To go alone or not go alone.... that is the question.
Day 19!
We have another finisher for the 1,000 mile bike, Philip Hofstetter! No stranger to the course, this is his 11th year attending the Iditarod Trail Invitational. The knowledge and confidence from those years has shown up in the most remarkable way — Philip has been riding alone since Mcgrath, a little over mile 300 of the 1,000 miles to Nome. There is a reason why athletes like to travel in groups or pairs. The wrong pairing can add unnecessary stress and mental load, but the right pairing can add an extra set of eyes, affirmation you are on the right trail, and divvying up trail chores. To go solo however, you are On the whole time. There is no one watching your back, no room for mistakes, no miles of “tuning out” and he did it for 641 miles. Probably a good thing that his favorite affirmation was “it’s all normal.” The first thing Philip planned to do after he finished was “Hug the family” Congratulations Philip!
Next up is Mark and Kinsey, they are currently out of Elim, after taking a (hopefully) warm break. Ben and Tiziano are a little over two miles from Elim and appear to be bivying. It is low wind at the moment and 0 degrees, still it is curious why they stopped there. Earlier Tiziano reported experiencing a cold that “breaks your bones in half” this part of the race is truly relentless.
Our lead 1,000 mile foot Gavan is on his way to Shaktoolik, and continues to be strong. He has been “listening to a lot of Jack London novels out here. He was a favorite of my Grandfather John Egan who was fascinated by the gold rush stories. This is the place to listen to these stories as I wander through this pristine wilderness.”
“One of the themes is ‘true comradeship’ which is what I have found in droves with these friends who share the trail with me.”
Comradeship indeed!
In the same pack, with full happy bellies, Ryan Wanless, Asbjorn, and Leah Gruhn are making their way to Shaktoolik. Leah, at least on paper, looks to have recovered successfully from her impromptu swimming session the day before.
Further down the trail, Beat, Christof, Jan on skis, Jeff and womens foot queen Faye are all trying to get to Unalakleet and the beloved pizza pit stop. Yesterday Faye and Jeff had arrived at Tripod Flats apparently just after Brandon and Jan left. The duo had left the fire going and put snow on the stove so Faye and Jeff could make water, something that was probably a welcome treat. They ate dinner at the cabin and moved on to Old Woman, where they experienced a brutal night, very cold at -30 with very little sleep. Together, Jan and Faye worked to get a fire going for warmth and to get water. It doesn’t matter how little sleep, or how cold it is, these tasks need to be completed in order to stave off thirst, unnecessary hunger, frostbite, and to continue on to the next cabin.
Another group of athletes further down the trail, including Mark Hines who says the Trail and weather are getting harder now (and almost too perilous to describe) are still working to Kaltag. The temperature is a manageable -14 but tomorrow they will be battling -40 degrees with windchill.
Red lantern Sunny is still moving. She reported today that she is pushing for another 50 mile day, hoping to finish at Nulato sometime early tomorrow morning, at the time of this writing she is a little over 12 miles out. She is tired and her feet hurt, but most crucial for her is to keep her thumb warm and not refreeze it. With so many athletes moving with each other or leapfrogging, Sunny too has been moving mostly by herself. 30 days to finish seems like enough time to cross this bit of the planet, but everyone now is feeling these weeks stack up. Having allotted rest days can be helpful, however some of those rest days are forced by the body or the weather, as Sunny has experienced in the last few days. We need some solid trail and good weather, think warm thoughts!
Written by Kari Gibbons
Photo credit Mark Moeller of Kinsey Loan being very serious on the sea ice crossing because this is a race and it’s very serious.