Bogieblog

Iditarod 2006 - Update 4

The Iditarod is getting close to the wire and may end sometime tonight or tomorrow morning (Alaska time). Jeff King is stil in 1st, then it is Doug Swingley, Paul Gebhardt, DeeDee Jonrow, Ally Zirkle, John Baker, Bjornar Andersen, Ed Iten, Lance Mackey, and Mitch Seavey to round out the top 10. Jeff king is 3 hours ahead of the competition, so 2nd place is where the race is really at.

Everyone still mas a mandatory 8 hour layover at White Mountain, then it is a 77 mile "sprint" for the finish.

Another Iditarod 2006 Update

As of this writing,. Jeff King is in front of Doug Swingley by a mere 30 minutes. DeeDee Jonrow is a couple of hours behind, and amazingly, Paul Gebhardt is in 4th after taking his madatory rest stops.

We are used to reading stories of drivers who were left by their teams and had to be chased down. Ed Iten fell asleep, fell off his sled, woke and Yelled "Whoa!" and his team obeyed. He gives the credit to Zoey, a little female lead dog.  That's all well and good, but since his team is a working team (used for hunting and hauling the kills home, he has trained them to Whoe and Stay - something many mushers don't really teach their dogs. Oh sure, the dog's know that whoa means a sort of, slow down, be ready, I'm putting on the brakes - but they don't know that Whoa means "Stop Right This Second" and that means EVERY TIME!

So, Ed and Zoey saved Ed a whole bunch of time by not having to chase down his team.

I wonder how many of those that did have to chase their teams will learn the lesson.

Iditarod 2006 - Update 3

Among the Iditarod front runners, some teams still need to take their 24 hr or their 8 hr madatory rest. In my mind, those that have already taken those rests are the ones who have a real shot at winning, Those teams that fit the criteria are:

• Jeff King - currently with 15 dogs and in 2nd place
• Doug Swingley - also with 15 dogs and in 3rd place
• DeeDee Jonrow - another team with 15 dogs and in 4th place
• Ally Zirkle - a new name this year but she has made her name in other races, currently in 5th
• John Baker, Lance Mackey. Bjornar Anderson, Mithc Seavy and Ed Iten are still in the hunt too.

Paul Gebhardt is still out in front, but he still needs to take his 24 hr layover. Aaron Burmeister is currently running 7th, but still needs his 8 hour layover.

Just as important as the front-runners, is the rest of the teams. The Iditarod site features a story called The Back of the Pack: Full of Talent and Adventures. It tells of those who run the race not as just a competitive sport but for enjoyment, trianing of puppy temas and other reasons.

The ADN has a story about The Stump.

Buser lost the handlebar on his sled in the crash but managed to jury-rig a repair and push on. Hours later, fatigued Iditarod rookie Bryan Bearss pulled into Cripple packing the handlebar for Buser's sled.

"Yeah I saw that stump," Bearss said. "There was (debris) scattered all over the place. It looked like a sled junk yard."

Sounds like a combo of sled dog racing and demolition derby to me.

Machete Weapons

When machetes are outlawed, only outlaws will have machetes!

This is just too weird and could only happen in the state to our south!

Thanks to mAss Backwards for the link and for a funny post on it.

Iditarod 2006 - Second Update

At about the 1/2 way point in the Iditarod, Jeff King and Melanie Gould have raced their way to 1st and 2nd spots, respectively going out of Cripple - AND, they have taken their mandatory 24 hour rest stops.

Judging by their times in, it looks like Cripple is probably where Doug Swingley (which was leading the race), DeeDee Jonrow, John Baker, Ed Iten and a whole slew of other teams are taking their 24 hrs. Paul Gebhardt is leading the race, but since he hasn't taken any of the mandatory rest stops, in reality, he is not one of the leaders.

The field has stayed steady with only 4 teams dropping out at this point (and those had dropped early in the race because of injuries).

Iditarod 2006 - 1st Update

Holy smokes! One full day into the Iditarod and the front-runners look like a who's-who of sled dog racing:

1. Doug Swingly
2. Jeff King
3. DeeDee Jonrow
4. Jessica Hendricks
5. Bjornar Anderson
6. Martin Buser
7. John Baker
8. Ramey Smith
9. Lance Macky

In the next section is Paul Gebhardt, Ramy Brooks, Ed Iten, Mitch Seavey, Hugh Neff and Melanie Gould. The first 7 have made it to Rainy Pass, the next 50 have made it to Finger Lake.

There have been 2 scratches: Lori Townsend scratched due to injuries and Gary Paulsen scratched due to personal reasons.

Driving

Received in an email, and I believe that most Mass. drivers live by:

New Regulations in the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicle's 2005 Handbook:

1. Turn signals will give away your next move. A confident Massachusetts driver avoids using them.
2. Under no circumstance should you maintain a safe distancebetween you and the car in front of you, because the space will be filled in by somebody else, putting you in an even more dangerous situation.
3. The faster you drive through a red light, the less of a chance you have of getting hit.
4. Warning! Never come to a complete stop at a stop sign. No one expects it and it will result in you being rear-ended.
5. Never get in the way of an older car that needs extensive bodywork, especially with RI, ME, or NH plates. With no insurance, the other operator has nothing to lose.
6. Braking is to be done as hard and late as possible to ensure that your ABS kicks in, giving a vigorous foot massage as the brake pedal violently pulsates. For those of you without
   ABS, it's a chance to strengthen your leg muscles.
7. Never pass on the left when you can pass on the right. It's a good way to prepare other drivers entering the highway.
8. Speed limits are arbitrary figures, given only as a suggestion and not enforceablare in Massachusetts during rush hour.
9. Just because you're in the left lane and have no room to speed up or move over doesn't mean that a Massachusetts driver flashing his high beams behind you doesn't think he can go faster in your spot. Also true for right lane.
10. Always brake and rubberneck when you see an accident or even someone changing a tire. This is seen as a sign of respect for the victim.
11. Learn to swerve abruptly without signaling. Massachusetts is the home of high-speed slalom-driving along the Route 128 Speedway. This is thanks to the Department of Public Works, which puts potholes in key locations to test drivers' reflexes and keep them alert.
12. It is tradition in Massachusetts to honk your horn at cars in front of you that do not move three milliseconds after the light turns green.
13. To avoid injury in the event of a collision or rollover, it is important to exit your vehicle thru the windshield right away. Wearing your seat belt will only impede your hi-velocity escape from danger.
14. Remember that the goal of every Massachusetts driver is to get ahead of the pack by whatever means necessary.
15. Massachusetts, 'flipping the bird' is considered a polite salute.This gesture should always be returned.
    Thank You,

The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles

Almost Race Time

The Iditarod is set to go in 2 days, with 83 teams at the starting line.

UPDATE: There will apparently be 84 teams as Karen Ramstead, who due to an accident is in Alaska at race time, will be joining the starters. Her bib number is 76 (go here for all numbers assigned) didn't realize that her dogs are all purebred Siberian Huskies and they are bred for showing as well as working.

Good luck to her husband for a speedy recovery and good luck to the late entry team!