Camped out beside the trail before Nenana -
Is it hard to get them to lay down when they're this energized?
Oh ya, but it's 1000 miles
We'll do the trek over to Manley in the dark. We'll stay a couple of hours, snack 'em, change some booties. Looking good - I'm pleased with them. Lots of yearlings - five yearlings this year. Training for next year.
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Wade before Nenana:
It's a little warm out, so we're parking a little early, then we'll go blasting into Nenana - just taking a little short rest here. Get a good snack in them and then we'll go flying down the trail. It's pretty nice out - but sunny, so we'll let the sun go down a bit. We took off with coats because it was pretty cold this morning, so the heat slows them down and they lose hydration, so we don't want that.
Q: What d'you think about all the teams flying by you?
<laughs> I'm not worried about that... we'll see most of them again.
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Richie in Nenana:
Q: How d'you feel?
Uh... pretty good... <looks confused> we're only 50 miles in <smiles>. Trail was up and down - soft and slow... temperatures felt great. Perfect for the dogs. Going to break these long runs up a bit, go a little shorter... see how it goes...
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Hugh in Nenana:
Trail wasn't as bad as he thought it would be, a little punchy. Not as windy as it was last time. So many teams in ID for the first few days it's definitely nerve wracking - like being in downtown Chicago traffic, but you're in the woods instead. Very well organized check point...
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Aliy in Nenana:
Good... 50 miles, ca=ching... quite a bit of snow out there, but a fantastic group of dogs who don't mind running in deep snow, so I guess I should be ecstatic. I don't mind the cold at all. I'm kind of an interior musher gal, so 30 below doesn't bother me that much, and so long as you keep the dogs fed and wrapped up, they'll do well at those temps... so long as you feed them enough.
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Allen in Nenana:
A little slower than it was two years ago, that's all right. It makes the dogs go slower, so hopefully we won't get so many injuries that way. Everyone has to go through it. Temps are perfect right now.
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Joar in Nenana:
Beautiful day, trail was a good mix of soft and good trail. Nice cold night to get to Manley. Got some good dog jackets, they'll be fine.
[you almost feel sorry for the interviewer trying to get anything out of Joar....
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Hans in Nenana:
Trail was faster than I expected it to be. It was soft, but not as bad as people made it sound like. Was nice this afternoon but you can already feel it cooling off. Probably going to be the coldest run [next] that we're going to have to deal with.
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Laura Neese in Nenana:
I thought it was beautiful - coming from Michigan, this is a *fast* trail for us. I like it. It's perfect. Staying about five hours. Dogs looking great, having fun.
Q: What d'you think about the cold temps?
Dogs like it, so I like it.
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Ray Redington:
Punchy.. not a hard fast trail.
Q: Are you adjusting anything? Changing anything?
My clothes... constantly... It must be spring, eh? It gets so hot during the day, but cold at night.
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Michelle:
Trail much better than last time.... a little slower at times, but better than expected. Obviously that section's travelled more than others. Dogs happy to get out of the truck and go for a run. Nice for them to get out and get moving. It's great to have winter! Super bonus... lovely ... a little bit of a shocker when it's cold, but that's ok, it's good for the dogs. They eat better, perform better... winter animals so much nicer for them.
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Ryan Anderson:
Everything's good, going good. Sounds like the trail will be soft until Ruby. Beautiful weather. Dogs looking good. Just a rookie, so just going to run dogs.
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Jodi:
Trail is a lot nicer than the reports. Just let them roll along. I'm always this walking ball of anxiety leading up to the race and then I get out on the trail, about ten miles out, take a deep breath and everything falls into place. Goal is to keep them looking strong and happy.
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Linwood:
Early, it's cold... going to have a toll on the dogs if we're not careful.
Q: Does it help that your dogs worked on the glacier?
It helps with the chaos of checkpoints because they get so they don't care. They're used to helicopters and people, so that's good.
Q: what are you looking forwards to?
It getting warmer. I think the fastest races are always when it's been warm.. they rest better, they're not shivering when they're laying down... they're not burning calories trying to sleep.
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