Galena – March 10 Morning.
Good Morning Race Fans!
It’s been about 24 hours since Team Kaiser arrived into Galena and took their mandatory break. Today will see a run up into the Koyukon Valley and the welcoming checkpoint of Huslia.
Pete and the Team arrived into Galena at 8:47am with 15 dogs. Apparently Sagel was not performing up to par and he got a free ride home from Ruby. A time differential will be added to Pete’s 24 hours before he can head back on the trail. Richie Diehl, who took his break in Ruby, left that checkpoint after 25 hr 44 minutes, 1 Hour 44 minutes added. He is bib number 21, so Pete, with bib 25, should have 8 minutes less time added to his rest. With that calculation, Pete will need a 25 hour 36 minute break which will allow him to leave at 10:23am this morning.
The run up to Huslia is 82 miles. The fastest time so far is Nicolas Petit, who did it in 10hrs 41 minutes. With a fresh Team, we may see faster times as long as trail conditions hold up on this run into Huslia. Nicholas did the run with no breaks, which I am not sure Pete will do this early in the race, so I expect him into Huslia later this evening.
Weather is warming dramatically in the area where it is already 10 degrees above. It is expected to be sunny with temperatures close to 20. This will also be a factor in terms of breaks as Pete may want to take a break to cool off the Team.
Pete looked tired last night in the interview. Short runs with short rest is hardest on the musher. A 3 hour break has at least 2 hours of physical work, cooking, feeding, getting ready, caring for the dogs, and so on. Once all that is done, the dogs are rested, but the Musher really hasn’t gotten any rest at all. Mushers are truly athletes and this endurance game is what this sport is all about.
It’s getting to the point in the race where the ‘Race’ happens and I can’t wait for the excitement to come!
Go Team Kaiser!
