Widow's Lamp extinguished, Red Lantern awarded

Richie Beattie at the Ceremonial Start of Iditarod 54.
March 7, 2026. Anchorage, Alaska.

The 54th running of Iditarod has all but come to a close. At 7:49pm AKDST Friday, Richie Beattie and his team of eight Alaskan Huskies crossed under the Burled Arch in Nome as the final team of Iditarod 54. The re-run rookie was all smiles and excitement as he was greeted by friends and family in Nome.

The team out of Wildthingz Kennel spent much of the race towards the back of the pack as Richie wanted to make sure his dogs were healthy and happy throughout the entire race. The musher would say in his interview at the finish that it was a mental challenge after what happened in his true rookie year.

Beattie did not come into White Mountain Wednesday as the Red Lantern placement, but Beattie mentioned that being a little older and possibly more experienced played a part in his decision to be one of the last to leave. "If you're in the back of the pack it's way cooler to get the Red Lantern than getting third, fourth, or fifth from last!"

Beattie also mentioned that it was night to just take his time in White Mountain Friday morning, to stretch and to not be in a rush. The White Mountain Nine spent 30-43 hours in White Mountain waiting out the storm. Richie said coming into Nome was great to be out of the wind and that it felt "downright warm!" in Nome. 

After going through the red tape of checking off mandatory equipment and handing over the promotional materials, trail mail, and vet book to the race marshall, the ITC asked one more thing of the musher - extingquish the Widow's Lamp. 

Iditarod Education Co-Director Jim Deprez wrote about the significance and history of the Widow's Lamp saying in part:

"The Widow’s Lamp is a reminder of, and connection to the older days of mushing. It is said to have served a dual purpose. Years ago, roadhouses used to keep a kerosene lantern hanging outside through the night. The first reason was to help light the way for the mail and supply teams still on the trail; to aid them in finding the location of the next stop. The second intention was also to help show others that a team was still on the trail. News of the mushers on the trail was relayed ahead, to have a lamp hanging outside for the weary mushers. The lamp was then blown out once the dog sled team arrived safely. A correlation can be made in this case to the Olympic torch, which is lit during the opening ceremony, and then is extinguished at the closing ceremonies to symbolize the end of the events. The Widow’s Lamp serves a similar purpose in the Iditarod. It is lit when mushers get closer to Nome and is blown out by the final musher to cross the finish line on Front Street. This signals to everyone that there are no more teams still on the trail, and the race is now officially over."

The Widow's Lamp is not the lamp awarded to the final team, however. The red lantern is a tradition in sled dogs races that started off as a joke. If you were last, you were the one that got to extinguish the lamp and it meant you were the slowest/latest. It wasn't a badge of honor... until long distance races came along.

Just finishing Iditarod is a feat - no matter the placement - and being the red lantern winner has become something that awardees take great pride in. In the last few years it even comes with a cash prize and not just a red lantern one can use as a paperweight.

Saturday mushers will continue to care for the dogs that brought them nearly a thousand miles over Alaskan terrain as they wait to fly out. The mushers will continue to heal from brutal windburn, sleep deprevation, calorie depravation... hopefully they all get showers (can never be too sure they will). There's a meet and greet set for Saturday afternoon for fans to meet all of the mushers who finished the race. Sunday will be the finisher's meeting, and then the musher's awards banquet.

And then....

...then Iditarod 54 will truly be over. And mushers, dogs, family, friends, and fans will have to go back to reality. Back to the grind. 

And maybe, just maybe, they'll countdown to Iditarod 55. 

Teams leaving White Mountain Friday Morning

Sadie Lindquist at the Ceremonial Start of Iditarod 54.
March 7, 2026. Anchorage, Alaska.

After a very windy Thursday, the final nine teams who spent the day hunkered down in the checkpoint of White Mountain are readying their teams to leave the checkpoint and head down their final 77 miles of Iditarod 54.

The race was unofficially halted on Thursday as winds increased in the Topkok Hills and Blowhole (trail between White Mountain and the checkpoint of Safety). The section that is notorious for blowing teams off the trail and damaging sleds, hearts, and musher bodies was consideredly nearly impassable. The race gave the teams waiting to go the option to wait it out - but all teams still had the ability to leave if they felt they could handle it. The teams seemed to all have an unspoken pact that they'd leave together when the winds calmed. 

The White Mountain Nine prepared to leave as the sun was rising Friday morning, those watching on Iditarod Insider were witness to a waking dog yard of happy howls as the dogs realized that more adventure and trail awaited them and they were finally going to get going. Sadie Lindquist was first out of the checkpoint a little after nine and that energy brought about a hurry up from the rest of the mushers.

Because of their extended stay in White Mountain (of 24 or more hours) each team is allowed to leave whenever they want to. There's no stand in line and wait your turn from the order of how you got there - it's whoever is fastest to ready their team and leave they can. They can judge weather reports, talk to the veteran mushers turned volunteers in the checkpoint, etc to make the decision when to go. 

Sean Underwood of Iditarod Insider reported that the winds were dying down but still strong Friday morning, however reports had the winds being at their lowest strength come early afternoon - about when teams leaving now would be hitting the feared Blowhole. It's all strategic now on how to safely get to Nome. 

Teams have 77 miles from White Mountain to Nome. Winds can slow teams down significantly but these teams are now WELL rested, so it may not be quite the same marching speeds we watched some of the top 20 show. In nine or ten hours we should know who our red lantern is on way or the other. Nome is going to be busy tonight. Look for the first teams to come into the finish around 6pm AKDST Friday.

And with that Iditarod 53 comes to an end

Ebbe Pederson at the ReStart of Iditarod 53.
March 3, 2025. March 3, 2025.

The final musher crossed under the burled arch Monday morning at 1:40am AKDT. Ebbe Pederson running a second team out of Turning Heads Kennel didn't expect to be the Red Lantern as another team was resting in White Mountain when the musher from Norway pulled into Nome. Ebbe went to bed second to last in the wee morning hours.

Many were expecting the Red Lantern to come in Monday evening, however Jenney Roddewig pulled the plug on her race shortly before her scheduled leave time in the checkpoint. The musher's family took to the kennel's social media page to explain that the Sage Mountain Sled Dogs had had a rough run from Elim to White Mountain and Jenny rightfully did not want to ask them to do more than they should.

With the scratch around 6am, the race decided to let the new Red Lantern have a chance to rest before meeting under the burled arch to extinguish the Wildow's Lamp and receive his Red Lantern trophy. Ebbe Pederson was heard exclaiming "Oh, look at this! A big trophy!" as they handed him the Red Lantern award. Ebbe went to bed an Iditarod finisher and woke up a finisher with a trophy and cash prize.

Ebbe didn't travel alone to Nome, he took the last run together with fellow rookie Dane Baker of Alaskan Husky Adventures. Baker has worked with Matthew Failor for several years as a dog handler and was excited to finally take on the thousand mile race. Failor made sure to thank his handler during the Iditarod Finisher's Banquet, acknowledging Baker was still out on the trail "and probably climbing the Topkok Mountains as we speak." Baker came in ahead of Pederson by five minutes. He came in 21st place wearing bib number 21. 

It has been several years since the race ended after the Finisher's banquet. As is tradition, a smaller banquet was planned for the mushers not able to make Sunday's dinner. While not covered by media and typically has less pomp and circumstance, most that have attended in the past say it is far more fun.

Thirty-three teams started the journey from Fairbanks to Nome on March 3, 2025 - twenty-two teams completed the 1,128 mile trail. It's said that Iditarod 53 was the longest Iditarod race to date, as well as one of the toughest. Many of the mushers at the banquet recounted how difficult the endless miles of river they were on (especially the Yukon River) and how they were done with river running for a while. Every year is difficult in ways unexpected, and every rookie race is hard, but the class of 2025 should be exceptionally proud of what they and their teams accomplished.

With a third of the field unable to complete the course, Iditarod 53 had the lowest number of finishes since 1973 - the first ever Iditarod. Many of the finishers at the banquet said they planned to be in the 54th running of the race, while others remained silent or even suggested they were planning to take a year off. With the uncertainty of everything these days making a commitment that is a massive financial suck takes a little time to decide.

Iditarod 53 may be over and Nome may be getting back to normal, but fans will now be turning towards kennel websites and social media to read the stories from the trail. Iditarod Volunteers will gather on Wednesday for the volunteer potluck where even more stories will be told. There are still several mid-distance races to follow in the next few weeks - many of them qualifiers for the Quest and the Iditarod. The season is not quite over.

Musher sign-ups for 2026 and volunteer appreciation picnic will be held on June 28, 2025.

Rookie Charmayne Morrison second to scratch

In an announcement that is never easy to read, but not very surprising to those watching the trackers - Iditarod Rookie Charmayne Morrison has scratched from Iditarod 53.

Not much was given in the press release Thursday, just to say that the musher chose to scratch at 10am with 14 dogs in harness all in good health. 

The race also stated they hoped she would return to the Iditarod in the future.

The rookie musher out of Montana has dreamt of running the Iditarod since childhood, and has worked hard to build her kennel to train and race to qualify. Morrison is well known and liked in many of the lower 48 races and the early scrach is surprising to many.

It is speculated the unseasonably warm temperatures, silt storms, and unexpectedly difficult trail played huge factors. Top teams like Jeff Deeter and Matthew Failor have also seemed to struggle in the first leg of the 53rd running. 

With Morrison's scratch the new Red Lantern is second year Iditarod rookie Quince Mountain who is running about fourteen miles behind the back of the pack.

Last team reaches Nome

Josi Thyr's team at the restart
of Iditarod 52. March 3, 2024.
Willow, Alaska

Jeff Reid came under the burled arch to end the Iditarod 52nd running Saturday at 2:22am. The twenty-ninth and final musher of the race was awarded a red lantern and asked to extinguished the Widow's Lamp before heading off to the dog lot and a well deserved rest.

Reid had fans worried much of Friday when his team continually tried to head out from the checkpoint of Safety only to return. Reid left ahead of Severin Cathry and Joshua Robbins out of White Mountain only to watch first Robbins and then Cathry pass him out of Safety. Both Cathry and Reid had trouble getting their team to head out of that final checkpoint, but as Robbins' team left for Nome Cathry was able to follow. 

Reid's team wouldn't. The musher tried several times to get his team to get up and go. Fans went to bed that night wondering if we'd seen the red lantern come in and not get awarded when Severin Cathry finished. Would Jeff Reid get moving again? Race Judge Sebastian Schnuelle responded to fans on social media telling them he was having leader trouble, he would rest and try again "in the morning". Fans went to bed hoping that they wouldn't see another scratch.

They woke up seeing Reid was already in Nome. After "two meals and great naps in the beautiful sun" the team was ready to go again. Apparently part of the problem was a dog in heat that got the rest of the dogs a little nutty. "What a trip, man," Reid said as he crossed under the arch and was greeted by an enthusiastic crowd. He was checked in, declared rookie no more, and like that Iditarod 52 was over.

38 teams started the race, 29 finished. Most of the scratches came from the large number of rookies (as is normal), but a first time scratch for a hardened veteran surprised everyone. Each team  has their own stories of the trail. We'll get to read them and hear them in the coming days. 

Tomorrow the 29 who finished will be celebrated at the banquet, awards will be given, and then by Monday Nome will get her town back, the Burled Arch will go back to it's spot off to the side to wait for next year. Everyone will fly home and the IditaSlump will commence. 

Now, for fans at home, it's an empty map. No more green and orange flags moving up the blue line. No more glitches. No more refresh, Refresh, REFRESH! No more waking up at all hours to check where their favorite musher is. No more - we hope - harrowing tales of angry moose, bison, or musk ox on the trail. Fans will have to go back to "regular life" similar to how the mushers will. What to do?

We still have the T-Dog and Kobuk440 races to look forward to for our tracker addiction, and then it will turn towards summer. Two weeks goes by way too fast in comparison to the whole 50 weeks of waiting for it. There will be puppies, and glaciers, and fishing, and lots of weeks with no updates from teams. And then the last Saturday in June will come around and the next season will begin with the Iditarod sign ups.

And the obsession will start up again.

Final mushers are into Nome

The Final Four have made it to Nome! After what seemed like the most dramatic finish ever for the back of the pack, the Final Four made quick time into the finish. An always bittersweet moment as we celebrate the final teams crossing the finish line and watching the final team extinguish the Widow's Lamp because we know this means no more Iditarod for a whole year. Still, the accomplishment will be celebrated and to top it off ALL TEAMS ARE OFF THE TRAIL in time for the Finisher's Banquet on Sunday!

First in of the Final Four was Eric Kelly at 9:11pm followed a few minutes later at 9:49pm by Kailyn Davis. Then it was over an hours wait before Yuka Honda came charging into the chute. Red Lantern followed soon after as Apayauq Reitan completed her journey once again on the Iditarod Trail.

With the extinguishing of the Lantern signifying all teams were off the trail, the 50th running of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race officially came to a close. 

Forty-Nine teams started the race in Anchorage/Willow. Of those were thirteen rookies, and thirty six veterans. There were Americans, a Swede, a South African. The first transgender woman completed the race this year. They battled deep snow, no snow, overflow, and insane winds. Though this race may not have looked like the races of old with its NASCAR like speeds, technology, and-well-sponsor logos everywhere you turn... over all I think ol' Joe Senior would be proud to see his race continue for so long after him (over twenty years without our Joe). 

Thirty seven mushers completed Iditarod 50.

Tomorrow night is the Finisher's Banquet where stories will be shared, they'll all say never again... but come summer they'll all place their names in the ring (so to speak) once again to run the Last Great Race On Earth. This one was for Joe, they may call it the Iditarod Trail but it's truly Redington's Run.

Bringing Iditarod 49 to a close

Full on confession time - I absolutely hate the end of the Iditarod. For many mushers and fans alike Iditarod is a lot like Christmas... weeks to months long planning and preparation and it's gone in a blink of an eye. I no joke sing/hum "It's the most wonderful time of the year" during the week leading up to Iditarod. That's how important this race feels. I know I'm not the only one, but I may be the only one willing to publicly admit it (I have this semi-secret dream that Rick Swenson gets all giddy this time of year and decorates and celebrates the race week... though maybe not this year since his record was tied). I'm to the point where I want to leave out cookies and hot tang for the Spirit of Joe Redington Senior and salmon snacks for all the amazing sled dogs who've run this race and have since gained their "silver harness". Probably creepy and a little too much information (I'm gonna get blacklisted as a creepy person who needs to be committed, I just know it). 

But, seriously, this is an event I look forward to all year. The countdown to the picnic (Volunteer appreciation, ITC Member Meeting, and Iditarod race sign ups) that happens mid summer starts the second the red lantern is extinguished (well... this year, most years it's after the banquet... but... well... covid). Then the countdown to the beginning of the race season. Then the countdown to the race itself. Sure, the mushers are still recooperating... but we've heard so many of them already talking about next year.

Next year. Next year will be Iditarod 50. That's such an achievement. Against all odds the first race went off in 1973. It was a "we do this now or we never will" type race. Loved ones cried as their men went off with their dogs into an unknown race that many believed they would never come back from. The promised purse wasn't even paid for when the teams left Anchorage! Everyone talks about "Seward's Folly" when Alaska was bought from Russia, but the Iditarod was certainly going to be "Joe's Folly" if it flopped from the get go.

The race would go on to evolve every decade or so. Better equipment, better training, better dog care... women dominating the race in the 90s. Huge purses and personalities in the 90s. Records made, records broken. Faster and faster finish times. Our red lanterns are now finishing in fewer days than some of the legends in the race did just 25 years ago. 

Trails have changed. The starting point has changed so many times it's crazy. Low snow. No snow. Bering Sea breaking up ahead of the race. You have to wonder if Joe Redington would even recognize his race with all of the changes that have happened just since his passing. Would Susan Butcher? 

Yes. While I think they'd probably fight like most of the other "old dawgs" against some of the changes, the ultimate goal of protecting and preserving the Alaska Sled Dog is still the same. Sure, there are things that need to be worked on more. Joe wanted to preserve the culture of the sled dog within the villages that birthed it. Costs of racing, much less travel and just basic kennel care, are enormous. We're to the point where very few Native Alaskan mushers are able to participate. It's still alive and well in certain communities (Huslia and Bethel both come to mind), but how do we translate it to the "Last Great Race"? This was a question Joe had "back in the day" and it continues. Mushers like Pete Kaiser, though, help get that back in the spotlight to inspire the next generation. 

I ramble. But as we look toward the huge milestone of 50 years, there's the question of what does the future hold past 50? How does the race survive climate change, culture change? There are more top teams than ever. The field this year was insanely competitive. There's no lack of interest in the race from participants, to volunteers, to fans. Iditarod isn't going anywhere, but it's interesting to dream about what it will look like in another 10, 20, or even 50 years.

Tonight the last two mushers of Iditarod 49 will come into the finish. It's unknown which will get to extinguish the red lantern, but what an accomplishment. It will be a celebration of the dogs, the mushers, the race. In a year that we weren't even sure there would be a race. A year that saw the race stay away from traditional checkpoints, go to Iditarod and back. No Nome, no Takotna Pies, Peace on Earth Pizza... but it happened. There were bumps - there always are - but overall the race was a success. It persevered as it always does. As the sport always does. As the mushing lifestyle always does. As the state always does.

When Victoria Hardwick and Dakota Schlosser cross the finish line, it will close the latest chapter of the Last Great Race on Earth. The stories will continue to be told as mushers finally come off of their race high and come back to reality. Volunteers will share their memories and photos. But then spring (and so much frozen dog poop turning to mush... ah Springtime in Alaska), and summer with a cobbled together tourist season, and before we know it it will be fall and the training season.

I believe this was one of the best races we've had in a long time. It looked different, it felt different, but the stories and the people and the coming together... I want to remember this year for a long, long time.

Thank you to everyone who've allowed me to ramble on this blog, who've listened to the Dog Works Radio Iditarod Podcast and given so much positive feedback and encouragement, and allowing me to really clog up your social media timelines with my IditaSpam. I LOVE this race. I LOVE the people who run the race. I LOVE the dogs! And I love being able to talk about it with people. I love sharing my love for it and my knowledge and my thoughts. This is the most rambly blog post I've done in a long while, so I'll end it here. But THANK YOU. This has been the best season for my blog in 10 years, and I very very much appreciate the support! The race season isn't done, so hopefully I keep the momentum and finish out the season for the blog. Stay tuned. I have goals and plans for this blog... just need to find the drive and the know how to do it.