Showing posts with label willow 150. Show all posts
Showing posts with label willow 150. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Willow 300 begins with confusion

All teams for the Willow 300 and 150 are on the trail, but it didn't go off without a hitch. Teams were scheduled to leave the starting line at 9am for the 300 mile race when at around 8:45am they were given word by officials that the start had been moved back an hour to 10am. This was after it was announced at the mushers meeting just the day before that the start was not 10 but 9.

While to some this seems like a small change that shouldn't matter much, it does. There is a rhythm and schedule to these types of things. We're talking dogs who cannot understand the concept of "go time is now an hour later" and mushers are now thrown off their schedules (should they write those up). At the time teams were finding out of the time change, most had their dogs out of their dog boxes, bootied, and some were even lined out. That meant that they now had to unbooty the dogs and put them back in the truck... dogs would be incredibly confused as they are supposed to GO after booties and line out, not just get back in the truck and not run.

To make matters even more confusing, it was announced around 8:30am that the trackers never made it to Willow so there would be no GPS tracking for fans. Not a huge deal from a musher perspective, but it was a bummer to fans. Then as they were announcing the time change for the start, the tracker link went live and it was "the trackers are on their way!" Ah, there's the reason for the start delay.

While I'm not complaining that we get to track the teams, I'm not sure waiting on the trackers is enough to delay a race. I'm sure some mushers were thinking the same thing.

Still, as the close struck 10am, the first team was off the starting line and across the lake. 

Oh, yeah, that was the other big change - no mass start. With the weather turning so warm, overflow is a major concern and it was not safe to park all the teams, personnel, and dog trucks on the lake, so they started at the Willow Community Center (like they do for the Iditarod ReStart) and left at two minute intervals. They will make up their time differential at the mandatory four hour stop at Sheep Creek checkpoint. 

So, armchair mushers, I hope you enjoyed this bit of whiplash as much as this blogger did. We have a lot of mushing to follow in the next 5 days or so (really longer once Beargrease starts) so don't let go of the sled, stick with us for all the news and action! 

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

2023 Willow 300 race preview

It's time to kick off one of the busiest race weekends of the season with the early start of the Willow 300 which takes off of Willow Lake at 10am Wednesday. This is the first of two 300 mile races that will take place between now and Sunday, the Kuskokwim 300 kicks off later this week.

The Willow 300 is joined by their little brother the Willow 150 and both races will take off together and run much of the same trail. Both are used as qualifiers for the Iditarod and the Yukon Quest and the 150 decided to allow junior mushers (ages 14-17) the chance to run. 

During today's mandatory vet checks, the mushers reported the temperature getting as high as 41 degrees. That's crazy warm for this time of year, and the forecast shows much of the same for the remainder of the week. There should also be rain mixed with snow on both Wednesday and Thursday into Friday. This will make the race a slog fest as in those temps and conditions the set trail is most likely to be slush on top of the packed trail. The lakes and rivers will no doubt have overflow like conditions. It will be warm, dogs will need to rest, booties will need to be changed more often, this race will be slower than normal. How much slower remains to be seen. 

There are 24 teams signed up for the 300 mile race, and 9 signed up for the 150. While they follow the traditional no bib number one in respect for the honorary musher, bib number 13 is also being left vacant, that's due to Lance Mackey being the honorary musher. Mackey won his first of four Iditarods with lucky number bib 13, the same number his brother Rick and father Dick won their Iditarods with. While it wasn't his bib number every year, it's a number many think of as Lance's, and it seemed only fitting they should remember him that way. Lance is honorary musher for both the 150 and the 300.

Even though there will not be a Fantasy Mushing competition this year for the Willow 300, we should still take a look at some of the top teams that are entered in the 2023 running.

Who to watch

Dan Kaduce - It should come as no surprise that Dan is on this list. The team of Dew Claw Kennel made sure people paid attention during the 2021 Iditarod and Dan hasn't looked back. Dan is one of the few mushers (one of only two) to be able to say they finished in the top 10 with all of their dogs in the Iditarod. He is one of the ultimate dog men, he cares for his dogs and they are time and again amongst the top teams in mid-distance and now long distance races. Expect Dan to be right up there in the top finishes in Willow.

Jason Mackey - Mackey may have the goods, but it's unclear if this is his year yet. He's been out of the running for several years, and this may end up being a rebuilding year for Jason. There's been a lot of upheaval for Jason with the passing of his brother and other personal issues, but you can't count a Mackey out. He had a decent showing in the Knik 200, and he'll look to build on that. It's possible he's running a lot on his name, but it's a good name to run with.

Nicolas Petit - Hey, remember when he posted after the Knik 200 that it was a "good run of winning" but now that was "over" and then he went to win the Copper Basin 300 like I warned? Yeah, at this point just ignore everything he posts about his race "strategy". Nic will be Nic every Nic-ing time. Expect him to get out in front and stay there. I'll keep saying it, he is the KING of the mid-distance race. He was supposed to run the Kusko, but chose last minute to stick closer to home. 

Ramey Smyth - The only name that seems to strike fear in a musher's heart when they find out that musher's behind them is Ramey Smyth. While most talk about Redingtons, Mackeys, and Seaveys, we should also be talking about the Smyth mushers. Their dad was another founding member of the Iditarod TrailBreakers and they KNOW. THEIR. STUFF. Chances are it's Ramey (or brother Cim) who wins the Safety to Nome fastest time award. Why? These guys pack running shoes in their sled, they are known for kicking up speed on the home stretch and they can pick off a ton of teams on their way to the finish. The only time I've ever heard/seen a Seavey get worried about a shake up in Iditarod standings is in 2012 when Ramey started charging up the coast and jumped over 10 places, he gained a lot of time and miles on Dallas. We know how that ends of course, but it sure made Danny Seavey sweat doing the math to see just how much of a threat he was. Ramey chose to run the 150 instead.

Travis Beals - Another team that was supposed to be at the Kusko this weekend, Travis decided road system would work better for his team. Expect him to use this as a trial run for his run at Iditarod. Being in South Central Alaska he'll no doubt have his team ready to deal with the somewhat warmer temps and slushy conditions, but he'll also be preserving his team for Iditarod so don't expect him to do anything wild and crazy. Beals is one of those teams that sticks to a plan.


Now that you've got an idea of who the front runners should be, what about watching the race sitting there at home (like I am, not judging at all. Armchair mushers unite!) I've got you covered with all of the ways to keep in tune with the race!

How to watch

Unlike the other races that have established media sources and big sponsorships that garner attention from outside media, the Willow 300 runs mainly by its volunteer staff to keep fans updated. Here are the links you need to know to be able to follow the race.

Official Website

A couple of years ago the Willow 300 went big league and got their own website, and it's a decent one! Lots of good information on the race as well as all the links on the front page to help you follow the race in real time, as best as possible. It's definitely worth a look. 

GPS Tracker

Beep, boop! That's right, we have trackers. Can't have races without trackers, right? No worries, trackleaders.com has us covered once again. Don't forget to jump on Wednesday morning to follow along! TRACKERS DID NOT COME IN IN TIME, THERE WILL BE NO TRACKERS FOR THIS RACE! Nevermind, they delayed the start to get the trackers.

Social Media

For the Willow 300, Social Media is the race's life blood. They post mainly to their Facebook Page, and they are sometimes active on their Twitter account at race time. They also share a few photos and posts on their Instagram Page. The official hashtag is, simply, #Willow300. Expect a live feed for the start and finish on their facebook page, and videos throughout the day.

Kale Casey is in Willow covering the race on his facebook page. Make sure to follow his page Kale Casey LIVE so that you don't miss whenever he goes live.

Schedule of Events

Tuesday, January 24
9am-3pm Vet Checks
3:30pm Musher Meeting

Wednesday, January 25
10am Mass Start Changed to 2min interval start

Saturday, January 28
6pm Finisher Banquet & Auction


Who are you hoping to see finish first? Thoughts on the race? Comment below!

Comment below with any thoughts about the roster, or any corrections. 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).

2023 Willow 150 musher roster

There are two races happening at once in Willow! Along with the 300 mile race, we also have a 150 mile race that also counts as a qualifier, and BONUS they now allow junior mushers to enter the 150! This is very exciting as there are fewer long races for junior mushers, so to have them be able to run a mid-distance race ahead of the Junior Iditarod is a huge boost to their mushing education. Not all of the teams are juniors, of course, but it's nice to see them young 'uns in the mix! (And watch out for the Emily Robinson! Don't let her age fool ya!)

There are a few recognizable names, but some many probably will not recognize, so this will be a fun one to learn about some of the up and coming teams in the next few years. Make sure to give them a follow on social media and cheer them on this week!

2 Emily Robinson (Robinson Racing Kennel) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
3 Walter Robinson (Robinson Racing Kennel) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
4 Kelly Ridley (Lost Creek Mushing) - Facebook
5 Dries Jacobs (??) - Facebook
6 Brianna Blomgren (Team Bailey?) - Facebook
7 Samantha Lalonde (Ryno Kennel) - Facebook / Kennel Facebook / Instagram
8 Artyom Krutikov (Team Petit?) - Facebook / Instagram
9 Ramey Smyth (Smyth Racing) - Facebook

The race starts same place and time as the 300. Look for a preview of the 300 later today (hopefully it's a slow day in the office so I can sneak some blogging in). Thank you to all who follow the blog, and request changes/extras. I do this for myself, but I'm also doing it for fellow fans!
*Edited to reflect the FINAL final roster. Added Smyth and took off two other teams. Sorry for the confusion.

Comment below with any thoughts about the roster, or any corrections. 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).