The Restart

Monday, March 3, 3:00 p.m.

ON THE TRAIL AT LAST
REMEMBERING THE FIRST IDITAROD RACE
SLED DOG MOJO

Montana musher, Jason Barron, pulls the hook at the re-start of Iditarod XXXI.

ON THE TRAIL AT LAST

All the teams have left Fairbanks; some have arrived at the first checkpoint in Nenana already. Most are still on their way. I'm at the Nenana school, which is a beautiful new structure. There are a few very friendly people still around. Most everyone is down at the checkpoint. School has been let out. It&Mac226;s a wonderful sunny day (very spring-like) which is great for those of us following the race, but not so good for the dogs.

At the re-start in Fairbanks this morning it was overcast, with temperatures about at the freezing point. The roads were extremely slippery, due to rain that fell the previous night and froze on the streets. While these conditions are perhaps warmer than what is ideal for mushing, they were satisfactory for a good run.

But the combination of sun and warm might force a change in plans for the teams on this first day. I suspect that many teams may have planned to mush on through this checkpoint after taking four hours or so to arrive. It is very common for dog drivers to train for six hour runs, followed by six hour rests, for this race. But the warm temperatures might well lead to a decision to stop for up to four hours here, and then continue on when temperatures fall toward dusk.

One of the things to watch for as you follow the race is the ratio of running and resting time. In general, the top contenders in the Iditarod plan to run and rest about equal amounts. If you notice teams falling behind on that ratio, they probably are not trying to stay in the front of the pack.

So even if a team is trained to run for six hours, then rest for six hours, they may decide to stop after four hours of moving down the trail, and rest for four hours - or even less. Doing this allows them to get into a rhythm where their rest stops coincide with the heat of the day, generally late morning and afternoon. The main thing is to keep an eye on that important ratio of run to rest. A little bit of extra rest can be "banked". And similarly, if you shorten a rest somewhere, you better make it up soon.

We'll have more discussion of run/rest cycles in future updates.

Veteran Dan Seavey assists grandson, Tyrell, with some last-minute sled repair just before the re-start.

REMEMBERING THE FIRST IDITAROD RACE

I had a wonderful time yesterday talking over coffee with Dan Seavey, Mitch's father. Dan ran in the first Iditarod races, including the inaugural race in 1973. We talked about the very first race in some detail, and I was amazed at how many changes have occurred.

The first race began at what is now the Tozier Track in Anchorage, where a system of trails exclusively for dog mushing is maintained. There was no trucking of dogs around the Knik Arm of Cook Inlet. The teams ran continuously to Nome, going over bridges as necessary.

The mushers wore no headlamps. But yet they did run at night, mushing by the moonlight. There was a tendency to run more during the day than at night, but not completely. The only light Dan Seavey carried in the '73 Race was a C-cell flashlight in his pocket!

All cooking of human food and dog food was done over campfires. The use of the two-burner Coleman stoves was an innovation that came later. Dan recalled that it felt like it took FOREVER to get enough water boiling to feed a whole team. Compare that to the alcohol burners used today that can boil three gallons of water, starting from snow, in half an hour - about the time it takes you to bed down your team, remove booties, and check feet, wrists, and shoulders.

Speaking of booties: Dan recalls using only one bootie on one foot the entire race. And that single bootie was applied in White Mountain, 75 miles from Nome, by Terry Adkins, DVM. This wasn't because the mushers didn't pay attention to their dogs' feet, or allowed the feet to become sore and swollen. It was because only one of his dogs got one sore foot! Dogs in those days were bred for tough feet, among other characteristics. Today mushers don't select their dogs based on the toughness of their feet. Dog selections are mostly based on speed, stamina, leadership ability, and so on.

Dr. Adkins later became a twenty-year veteran of the Iditarod. In 1973, he was the only trail veterinarian for the race. Compare that to the army of vets who support the race now. We'll have much more about the vets soon.

Back in 1973, there was no mandatory 24-hour break, and therefore no way to make up the time difference which resulted from a staggered start on the first day. This fact, plus a miscalculation, led to Dan taking third place in that year's race instead of second. He though he had started after Bobby Vent, who was mushing just ahead of him on the way into Nome. If that had been correct, he would only have had to complete the race within two minutes of Vent. That would have made his total time faster, and he would have finished in second place. But he had, in fact, started a few places in front of Bobby. He therefore would have had to finish ahead of him by at least whatever time difference occurred at the start.

Martin Buser at the re-start, wearing his now famous hat. I wonder why I didn't see more mushers with hats like that at the start. Maybe they're waiting to get away from the crowds.

SLED DOG MOJO

On the way to the starting line Saturday, I heard a radio program about a new book, which focuses on the superstitions of top athletes. For example, there was one professional basketball player who believed that his socks held magical powers, so he wore the same socks all through his high school, college, and professional career!

So I started asking the mushers if any of them would admit to havingsuperstitions, like carrying a rabbit's foot, or something like that. Mitch Seavey denied it. And he had a good reason. He said that he hasn't won yet, which is his main goal, so he tries every year to improve. Maybe then he'll find that magic.

In fact, most all the mushers I asked denied having any superstitions. And then I walked by the current champion, Martin Buser. And Martin was wearing his trademark hat. I decided that I didn't have to ask.