Pete Kaiser into Rohn

Pete got into Rohn early this  morning at 5:19am. No other information is available on the Iditarod website. They don’t have any out times or Dog information from Rainy or Rohn.

He arrived 42nd into Rohn.

Temperatures have dropped just a bit below zero (-4) with light snow. Anchorage is experiencing a blizzard.

Weather Forecast-
TODAY...SNOW IN THE MORNING...THEN SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS IN THE
AFTERNOON. SNOW ACCUMULATION AROUND 2 INCHES. HIGHS 5 TO
10 ABOVE. SOUTHWEST WINDS 10 TO 20 MPH.
.TONIGHT...CLOUDY WITH SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS. LOWS AROUND
10 BELOW. SOUTHWEST WINDS AROUND 10 MPH.

The next section is referred to as the Farewell Burn. Unfortunately this area has very little snow.

–From Anchorage Daily News

Last week when the Iron Dog snowmachine racers traveled about 75 miles across the Burn, they encountered snow-starved sections of brown mud, brown tussocks and brown stumps from a controlled burn in 1984. Most racers stopped repeatedly to prevent their engines from overheating and, where possible, scoop up a handful of snow to pack on the heat exchangers.

“Boy, the Iditarodders are going to have a hard time getting across the Farewell Burn,” said Doug Dixon, a member of the second-place Iron Dog team. “There’s no snow on the Burn.

“The beauty part is that they’re traveling at a slower speed, and they’ll have time to prepare. Plus, dogs can run across tundra and don’t overheat like a machine.”

Some veteran mushers shrugged off reports of bare trail as unavoidable — or at least not as bad as years such as 2003, when the Iditarod restart had to be moved to Fairbanks.

The trail sounds “doable,” said three-time defending champion Lance Mackey.

“That’s a rough ride and, you know, could be a sled breaker. I’ve had my sled break in there,” Mackey said. “I’ve had one runner for 200 miles.”

Willow musher DeeDee Jonrowe said it was almost a relief to hear the race marshal’s trail report at a mandatory musher meeting in Anchorage on Thursday. The trail didn’t sound as bad as reports mushers heard from the Iron Dog.

“Most of the trail sounds fast, and it sounds well defined,” Jonrowe said.

This isn’t the first year Iditarod mushers have encountered a snow-starved Burn. Nor will it be the last. In fact, it may barely slow them.

“Dogs love running on dirt,” race marshal Mark Nordman said Wednesday. “It’s like playing out in the yard for them. Dogs have no problem with it.

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2 Responses to Pete Kaiser into Rohn

  1. cupikmom says:

    Proud to see 2 young men from the YK Delta on the Iditarod Trail! Go Pete and Mike Jr.!

  2. louismallettejr says:

    Maybe that guy that has the bison hunting camp in Farewell Burn will give Pete a bowl of hot soup! Go Pete!