The shootout is not over, but Pete and the Team are just now pulling into Nulato according to the Tracker. They have made up time on Dee Dee Jonrowe and the Battle still appears to be between Berkowitz, Redington, and our Favorite Musher.
Go Man (I mean Team) GO!!
Kids watching the River in Allakakat, but easily could be Koyukuk as Well - Go Team Kaiser!
What a race! Pete and the Team have been running neck and neck with Ray Redington and Jake Berkowitz teams for the last 40 miles (Galena). It probably isn’t as exciting as it seems on the tracker, but to have 3 teams just steady together for that many miles really isn’t common. They have been steadily moving up on Dee Dee Jonrowe’s Team as they approach the checkpoint of Nulato.
On their trip from Galena they passed right by the village of Koyukuk which has front row seats to the action, but is not an official checkpoint. The village of Koyukuk is on the mouth of the Koyukon River and the Koyukon valley. This magical area regards the relationship between land, man, and animal in a special way that puts all on an even footing. I mention this because the word “Luck” has special meaning to this area. It isn’t just a word, it is the manner that allows you to be successful. The villages of Huslia, Koyukuk, Allakaket, and Hughes are on the Koyukon River.
Let’s hope that Pete and the Team got a bit of that special “Luck” as they mushed by this morning!
Go Team Kaiser!
GPS Shows Team Kaiser on the Move.
Looks like they are out of Galena on the trail to Nulato at 5:45 or so.
Dee Dee Jonrowe made her move first about 45 minutes before everyone seemed to start moving. Several mushers are now leaving Galena at this time. Who say’s their not racing?
Nulato is 37 miles down the trail on the Yukon River. I did not notice until this year that the trail passes right by Koyukuk, though it does not stop at the village. This section of the trail is undoubtedly in good shape due to the amount of inter-village snowmachine traffic.
Update- Departure Order
Dee Dee Jonrowe
Ramey Smith
Jake Berkowitz
Pete Kaiser
Ray Redington Jr.
Sonny Lindner
Weather for this morning:
LOWER KOYUKUK AND MIDDLE YUKON VALLEYS- INCLUDING...GALENA...NULATO...HUSLIA...KALTAG...RUBY...KOYUKUK 329 AM AKST SAT MAR 10 2012 .TODAY...PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS 6 BELOW TO 7 ABOVE. LIGHT WINDS. .TONIGHT...MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 17 BELOW TO 24 BELOW. LIGHT WINDS.
The Northern Lights over Ruby
Photo from ADN.com.
Everyone’s been talking about the Northern Lights. I’ve been in Alaska all of my life, more or less, and sometimes folks ask Why? Of course it’s easy to say the scenery, the lifestyle, and such. Often living here is a struggle- Gas is close to $7/gallon, a gallon of milk will cost you ten bucks, and going to the movie is 400 miles away. But if you ask me, its the Sky. Throughout the year the Sky is the one thing that I enjoy the most. In the summer there is no dark and in the winter there is little light. And then the Northern Lights appear and are sometimes so dramatic as to set you speechless.
The last two nights have had spectacular displays. Musher running into the night have undoubtedly been awestruck to move through the magical movements. They are so bright that with the full moon we have, the night is lit up in green and blue. Pardon my tangent, but it is worth mentioning.
Pete and the Team are into Galena early this morning – 3/10 at 01:53:00 with 13 dogs. He had to drop a dog before leaving Ruby. His trail time of 5h 59m is just a few minutes slower than the time of Musher Jake Berkowitz who he has been traveling with since before Ruby. Jake has 15 dogs, but has been right behind Pete and the Team or just right in front. Jeff King had the fastest time of 5:48
There are 5 mushers in the group that Pete and the Team are with at this point in the race within about 30 minutes of each other. Ray Redington, Dee Dee Jonrowe, Sonny Lindner, Pete and the Team and Jake Berkowitz are all basically running similar times at this point, but before long, like the lead group, this group will settle out and we’ll see whose team is going to push to get into the lead group.
The Lead Group headed up by Aliy Zirkle is still about 5 hours ahead of the second group and out on the trail from Galena to Nulato. Aliy appears to be the jack rabbit, surprisingly. and at this time, is about 12 miles ahead of everyone.
Anticipate a 4 hour break for Team Kaiser before heading out for Nulato. Pete’s interview from Ruby still has our musher sticking to his system and basically going with the plan that he’ll break his dogs on a regular schedule and what happens is what happens. At this point it seems to be working pretty well and fits into his race plan (or at least from this armchair it does!).
Galena is mile marker 515 and Pete and the Team are now 393 mile from the burled arches in Nome.
Lots can still and will happen so STAY TUNED and GO TEAM KAISER!
KNOM has a real nice interview of Pete in Ruby.
[audio:http://kaiserracing.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/rubyinterview.mp3|titles=rubyinterview]Laureli has always got the best interviews!!
Pete and the Team are on the move. Out of Ruby on the trail to Galena. Official times when I get them. Galena folks- 6 hours which should be about right for the run.
Current WeatherCam Ruby, Alaska - 3/9 6:00pm
It appears that several mushers are taking their mandatory 8 hour layovers in Ruby. This frees them from mandated rest periods and they can then run at their team’s discretion. This makes sense after a long grueling run from Ophir. On the Yukon, checkpoints are much closer together and the trail will probably be much bettter as well as it is an established transportation link.
Pete and the Team were into Ruby at 11:54am. 14 dogs remain in the Team. As of 5:45pm, they had the fastest time between Cripple and Ruby.
After Ruby, Pete and the Team will have a 50 mile run to Galena, then a 37 mile run to Nulato and finally a 47 mile run to Kaltag.
At Kaltag I am curious about how the Team will react to a trail they have already run recently. When I have these curiosities, I generally give Myron a call. I asked him what he thought and he said that it all depends. If a team has not had a positive experience, it can be a bad thing, but if it was positive, the dogs know where the finish is and it can be a small advantage. Of course, as he mentioned, several of the teams in front have been over that section of trail many times as well.
In any case, Pete and the Team are in a great position and I can’t wait to see the photos from Galena. I would bet that those dogs are looking awesome from the trail times we are seeing.
Team Kaiser can leave Ruby at 7:54 pm this evening. A 50 mile run will be about 6 hours, so they should be arriving into Galena early tomorrow morning. For my photo crew in Galena– Keep an eye on the GPS tracker to find when he is headed your way.
Weather forecast for tonight:
LOWER KOYUKUK AND MIDDLE YUKON VALLEYS- INCLUDING...GALENA...NULATO...HUSLIA...KALTAG...RUBY...KOYUKUK 242 PM AKST FRI MAR 9 2012 .TONIGHT...PARTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 11 TO 24 BELOW. NORTH WINDS TO 15 MPH. .SATURDAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY. HIGHS 3 BELOW TO 6 ABOVE. LIGHT WINDS. .SATURDAY NIGHT...MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 17 TO 24 BELOW. LIGHT WINDS.
Anyone around in Nulato? Shoot me an eMail so I can talk you into some photos!! Anyone KNOW anyone in Nulato?? Anyone with a camera will do!
Ha Ha!!
Go Team Kaiser!
Check out the Kaiser Super Dogs in Mushing Magazine!
