by Leaddog » Sat Mar 12, 2022 4:52 am
The fact that Nordman appeared to be waiting for him and perhaps that Neff expected Nordman to be waiting for him would suggest that something had occurred back up the trail, and that a conference was in order. Other than finishing, there are three ways to leave a race: scratch, withdrawn, and DQ. Often, a musher is given a choice between scratch (musher's decision) and withdrawn (official's decision), with it being made clear to the musher that if he/she doesn't scratch then they will be withdrawn. Scratch is perceived as the more "honorable" way of going, but if the musher doesn't get the hint, they are withdrawn. If a musher meets the criteria of a DQ (major rule violation), it is rare that they would ever not do that so I doubt it was something more serious.