Icewind's Ramblings

Thanks to Aliy & her SP Kennel (Skunk’s Place Kennel) for an amazing adventure for those of us who long to experience this unique and wonderful sport.  I’m trying to keep these videos in a logical order of the run but they may upload more that might be out of sequence later on as there is rumor of a video descending the ice falls in Dalzell Gorge which should be pretty spectacular and maybe some night runs. These next videos are making the climb up to Rainy Pass the highest point on the Iditarod Trail and shows Aliy going through the Finger Lake Checkpoint where you can see the check in process, a quick review of the dog log and continuing on towards Rainy Pass.   The camera is mounted on the sled and shows the dogs eager to run and the instructions given them.  The first couple of days the weather was pretty nasty with snow, winds and at times blizzard conditions.  The chase planes and helicopters were grounded for a couple of days so making sure the mu...

For something a little different . . . Iditarod 38 is ‘over’ with a champion crowned but there are still 16 teams on the trail heading for Nome .  After the excitement of the race to be first there are some other interesting stories and things beginning to show up that I think you will like.  These videos were provided by SP Kennel’s Aliy Zirkle (finished 16 th Team Red) & her husband musher Allen Moore (finished 35 th Team Black) on their website, from YouTube, and KTUU Channel 2 News.  These video clips will give you a sled’s eye view of what it is to run the Iditarod, the beauty of the countryside, the solitude and loneliness of no one around for miles except your dogs . . . and possibly the wild animals in the Alaskan wilderness.  Please take the time to Enjoy! This before the start of Iditarod 38 is a KTUU Channel 2 interview with Aliy Zirkle who has ran the Iditarod since 2001 when I first moved to Alaska .  She was the first woman to win the Y...

Have you seen this yet? Ray Stevens . . . still going strong after so many years. You Betcha! Ice

As many of you know with my work I travel all over the State of Alaska visiting many of the rural bush villages where we build clinics, water and wastewater treatment plants, large water tanks and lagoons for treating sewage. It is very fulfilling work seeing the differences made in people’s lives who may have never had indoor plumbing to bathe, wash clothes, or even brush your teeth with suddenly have these conveniences many of us take for granted. With the travel come many different forms of transportation.  I have flown in all kinds of airplanes, snow machine, 4-wheel all terrain vehicles and even on a dog sled.  The weather conditions are often ever changing even within an eight to twenty four hour period. A few weeks ago I posted about several of my recent trips, one to Selawik and the other to Old Harbor where I have projects going. The trip to Old Harbor has two flights on Alaska Air Lines between Anchorage and the City of Kodiak .  They are Boeing 737...

Iditarod 38 has a new 4 time winner who has won consecutively the last four years . . . Lance Mackey a never before feat of endurance and dog handling with a never tiring pack of champion dogs.  It is after all, The Iditarod.   Lance arrived in Nome , Alaska this afternoon with the races second fastest time at 2:59 pm . . . arriving just under 9 days from the start in Anchorage . With true grit and determination after a ‘comment’ by 4 time champion Jeff King just after the halfway point gave added incentive for Mackey to push hard to take the lead and not look back.   Winner’s podium under the burled arch on Front Street in Nome with Rev, Mackey, and Maple. Here’s a fun reprint from The Washington Post of a Norman Chad parody of the Iditarod from the four legged viewpoint.  It’s a funny read . . . Couch Slouch checks in on the Iditarod, and its canine correspondent By NORMAN CHAD Monday, March 15, 2010 The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race -- often called ...

This is the big weekend for Daylight Savings Time where those that observe this will set clocks forward one hour in the spring and set them back an hour in the fall. We pushed forward last night losing an hour of sleep during a time I seem to need more.  It’s been busy these last few weeks and my stress level I’m sure is elevated too even though I try not to let on. Friday evening I felt a big bump on the back of my neck which was quite painful but did not have the redness one would think of.  I thought it might an ingrown hair or possibly an ‘old fart’ pimple and went to sleep with some discomfort but no real thought about it.  I woke up Saturday morning for my breakfast meeting and felt more swelling and tenderness on the back right side of my neck.  It was painful and when I returned home after a few hours I felt totally like crap and had chills and was wiped out.  I took a couple of Aleve and lie on the sofa and fell asleep for a few hours.  This ...