only two extra minutes during his 24 and will be able to slingshot over many of the teams that are currently out ahead of him. Petit is the biggest unknown at this point to figure out just how he stands against the teams in Takotna. We'll see him take off sometime after 8am on Wednesday and that should be a good tell as to how this next part of the race will go for Nic.

Enjoy the evening, folks, this is where the Iditamath begins. 

Rookie Jennifer LaBar scratches in Rainy Pass

Jennifer LaBar during the Ceremonial Start
of Iditarod 51. March 4, 2023.
Anchorage, Alaska

The Iditarod has its first scratch of the race in rookie musher Jennifer LaBar. LaBar was running a good race until she encountered trouble on the Happy River Steps where she sustained an injury to her ring finger on her left hand during a sled crash. While in good spirits retelling the story to the Insider earlier in the day, after talking with medical staff, LaBar made the very difficult decision to cut her race short. All dogs were doing well when she made her decision. See the full statement from the Iditarod below:

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 6, 2023

 Rookie Iditarod musher, Jennifer LaBar, scratches at Rainy Pass Checkpoint

Anchorage, Alaska – Rookie Iditarod musher, Jennifer LaBar (bib #13), of Healy, Alaska,  scratched at 8:30 p.m. today at the Rainy Pass checkpoint.

After speaking with medical professionals, Jennifer made the very difficult decision to scratch due to a hand injury sustained earlier in the day.

LaBar had 13 dogs in harness when she arrived in Rainy Pass, all in good health.

All teams into Rainy Pass, leaders out of Rohn

Anna Berington's lead dogs during the Ceremonial
Start of Iditarod 51. March 4, 2023.
Anchorage, Alaska.

After a perfectly crisp (read: downright cold for us normal folk) weekend of starts, the Iditarod's first full day saw temps climb into the 40s thanks to the crystal clear blue sky and bright sun. Teams all along the trail chose to rest early and longer than their original schedules called for because it was just too dang hot. Reports of soft trail explained the numerous returned dogs reported so early in the race. Nothing major with the pups, just sore muscles and mushers not willing to take that chance.

Among those returned dogs is Ryan Redington's famed dog Wildfire. Wildfire, fans will recall, was the dog in Redington's team who last year in a training run was hit by a snow machine that then left the scene (and the coward never came forward). Through extensive surgeries and rehab, the goal originally was just for the dog to regain mobility and not lose the leg that ended up broken in several places. Instead, just over a year later, Wildfire was back on the main team coming in third place in the competitive field of the John Beargrease marathon. Redington had to leave Wildfire in the checkpoint of Skwentna late Sunday evening due to Wildfire showing signs of soreness in his leg. Ryan was visibly bummed that Wildfire couldn't continue commenting to Insider, "[all of the dogs] are my buddies, but he's extra special." While Wildfire is not continuing down the trail, Ryan is carrying the pins that Wildfire had surgically placed in his leg to repair it, Ryan had them made into something like a keychain when they were removed.

Also having some difficulty on the trail were rookies KattiJo Deeter and Jennifer LaBar. Deeter is on her second attempt at an Iditarod finish after the musher had to scratch during the windstorm that knocked out several teams in the Topkok Hills. Today it seemed like her race may end before even making it out of the first set of mountains. During a crash down the Happy River Steps, notorious for these sort of issues, KattiJo broke two stanchions on her sled. She had to detour from her planned run schedule to stay in Rainy Pass and try and repair her sled. Thanks to some assistance from a checkpoint volunteer she was able to get the material she needed to make the sled useable again. Deeter is now back on the trail heading for the Gorge (and the checkpoint of Rohn).

LaBar equally had a difficult time on the Steps, and in the first flight she had an epic crash where her left hand became pinched between a snowbank and her handlebar (she thinks). Her ring finger is at the very least dislocated and at worst broken. She still seemed in good spirits when chatting with the Iditarod Insider in the checkpoint of Rainy Pass as she iced her finger. This is a typical mushing injury for humans and while Insider suggested in their caption that the rookie musher was contemplating what this means for the rest of her race, most mushers are already chiming in saying it's no big deal and that she will continue on down the trail. 

The lead pack of Redington, Holmes, Sass, Maixner, Diehl, Burke, Porsild, Kaiser, and Failor are all out of Rohn and headed to Nikolai. Trail reports from Race Marshal Mark Nordman for this stretch of the trail are not looking good. Nordman told the mushers that the moguls were the worst he's ever seen and were roughly four feet high. There's reports of little to no snow (common for the burn, an area that is barren land due to a large forest fire that swept through the area around one hundred years ago and nothing has seemed to grow back. With no trees to block the wind any snow that lands there is swept away quickly leaving bare ground.) which means it's just hold on and hope your sled survives. The burn is roughly forty miles long. Don't expect teams to come into Nikolai until morning (Insider guesses around sun up which would be 7am...ish).

It's still far too early to declare an outright leader. We won't know how that shakes out until teams take their 24 hour mandatory rest (plus their time differential). That won't happen until they start to hit McGrath at the earliest (unless someone's race is going off the rails which no one appears to be in trouble like that) so we have another day of just trying to make it out of the mountains and burn for most of the teams.

Get some rest, Iditafans, the race is still just finding its rhythm. 

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2023 Iditarod top ten (ish)

One week from today we'll be cheering teams in Anchorage as they run through the city in the Ceremonial Start of Iditarod 51. The roster of thirty-three dog teams is a possible signal of a new era as many of the fan favorites chose to either sit this season out, or have moved on into retirement. Still, the race has nine rookie teams, and eight women are in the 51st running of the last great race. 

With those thirty-three teams we have a highly competitive field as well as the potential for many teams to jump up in standings and make themselves known. Time will tell how the rosters of the future shake out and whether or not we'll have an uptick in entries. But, for now, we have a strong roster of newbies and veterans. Only two teams have won Iditarod previously, so it is a true dawning of a new era in the sport.

Even though it's a small roster it's a competitive one. So many strong teams with the ability to take the top prize are in this race. It's time to do a rundown of who has the best chance to be in the top ten.

Brent Sass - The reigning Iditarod Champion won by running through a ground storm in the Topkok Hills. In true Iditarod fashion the finish was a dramatic one as the same storm hammered many of the teams (to the point where Martin Buser decided he'd retire after surviving the storm). Sass is coming off his Yukon Quest 550 win and many of his team will be with him on the run to Nome. Expect Brent to run his own race spending time out of checkpoints (except for mandatory rests).

Dan Kaduce - Best dog care anywhere could easily be Kaduce's motto. The musher came in fourth running a strong team of all 14 dogs from start to finish. He challenged for third for most of the race (and sometimes was even leading or nearly leading). Dan (and Jodi) has a solid program in Dew Claw Kennel and it's coming to fruition. With this small but highly competitive roster it won't be surprising to see Dan come out near the top.

Eddie Burke Jr - It isn't often a rookie gets named in a top ten list, but Burke has proven himself capable to put on a winning race. The 2023 Knik 200 champion is running a team out of Wildstyle Racing owned by Aaron Burmeister and Tony Browning, with Burmeister taking a step back from racing to focus on family, Burke is running a powerhouse team that just two years ago nearly took the prize in Iditarod 49. Burke has learned from two of the best mushers in the business and should challenge for a top ten spot. It will really come down to whether or not Burke remains focused on running his race, or if he makes the rookie mistake of racing others.

Jessie Holmes - That Jessie Holmes is even on the roster is a miracle after the musher was in a life threatning accident this summer. Holmes managed to prove that his recovery has gone exceedingly well this season as he challenged for top placement in several mid-distance races before returning home to continue to train for the big one. Holmes was third last year and appears to have no plans of slowing his team down. After all, this is Team Can't Stop we're talking about.

Jessie Royer - The leader of "The J Team" is back to Iditarod having taken last year off due to the Covid restrictions in Canada (she travels from Montana), among other reasons. Royer is a perennial favorite of fans, as well as a consistent top ten (and top five) finisher of the last great race. She successfully managed a top five finish with SIXTEEN dogs on the Iditarod (the only to do so). Her dog care is outstanding as is her competitive drive. Royer just won the Race to the Sky 300 mile race in Montana and her team looks fantastic as ever. Expect Jessie to stick to the front of the pack, but not push until the Coast.

Mille Porsild - Mille is coming off a somewhat rocky season with mid-distance races. She had some rough patches before coming second in the Yukon Quest 450 in Canada just a couple of weeks ago. In an incredibly short roster that wasn't as competitive as its Alaskan counterpart, Mille was a rookie in name only. Porsild has extensive experience within the sport of mushing as well as expedition mushing. She's as tough as they come and can bark orders better than any grizzled musher on the trail. She was 14th last year in a very difficult finish of a race (where she was originally penalized and then had that penalty repealed). It will be interesting to see how she does in a smaller roster chock full of competitive teams.

Nicolas Petit - Petit has an outside chance of taking the top prize, but he'll most likely have no trouble making the top ten. Petit likes to burst out with speed from the get go and just hope that his team can make the full 900+ miles to the finish line with enough of a lead that when they start to stall out/get bored/decide to go on a camping trip that he can keep everyone behind him. Petit prides himself on not having a race strategy and just follows the dog's lead. He calls them his kids, and they supposedly call him dad, and so he's well liked by many. He also loves to troll social media and the journalists so he gives some of the best soundbites. Never dull with Nic, for sure, but I personally wish he'd run a race with a plan so that we could REALLY see what his dogs can do.

Pete Kaiser - The 2019 Iditarod Champion just won yet another Kusko 300 title (fighting off Matt Failor to take it). The champion musher originally did not plan on running Iditarod 51, but, like many mushers before him, the draw was just too great a pull and he's back. Pete is one of the best in the business and takes his role as mentor and role model seriously. Kaiser will no doubt be one of the teams to follow, expect him to sit back for the first half of the race to give his team the best shot to overtake the teams ahead of him when they get to their "home field" of the Western Alaska coast.

Ramey Smyth - Never, ever, ever, EVER count a Smyth out. The son of Iditarod legends Bud Smyth and Lolly Medley was an incredibly late entry to this year's Iditarod (we're talking FEBRUARY late). Smyth is another one of those consistent top 20 finishers who, with this smaller roster, could see a jump in number just as there will be fewer teams to leap frog over. Ramey is another who bursts out on the Coast and eats up a lot of trail on the front runners (in 2012 he made a HUGE leap on the coast and had the Seavey family VERY worried he would run down Dallas). Rumor has it the Smyth boys wear running shoes on the final leg into Nome. Ramey is the dark horse in this roster as we haven't really seen what his team can do in the smaller races (he entered them only to withdraw). Still, if he was willing to make the leap into running this race, he must believe in his team which means WATCH OUT.

Matt Failor, Matt Hall, Richie Diehl, Wade Marrs - I really could do a top fifteen but I'll just add these four names to the tenth spot because I believe we'll see a combo of this quartet in the top ten, but I can't place my finger on which of these teams has the best shot. Failor and Hall should see their standings in the Last Great Race rise due to the shorter roster as well as they're both having really great seasons. And Marrs is back to Iditarod after having to take time away due to the Covid-19 vaccination policy. Richie Diehl is another consistent top 20 team who knows how to manage a race. Marrs was running a great Yukon 550 until his dogs decided that they wanted to make puppies more than they wanted to run a dog race, that shouldn't be an issue now for Iditarod.

It also should be noted that while there isn't a Seavey on the roster, their dogs are running. Mitch Seavey's "A-Team" is being run by Christian Turner (who ran his rookie race with Dallas Seavey's puppy team), though the team was trained mostly by Mitch and crew in Sterling before Turner could make the trip over from Australia. Dallas Seavey has leased a team of A-list dogs to friend and former competitor Kelly Maixner. Maixner used to run dogs out of his own kennel and has hit the top 10 in the past. Kelly did train with the team on most weekends, but again the majority of the training went to Dallas's crew in Talkeetna. Still, both mushers and teams are pros and it will be interesting to see what they come up with on the trip to Nome.

In all honesty, the majority of the thirty three name roster have a great shot at being in the top ten and it will come down to strategy, weather, and trail conditions. It's a heavy snow year for most of Alaska and mother nature's had a lot of ups and downs lately temperature wise so I expect this race to throw a little bit of everything at the teams. As always, Iditarod will no doubt give much drama and excitement over their 10-14 days of racing. Time will tell how it all shakes out, of course, but for now we choose our fantasy teams and discuss what may happen.

Who do YOU have in your top ten? Thoughts on who maybe shouldn't be on this list and who should be there instead? Comment below with your take on Iditarod 51!

*Thanks to those who caught my adding a name to the roster that wasn't on there, and to those that noticed I didn't make mention of the Seavey teams.

As always, if you like what you see and want to support my addiction (I mean HOBBY) of following these races and stalking (I mean cheering on) the mushers, you can buy me a slice of pizza (that really goes to paying for my internet/web expenses).