Ultimate Iditarod Behind-the-Scenes Race Coverage

Atta Boy 300 Race Update--Day 4

Second Stage of the Race--Sisters, Oregon

January 8, 2001

Snowcrest Racing Sled Dogs--Seeley Lake, MT

When we arrived at the parking lot for the race start this morning, a steady downpour of rain was falling.  We were told that 18 inches of snow had melted over the last 48 hours as a result of the warm temperatures and rain, and the Atta Boy 300 race organizers were busy working on constructing a new starting line and a mile-long portion of trail because the intended ones had melted.  But despite such setbacks, we were able to run the race after only an hour delay.  Such an accomplishment is once again a testament to the great enthusiasm and organization that those in charge of this race do have.  The whole scene this morning was really quite amazing.

The trail in today's stage featured much less climbing.  Instead, we ran through many beautiful forests, including this stand of hemlocks.

Recap of today's events:  After getting the new start and trail figured out, we were able to park the trucks and prepare for the race.  The weather actually cleared considerable, and the sun even began to poke through the clouds.  The temperatures were again well into the 40's.

For our two teams, things appeared to be running very smoothly.  We had the sleds packed and ready to go, the dogs were down, and we were beginning to harness them.  Then, we realized that we had only ten minutes to my starting time, and just three minutes after that to my dad's starting time!  Things got a little chaotic, but everything worked out.  One kind of funny part of the whole story, though, is that I almost started the race too early, if that can happen when you realize that you are running late.  

Mark Stamm of Washington state and Iditarod Champion and Atta Boy 300 race leader Doug Swingley of Montana (top) are visible ahead of my team.  Martin Koenig of Seeley Lake, Montana, (bottom) approaches my team.  Martin is running in the top ten so far in this race, and is expected to finish very well overall.

What happened was that I was told by one of the race officials that I needed to get to the starting line immediately, or I would miss my starting time.  (Missing your starting time results in your team having to leave last, but having your running time for the day begin at your original intended start time.)  We quickly got the dogs all set to go and began to move the team to the starting line.  As we approached, I heard the announcer counting down, "Five, four, three, two, one, GO!!"  I thought that was my countdown.  I motioned to everyone escorting my team to the line to clear the trail, and then I called to the leaders.  The team took off, and we started to fly past the starting line.  I heard someone say, "STOP, STOP!"  So I quickly put my snowhook in the snow and stopped the team.  I asked if I was supposed to go because I heard the countdown.  I was told that the countdown was for the team leaving THREE MINTUES IN FRONT OF ME!  

"Oh!" I said feeling a little bit embarrassed.  I looked down and realized that I was five feet past the starting line.  Some volunteers helped move back to the proper position, and I went up to the lead dogs to give them a little pat on the head before we started the race.  Everyone had a good laugh, and all was fine.  I started on time, but tomorrow we will be ready a bit earlier.  Dog mushing is the ultimate in "hurry up and wait" activities.

The race trail today was quite soft and punchy because of all the rain.  Although the course was shorter today than yesterday, nearly every team, including myself, took a little longer to complete today's course.  I also only had ten of my sixteen dogs rather than the twelve that the race rules allowed me to have.  But the trade off is that tomorrow, six of the twelve dogs in my team will be totally fresh and rested, and that's important because tomorrow's trail has by far the most climbing of all the stages in this race.

I had a great time on the trail today.  The dogs were great, and we were able to do very well in my opinion, given the tough conditions.  We got to pass a number of teams, and we were passed by an equal number, so I guess you could say I was "even" for the day.  By my calculations, I am overall in sixteenth place.

My dad's run was a bit slower today, and he is back around 20th place now.  The nice thing about that is that we won't start just three minutes apart tomorrow.  This is because the starting order for a stage determined based on the times from the previous day.  The slowest teams actually start first and the fastest last.  The reason for this is that it makes the race more interesting for both the mushers and spectators.  For the mushers, we do a lot more passing.  For the spectators, the teams stay much more in a group and the action happens in a less spread out fashion.

Tonight, we noticed something that we haven't seen in a while:  frost.  The weather is clearing up and turning colder, which makes us optimistic that the trail will not be nearly so soft tomorrow.  However, we will have to be careful just the same, because the trail could be very icy and crusted instead.  All of the dogs will wear booties tomorrow to protect against possible icy and crusted conditions.

Tomorrow, we leave from the same starting line as today, but rather than a loop back to the same location for the finish, we will instead run to Mt. Bachelor and finish near the site of yesterday's stage.  The trail is 47.3 miles in length and reaches elevations above the treeline around 7,500 feet above sea level.  We should be in for some great views.

Reporting exclusively for Ultimate Iditarod from Sisters, Oregon, 

Jim Gallea, Seeley Lake, MT

© 2002 Ultimate Iditarod, Snowcrest Racing Sled Dogs, Seavey's Iditarod Racing Team
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