Good evening Race Fans!
What a day on the trail it’s been for Teams as they cross the Alaska Range and make their way into the Upper Kuskokwim Valley.
Pete has been staying on his 6/3 schedule fairly strictly and camped out into the Rainy Pass trail this afternoon after passing through the Rainy Pass checkpoint.
I sat watching the tracker and the standings page at Iditarod.com seriously confused for awhile and even called Ron to see what he thought. The standings page showed Pete leaving Rohn, but the tracker showed the Team still resting. As we discussed the situation, the tracker updated after a 40 minute standstill and there was the Team on the trail to the West.
With word of a tough trail and warm temperatures to come, Pete will be wanting to take advantage of the good cool trail before taking a break and starting the challenging trail later this evening through morning.
In terms of the trail, I’ve heard that it’s in some of the worst condition ever. Frozen drifts close together will make for a challenge for Man and equipment. The dogs should run right over it, but Pete will have a pretty jarring ride to be sure.
Weather ahead is not looking great, Iditarod-wise. Temperatures along the trail are expected to rise in the next couple of days and that can make for less than ideal conditions. It seems a ways up the trail, but once Teams take their 24 in McGrath through Ophir, that extra time for rest will also be time to let this warm weather system pass by and hopefully cool down.
It’s Iditarod time! Never a dull moment!
Go Team Kaiser!