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Nikolai #2

Total mileage from Wasilla: 279 miles

March 05, 8:30 p.m.

Here on the South Fork of the Kuskokwim River you can see the wind has blown most of the snow away leaving exposed sand and gravel bars.

    For the most part the trail this far has been exceptional, which helps to support the record pace that the race is on.  For some mushers though, the nearly snow-less Farewell Burn took it's toll.  One of those mushers is Lance Mackey.  He was carrying two dogs in the sled with  when he pulled into Nikolai at 10:45 last night.  He said the two dogs he was carrying had sore shoulders from running through the hummocks and moguls in the Burn.  He could have dropped the two dogs and continued on, but carrying the two dogs had taken too great a toll on his remaining 10, so he decided to take his 24hour rest here.

    Mackey trains his team in Kasilof, a small fishing town on the Kenai Peninsula, and though he is having a rough trip he's happy just to be here in Nikolai running the Iditarod.  A few days after last year's Iditarod Lance was diagnosed with cancer.  

So far a majority of the race has been run on fast, smooth trails.

    He has spent all winter working on rebuilding his strength after extensive surgery and radiation treatment.  Last year was Mackey's first Iditarod and when I spoke this afternoon he informed me that a large part of his team this year comes from last year's team.  

    "Last year I was nursing along a whole team of yearlings(1 1/2 to 2 year old dogs)," Mackey said, "It was like taking care of a bunch of kids."  

    Now, though they are more experienced, they are still young dogs and have a lot to learn.  Mackey plans to leave his 24hour rest with a renewed and refreshed team and continue to make his way towards Nome.

    Both Mitch Seavey and Jim Gallea are camped in Takotna, taking their 24hour rests.  Last I spoke with Jim he was said he was right on schedule and was very pleased with his team thus far.  We hope to catch up with Jim and Mitch tomorrow and find out exactly what is happening in the front of the race.

Lynda Plettner negotiates her sled through a tricky corner.

 Reporting from the trail for Ultimate Iditarod,

Tyrell Seavey

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