Wrap Up of YQ and looking down the trail

There are still several racers of the nineteen who will finish out on the trail. They are now taking their tiem and just enjoying it, I think. Yuka Honda made it in 9th with nine dogs, the higest place woman this year. Laura Neese and Paige Drobney are at Carmack. No,. Laura just left for the last run still with nine dogs and will be i tonight in 13th place.   Paige and Cody are still traveling together and will probably be in tomorrow morning with 8 and 9 dogs respectively as the 14th and 15th. Four more are still out, three rookies and one veteran So my honor roll of female mushers consists of three this time. It's all over but the banquet and awards on Saturday evening. Two of Allen's handlers took the team home in the dog truck. They are now bedded down in their own barn with lots of love and care.

So it's time to shift gears and start looking ahead to the Iditarod 2016.  Right now there are a heck of a lot of racers signed up. Three have withdrawn so far ahead of time for various reasons. I seriously doubt that Martin Buser will run this year since he is still in Seattle with his son. I expect someone has been working his dogs but he is going to be out of shape since you can't exercise the same way and I know that has not been his big focus for the past six weeks or so. Rohn has gone home and I suppose he still may race; that remains to be seen. Nikolai is recovering but it is going to be a very long slow process and how completely he will heal remains unknown. That he survived and is not a vegetable or a total paraplegic is a near-miracle.

There look to be about 23 women signed up again. Some may drop or scratch along the way; that is not unusual, but I am glad to see a good showing so far. I guess teh final word is that the traditional route will be used this year. Drop bags will be going out very soon. These are the big bags of supplies,dog food and such that are placed at each checkpoint for the mushers to re-stock with. The logistics for getting something like twenty bags each for seventy plus mushers almost staggers the imagination. This race has gotten to be so huge. I have mixed feelings about that but you cannot stop 'progress'! It has reawakened international interest in the sport and has basically saved the dogs from near extinction. I cannot complain about either of those.

Here is a shot I snatched of Allen with his finishing lead dogs at White Horse. Scout--the 'old school' and Izzy representing the up and coming. Mismo, who ran the 300 last year with Aliy and was her MVD is off to the side. He was in the swing position, the pair right behind the leaders.