IditaProject Forum

March 14, 2014 ·
The rookies are starting to make their way slowly into Nome - so far, 38 teams have arrived (69 started, 19 have scratched).
They have been videoing each musher as he comes in, to tell their tale. Here's some of the better stories:
Mushers who were several hundred miles back on the trail on Monday night:
Ken Anderson who spent hours pinned down by the weather, stuck in what appeared on the tracker to be one of the worst possible spots - up on Little McKinley. Was very worried about his predicament:
"The trail drops down into this nice little spruce grove, and I thought 'Aah, this looks pretty nice...we'll just wait it out right here". So it was actually a really nice rest - it was calm and peaceful and I had everything I needed. I got in my sleeping bag and I slept for about five hours. When I woke up, there was this one little meandering track [Mike Williams] that went by me. I assumed that my dogs would bark if somebody came by..."
[aaah- *five* hours of blissful, uninterrupted sleep]
Curt Perano: <mumbling to someone in the chute> "That was some serious sh*tty weather"
Cim Smyth:
"It was a rough one... I think going to Koyuk was the worst - out there on the ice [Norton Sound] being blown around in circles by the wind on the glare ice - the dogs couldn't stand up and the sled's passing them everywhich direction, being blown around in circles and slid down to the ocean. Dogs coming to a patch of hard snow or whatever and then they didnt' want to leave that snow and get blown around again, so that was probably the worst. I was hanging out with Ralph and between he and I we just ripped right on across there [Golovin Bay]. He led the second half out of Golovin otherwise I think I might have had some issues there..."
Rick Casillo:
"Going into Shaktoolik was epic - it was insane. The wind was blowing 50 mph on glare ice - at one point I thought I was going to get blown into the ocean - I was on the road to Shaktoolik and it actually blew us to the other side of the road and there was open water... it was crazy, pretty intense... That was an intense moment among what was about 500 intense moments in this race. I'm pretty emotional right now - that leader up there is unreal - that dog saved my life several times..."
Kristy Berington:
"I was expecting to see something like rain because that's about the only thing we didn't have..."
Travis Beals (22 yrs):
Unlike everyone else who came in covered in frost with frost moustaches, Travis was in an open necked sweater, showing off his farmer's tan and he looked *hot*. He had 9 cheerful looking dogs on the line.
"Any body who finishes that race is tough - first or last, you get bragging rights for finishing.
.. Boston's the lead dog, he's been i nlead pretty much the entire step of the way. Probably the only thing he hasn't led is about 50 miles. He's a heck of a dog - I wouldn't be here without him.
We left Shaktoolik and Norton SOund - Holy Smokes, that was blowing - you could barely stand up. Then coming in to Shaktoolik I was on my hands and knees, crawling down the road. I could see the checkpoint and it probably took me about an hour to actually get to it - and I was probably only half a mile away, but I had to crawl on my hands and knees, because if you stood up, you'd go flying." (he's laughing as he tells this story).

COHusky wrote:I hate to see anyone scratch, but ...
I really wonder what Ellen is trying to accomplish. Maybe placing ahead of the Red Lantern?
She has finished twice, a huge accomplishment in it's own right.
Must be discouraging to have had to scratch so often.