Pete and his Team got into Shaktoolik last night at 12:39am with 11 dogs. He trailed musher Thomas Lesatz by 6 minutes.
GPS Tracker doesn’t show him out of the checkpoint yet this morning.
He should be leaving fairly soon on the trip across the ice. This is going to be a mentally challenging run as once you get going and leave the shore it seems to take forever to get anywhere.
–From Iditarod
There is only one thing to say about this leg—bleak, flat, and deadly monotonous. Locals say the actual distance is under 50 miles, but it always seems like a hundred. There is not so much as a shrub on this stretch, most of which is over the sea ice of Norton Bay. Plan on five to nine hours for the crossing, more if the wind is blowing hard.The trail runs almost due north from Shaktoolik, overland across very low rolling terrain for about nine miles to Reindeer Cove, then across the ice for five miles to Island Point, then back onto the ice immediately for the last 45 miles to Koyuk. There are no hills.
The trail is also the main snowmachine trail to Koyuk and is well used. However, winds can wipe it smooth in hours. It is well marked with Iditarod trail stakes, spruce boughs, or both. The trail can range from a groomed speedway to rough ice to drifted snow to glare ice. The wind is usually blowing, and almost always right in your face. Days with less than 20 or 30 mph breezes are uncommon.
Another problem is that some dogs are put off by the white expanse and won’t go or will try to turn back. Every year teams stall here; some drivers are able to get their teams going after a rest, and some can get their leaders to follow another team across. Some have to scratch. This is where a “coast leader” is invaluable; these are leaders used to running in this environment and who aren’t fazed by winds or wide-open spaces.
The “Bush Boys” are pretty separated from where they were earlier in the race. To give you an update, Mike Williams Jr. is in 28th place and is currently about 4 miles from the Koyuk Checkpoint. Quinn Iten is in 38th place and into Unalakleet last night.
Temperatures may start to be a factor as Pete and the Team will begin to see a warming trend for the rest of the race. The cold weather mass that has kept the mushers in the deep freeze, but great sunny days, is finally weakening. A warm air mass has been pushing up the Bering Sea and today will spill over into the area between Koyuk and Nome. Hopefully it will stay Sunny and Clear as predicted and not get too warm!
Weather this morning:
EASTERN NORTON SOUND AND NULATO HILLS- INCLUDING...UNALAKLEET...STEBBINS...ST MICHAEL...ELIM...KOYUK... SHAKTOOLIK 233 AM AKDT TUE MAR 16 2010 .TODAY...SUNNY. HIGHS 10 TO 20. EAST WINDS 10 TO 20 MPH. .TONIGHT...MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS ZERO TO 10 ABOVE. EAST WINDS TO 15 MPH. .WEDNESDAY...SUNNY. HIGHS 20 TO 25. EAST WINDS TO 15 MPH.AKZ211-170100- SOUTHERN SEWARD PENINSULA COAST- INCLUDING...NOME...WHITE MOUNTAIN...GOLOVIN 233 AM AKDT TUE MAR 16 2010 .TODAY...SUNNY. HIGHS 10 TO 20. EAST WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH. .TONIGHT...MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS ZERO TO 10 ABOVE. EAST WINDS TO 10 MPH. .WEDNESDAY...SUNNY. HIGHS AROUND 25. EAST WINDS AROUND 10 MPH. .WEDNESDAY NIGHT...CLEAR. LOWS 10 TO 15. EAST WINDS 15 TO 20 MPH. .THURSDAY...MOSTLY SUNNY. HIGHS 25 TO 30. EAST WINDS 15 TO 25 MPH. Trail Photos (Past):
