Icewind's Ramblings

Sort of . . . Tonight’s post is a mix of intriguing stories being reported over the last several days from along the Iditarod Trail. It is a glimpse of the determination of some of the competitors and the many adventures experienced in the thirty fifth Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. I guess this could be called, the good, the bad, and the ugly but what I think this is might be more in the vein of the spirit of what the original serum run had going for it so many years ago. It takes grit, spirit, and a great sense of self for these men and women who run this race. Here are three stories from the Anchorage Daily News reports and wire reports. Iditarod Air Force pilot finds missing musher safe but far off the trail Staff and wire reports Anchorage Daily News A pilot with the volunteer Iditarod Airforce located a missing Iditarod musher about 18 miles from the Rohn checkpoint at the foot of the Alaska Range Thursday afternoon, ending a search by aircraft and ...

The magic of Iditarod does not happen by accident or by some unknown force. The yearly race from Anchorage to Nome Alaska with Dog Sled teams traveling over 1,100 miles through wilderness, frozen rivers or tundra cannot be done without the efforts of many volunteers. Along the Iditarod Trail the mushers make their way through two dozen checkpoints that are manned by volunteers. At each checkpoint there are supplies for the competing teams, medical personnel for both human and animal patients, and in the few populated checkpoints even a fan or two cheering everyone on. The couple of villages that the race travels through on the way have been known to have the entire population turn out to wish the mushers well. It does not seem to matter what time of day or night as the excitement of the dogs can be heard coming into the checkpoint. The logistics of bringing off this massive effort supplying the trail falls to a hardy group of people known as the “Iditarod Air Fo...

Harsh conditions as teams fall out of the race. We had snow last night and today with windy conditions in Anchorage but nothing like on the trail. Here is an update of Day 3 & 4 of Iditarod XXXV. After the teams set off from the town of Willow on Sunday for the 1,100 mile Iditarod 35 they have found pretty harsh conditions soon after the restart. This was an abrupt change on the trail from Willow where adoring fans set up barbecues along the start line on top of a frozen lake. No longer the ‘party atmosphere’ the mushers will be alone in land unreachable by road. Photo by Bob Hallinen Anchorage Daily News Over the next nine to twenty or some odd days, the mushers will traverse varied terrain while passing through just 20 checkpoints along the way to Nome , three of which are uninhabited the rest of the year and most of which have less than a few dozen residents. The second and third day has seen thirteen teams fall by the wayside scratching from the race ...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. Ice Iditarod Update From the Anchorage Daily News reports: The notorious stretch of Iditarod Trail from Finger Lake up into Rainy Pass in the Alaska Range has claimed its first victim of the year, and it's a big one. Iditarod officials said four-time champ Doug Swingley from Lincoln , Mont. scratched from the race Monday after crashing his sled on the way into the checkpoint at Puntilla Lake . Race spokesman Chas St. George reported Swingley had possible broken ribs and a dislocated thumb. The latter, more than the former, could make it difficult for Swingley to care for dogs; particularly in the prevailing subzero cold that often necessitates regular changes of booties on their feet. Changing dog booties with one-hand is a difficult task. Swingley reportedly told race officials before scratching that he was concerned about his ...

Iditarod XXXV Its official . . . they’re off and running . . . What a great weekend here in the far north. Leading up to the weekend there was bitingly cold temperatures and strong winds for several days that put the wind chill well below minus 40 below zero. It has been clear skies here for days (and nights) leading up to the 2007 start to Iditarod 35 . There has been a large full moon overhead the last couple of nights ready to help the mushers find their way along the old Iditarod Trail leading to Nome , Alaska . Saturday’s ceremonial start in downtown Anchorage had thousands of people enjoying the great weather. The winds had died down overnight and with the sun shining on everyone the 15 to 17 degrees outside felt almost like spring was here at last. Fourth Avenue was filled with over a thousand dogs anxiously waiting for their starting time to pull their sled along the streets and trails through Anchorage to the Campbell Airstrip thirteen mil...

1,900 miles from the nearest city with a population over 100,000 people. This international city uniquely combines the conveniences of the modern world with a rugged, natural environment and backs up to these beautiful Chugach Mountains and surrounded by the waters of Cook Inlet in the middle of nowhere, USA . A special beauty that has all but vanished from populated regions of the world. We have five golf courses, miles and miles of bike trails with abundant wildlife to be seen daily in our backyards and streets. Brown and black bear, wolves, Bald Eagles, and moose can be seen throughout our neighborhoods and parks as you engage yourself in the splendor that is all around. You may view foxes, mountain Dall sheep & goats, salmon, and whales all within a few miles . . . of our downtown area. In summer it is a treat to leave work on your lunch break and fish for red, king, and silver salmon on waters just a tee shot from downtown offices and stores. As a city in...

Tomorrow (March 3, 2007) is the big day! Early in the morning all 83 mushers will be ready and waiting to start the Iditarod on 4th Avenue in Anchorage , Alaska . Hailed as "The Last Great Race on Earth", the Iditarod has become an iconic event, with epic tales of adventure and survival on the trail. The Mushers are household names in Alaska , and the dogs themselves are legendary. This year's event should be another amazing race to follow. The Iditarod (pronounced eye-DIT-a-rod) consists of teams of 12 to 16 dogs pulling a sled driven by a man or woman, called a "musher." At the Ceremonial start on Saturday morning, 4th Avenue in downtown Anchorage turns into an Alaskan festival. Men with cougar head hats & fox fur jackets walk down the street, children line up to get the autograph of their favorite musher, and families get downtown early to make sure they get a good spot to view the day’s activities. Mushers leave downtown Ancho...

of the time . . . Summer is just around the corner. Too bad work (and financial constraints) will most probably prevent me from spending the next few months living it up in some picturesque, postcard paradise like the one below. But still, it doesn't hurt to imagine doesn't it? "Look at the stars for me just after sunset, and touch the sand, and wade in the water, and feel free." - * Red speaking to Andy Dufresne, from Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption Ice

Don’t ask for an easier life . . . Make yourself a stronger person. Ice

Okay, you knew that I would have to say SOMETHING about Britney and her new hair do. Well I’m here to tell everybody to just leave the poor girl alone. Not only is she a couple of sandwiches short of a picnic but there is method in her madness . . . And it’s not because I feel guilty either about bring this to your attention. I still think I did the right thing when I took my time figuring out what in the world this gal was doing. First it was checking in to one rehab place only to check herself out the next day. Then she had this whole goofy shaved head episode with the hair now being sold on e-bay by the ‘stylist’ who had sense enough to not touch her head. I could just see Britney’s lawsuit on that one after she changed her mind later the next day. Then it was back to another Rehab center for a day only to sign back out again the next day . . . with more publicity and questions. Was it because her ex was going to court to over her children or because she needed...

Misery no longer loves company. Nowadays, it insists on it. Ice

Why can’t the reality of something, just once , measure up to my fantasy expectations of it? I am so tired of disappointments. I’m an old man with not many vital (makes it sound better doesn’t it?) years remaining to me. My fantasies are about all I’ve got left to live for and I’m tired of seeing them lying crushed and broken at my feet. What happened you ask? Well . . . Last week as my wife and I are lying in bed waiting for our great Select Comfort™ * bed’s ‘soothing sleep’ to kick in she asks me, “Honey, I’ve got to get a new bra. Would you like to go shopping with me this weekend to pick one up? We could go out afterwards and have a nice dinner.” Dear readers, words simply can not convey how quickly a thousand and one Arabian night’s fantasies flashed through my hot and feverish brain. The wheels started turning and pictures with many ideas going off like a slide show inside my head . . . In my very best not wishing . . . to appear . . . too eager . . . voice I repli...

Winter in Alaska we don’t have the need for this product. Like other places Alaskans love their dogs. They are staples of everyday life here in the far north as many people not only use them as ‘man’s (or woman’s) best friend but also as working members of the family. Dogs are used for transportation by many people in winter mushing their way from village to village. It sometimes seems that dogs are sometimes treated better than other members of the family. Watching the Iditarod Dog sled race every year I often hear from people not familiar with the sport of mushing that the competitors care totally for all of their dogs before seeing after their own needs of food, drink, and rest. There are several smaller races that have been going on recently as qualifiers and ‘warm up’ runs for the upcoming Iditarod race in March. You can see training going on most everyday in rural areas or side roads in Wasilla. Before the snow fell it was not uncommon to see a team ...

If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy? Ice

You know how much I like coffee and it is sometimes fascinating and a little bit scary when you start to realize how many coffee places there are around Anchorage . The kiosks and little coffee huts are everywhere. When I first arrived in Alaska the first project I worked on was building the UAA Library. I first noticed the coffee kiosks driving the four miles from my house to the UAA University jobsite. There were 12 places to stop in or drive up to for a cup of java on that short distance to and from work. My favorite place to stop was called “Sugar Shack Espresso” on my way to the project where I would get myself and Tom, my job foreman a cup everyday. The two ladies that worked there would see my ‘rig’ pull in and have my cups ready before I pulled up to the window. The project lasted almost a year and a half with many cups of java consumed. Shortly after the library project I was involved in the first Anchorage Starbucks being built in one of the groce...