If you are from the YK Delta, you can hold your head up high today! The Delta FOURce, as we have played with the name, is really doing a bang up job.
This morning’s update on the four-
Pete is running near the front and keeping his number 10 spot pretty solid. He had a good day yesterday that started camping on the trail with several other mushers, then making his way to Nikolai in the morning and down the Kuskokwim to McGrath ending up just before midnight in Takotna.
Mike Williams Sr and his son “Junior”, as Big Mike calls him, have been more or less traveling together the whole race. Mike Sr. isn’t a small guy and for that team to be running together with Mike Jr. is really something. But more, for Mike Sr. to be keeping up with his son really shows his stamina as well. Mike Jr. is having a great race and is in position in the middle of the pack as he has done in years past. Look for him to push a bit more once we get closer to the coast.
Richie Diehl is being conservative. His run cycle is not agressive, but he is still moving up the ladder. Early on in the race his run times and speeds were a bit down, but I have noticed that now they seem much more consistent and faster. I am assuming it was just jitters and he is getting into the pace of the race. It’s a totally different thing to be mushing for days at a time and you have to almost establish a routine. Make sure your dogs are eating, resting, and healthy, as well as making sure that you get some rest as well. This is a 10-11 day race for mushers at the end of the standings board, so consistency will truly pay off to get a musher to the finish line.
Go Men! Great Job So Far– Keep it up!
