Winter Things
Petr (left) and Kari (right) continue doing their Winter Things as Thing1 and Thing2
There’s a Dr. Seuss book called “Winter Things” in which Thing 1 and Thing 2 (looking a lot like Petr and Kari) do...well, winter things. Let's recap what winter things our friends did today.
Jon Richner and Erick Bassett spent last night at Kwik river cabin and left this morning around 8 am. They made decent travel time, arriving in Elim between 3 and 5pm. They had a tailwind today, or at least something other than a headwind. Erick’s favorite things on the trail are music and Kit-Kats; will he still enjoy Kit-Kats when this race is over? We’ll see! In Elim, like in Koyuk, racers stop at the school. The Aniguiin School in Elim has a student population of around 100 (preK to 12th grade) and a staff of around 20. Usually, racers will stay in the Home-Ec room with a sink, some dishes, and a microwave. This may sound silly, but having easy access to things like soap and water to wash your spork and coffee cup can’t be taken for granted. Just now, it appears Jon and Erick are heading out after just a short rest in Elim; they are likely to stop at Walla Walla cabin for the night. They seem to be making the most of the safety cabins, which Erick says are his favorite places to stay.
Last night, Kari and Peter arrived at Little Mountain safety cabin at 5 pm; Kari reported that the wind didn’t give an inch on the way there, but that the cabin had been stocked with firewood. They said the wind was battering the cabin all night, then at 3am it let up a bit, so they left early this morning at 4am. They arrived tonight in Koyuk around 5pm. Kari says her favorite pieces of gear on the last few sections are her pogies (big mitts that go over hiking poles or bike handles) and her goggles. There has been a motion to call them Team KarPet. Do we have a second?
This morning's weather, where our racers were, ranged from -4 to -11 degrees F, with wind chills in the -20 to -35 degrees F range. Highs in Koyuk and Elim were in the 5 to 10-degree range. The weather looks more or less the same for the next several days, although the winds will drop in speed and won’t be as much of a factor now that our athletes are on land, or at least have land protecting them from the north wind during the short stretches they are back on the ice.
You may be wondering, how does the Iditarod Trail Crew mark the trail? And what happens if the actual track of the trail disappears? You may recall that the Iditarod trailbreakers stay ahead of the dog teams and mark the trail with wooden stakes that are orange on top, with a reflective strip and a blue flag. You can usually see the markers in any trail conditions, with the caveat that some may tip over or be broken off. In bad weather, it is often easier to see them at night because of the reflective strip at the top. This is except for certain times when the conditions are just right (like late in the race last year) when there was a wet, heavy snowstorm in which the snow stuck to the stakes, covering up the reflective strip making it tough to find the stakes at all. In some areas, like by Shaktoolik and in the blowholes, there are also permanent, large, wooden tripod markers that are prone to stakes disappearing into the wind. For our racers, it is important to stay on the compacted trail and avoid thin ice or other dangerous conditions. The trail is almost always to the right side of the stakes, which is a handy thing to know when the trail is blown in and you are trying to stay on the most compacted part. Any side trails may or may not be marked by an X by ITC; near villages there tends to be more side trails that go to trapping, fishing, or hunting areas. Lastly, racers have a GPX track. Although the trail may vary a bit from the actual line on the GPS, depending on conditions when the trail was marked, at least racers know the general route and direction.
The Dr. Seuss book ends like this:
Our winter’s day
Was lots of fun!
Will tomorrow bring
Another one?
We are sure it will! Happy trails!
Author: Faye Norby