Pete in Koyuk:Q: Tell us about that last run and how crazy it was?
P: Well, it's kind of mental warfare out there, there's really no one part of it that's difficult, but for some reason, the combination of the terrain and wind and the snow and it's just flat. If it was a regular training run it would be no big deal, but this late in the race and overthinking everything, and sleep deprived adn it seems like it always takes longer than it should.
...It's pretty trippy out there on that run.
Q: DId you hear about Nic getting lost?
P: I heard that he'd maybe taken a wrong turn and they'd switched positions but I didn't get any details.
Q: How was it marked for you?
P: it was marked good, but there was just enough ground blizzard that you had to be paying attention to how they'd marked the trail. It was real flat light, so you couldn't just see a ribbon of a trail. You had to be watching for it.
I did see a couple of spots where a couple of different types of markers veered off and if you weren't paying attention, I imagine the dogs could go down the wrong path and you could go a ways before you'd recognize it.
It was marked well, but you had to be paying attention.
* * *
Ray in Koyuk:R: I don't think I can catch them two [Joar and Nic], but some of these guys back here, like Pete Kaiser, if I was a betting man...
<a soft spoken local interrupts by saying something about soft snow on the portage>
Ray looks at the camera. [Is it that this person isn't supposed to be giving him inside information like that?]
<local guys says "the first two are going to have a tough time" - I think he's correcting Ray's assumption that he won't be able to catch them>
Ray: The first two?
Local: Yes, a lot of snow on that portage.
Ray: Huh.
Pulls out a fire-starting flint on a lanyard around his neck.
Bruce: How's Pete looking? Is he still strong?
R: yeah, you know, I couldn't believe he wasn't here with me. I thought maybe he was carrying a dog or soemthing. I hope not.
B: Yours still look strong?
R: They look ok, I guess, especially when they're here... they're not that strong.
[wondering if this is what Pete talks about above, where it seems like you're going super slow when you're actually going the same speed as everyone else? Ray was actually the fastest team so far by a few minutes]
Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2018 1:35 pm