Two Days and a Little Bit.
For weeks now, the first thing I do in the morning is check to see where the racer's Dots are. Typically this is in the middle of the night for them, I document how long they have been tucked in and (try) to keep track of when they move. Yesterday and today however, there were no sleeping Dots, the last six athletes have consistently been on the move. Yesterday we saw increased speeds, racers in every division, foot, ski, and bike, were finally able to open up. We can actually feel the urgency they are experiencing. Collectively, they are moving when they can and pushing hard when they need to. Two full days and a few hours to the 30-day cutoff.
This morning Hendra, Mark, and Joshua were 30 miles from Safety, currently they are all at Topcock Cabin 22 miles from Safety and 42 miles from Nome. Joshua arrived at the cabin first after a bivy of at least six hours today. Skiers often take the brunt of trail conditions because the margin of “good trail” is smaller, so I personally find it very satisfying that although everyone is finding improved conditions, skiers seem to be benefiting the most.
Twelve miles further from the finish and on foot is Brandon, behind him, skiers Sunny and Petr. Sunny reported excellent conditions last night and a bit of “actual skiing”, they are all approximately 30 miles from Safety. These speeds and purposeful forward motion would be enough to secure a finish before the cutoff, but for the weather. Unfortunately another storm is imminent and they may need to hunker down. In the ITI Racers Facebook group Beat, eight times 1,000 mile finisher and literal opposite of the Boy Who Cried Wolf, sent out a warning for what’s to come.
Once our athletes leave Topcock Cabin, even though the wind might seem manageable, they will soon be entering the infamous Blowhole, channels of cold air created by the mountains. Beat speculates what they will encounter will be severe. He noted “[c]urrently it looks like 40 mph gusting to 50 mph which isn't great. At least it's not super cold atm (14F) but there are probably near-whiteout conditions due to blowing snow.”
Athletes are fully unsupported now, previous towns and warm checkpoints are a distant memory. As the athletes have moved through this trail, they leave behind a massive effort of 38 volunteers and staff that have worked tirelessly to help their dreams become a reality. Whether it was serving one of the 1,200 meals that were prepared and served during the race, or monitoring the phone, email, and trackers 24 hours a day for 30 days, their jobs are nonstop until the race is over.
As Race Director Kyle Durand states, “Organizing the ITI is like coordinating an athletic event while running an airline, a travel agency, a remote expedition and a B&B.”
Remember those delightful tents at Finger Lake and Rohn our athletes visited? Everything including food, tents, wood stove, sleeping gear, and more must be flown out to the checkpoint, set up, broken down, and flown back. In 2021, flying everything back meant EVERYTHING including the multiple portaloos and their contents. It was all bagged, gathered, and packed into a plane. That might make the rest of the volunteer gig seem a little sweeter which consists of spending three days breaking trails, digging out the campsite and setting up the checkpoint.
There were six snow machines and 72 flights shuttling volunteers and gear, so when an athlete went over Rainy Pass, they were greeted by welcoming volunteers and a warm tent. They could crack open their drop bag and delight in the tube of Girl Scout Cookies packed weeks before (actual events). All told, for the duration of the race 17,500 pounds of material was moved across Alaska.
Everything needed is now in Nome, everything except our six remaining athletes.
Two days and a little bit.
Written by Kari Gibbons
Stats provided by Kyle Durand
Photo credit Kyle Durand