Copyright 2010© Evy Gebhardt
IDITAROD 2010 UPDATE #10 as of 6:30pm Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Paul Gebhardt Bib #7 currently in Position #19 into WHITE MOUNTAIN (unofficial – per GPS tracker!)
Next checkpoint: SAFETY then NOME!

Kristy Berington Bib #38 in Position #40 into SHAKTOOLIK as of 3:30pm today
Next checkpoint: KOYUK

Earlier this afternoon I had the privilege of seeing history in the making as the first team crossed the finish line in the 2010 Iditarod. The weather is just about ideal here in Nome for spectators, and I am anxiously watching the trail updates to track Paul and Kristy’s progress as they trek ever closer to the end of their journey.

The shift in temperatures on the trail has been significant, and right now the temps are really hinging on being on the very warm side in terms of the dogs. With the thermometer showing a balmy 30 degrees above zero this afternoon, it is a good 80 degrees warmer today than it was when the teams made their way along the Yukon River corridor just a few nights ago. I am sure as Kristy’s team rests back at the SHAKTOOLIK checkpoint, they are enjoying the afternoon sun. When Kristy pulls the snowhook and heads back out on the trail, it will be this “oceanview sunset” that she will enjoy as she makes the run across the sea ice of Norton Sound heading for KOYUK.
For Paul, it will be an eight hour rest at the WHITE MOUNTAIN checkpoint, with his stay at this scenic village flanked by a who’s who of the mushing arena in terms of his fellow competitor’s teams. He is still traveling with the 12 dogs that he nursed through their significant stomach ailment, and in a true testament to his level of dog care, he has really made a comeback on this last portion of the race.  There is still another 10 hours of run time that await the teams when they leave this checkpoint, with the trail taking them over the Topcock Mountains.  On the far end of this, before they reach the final checkpoint of SAFETY, the teams will travel through a region at the base of the mountains where weather patterns tend to collide in a section of trail the mushers refer to as “the blow hole”. At times, this part of the run can seem like an eternity, especially when the temperatures are carried on biting north winds that sweep across the open tundra in the region.   Paul has had times when he could not walk without holding onto the gangline of the team, or he would blow away from them. He learned to always move on the upwind side of the team for this reason. You can vaguely see the trail marker – the single wooden lathe with florescent paint on the tip – to the left of Paul’s leaders in this photo. These are placed out along the trail from Anchorage to Nome by the Iditarod Trail Crew, and until they are knocked down by the elements, dog teams or snowmachines, they will be the guide that tells the team where they should be headed. Along this coastal portion of the trail, there are also permanent markers that stand to delineate the trail that is used like a highway between villages by the residents of the region. These tripods offer a much more definite path to follow, but it is always a good asset to have a strong leader at this point in the race. I have nothing but awe for Paul’s intrepid leader, LIEUTENANT – who at this point has lead the team the entire journey in just his third year of racing. To call him an AWESOME would be an understatement.

Actually I feel this way about all the dogs that make this incredible journey. They are without question the most impressive athletes on the face of this earth.  Consider these guys – they run up and down mountains and look back when the musher stops as if to say “Heh! What gives?  Why are you stopping?!” I swear that Paul’s leader up front there is SMILING….. Even though Paul calculates that he physically runs about 300 miles of the race himself on foot trying to help the dogs, as well as using his ski poles to assist them on the trail, these dogs are the true athletes of the race.

It is hard to put into words what it feels like when the dogs cross beneath the burled arch on Front Street, considering the epic journey they have just completed. In some aspects, they remind me of the military recruits that leave after boot camp, and return to us after their tour of duty with a maturity that cannot be duplicated by any other measure other than through the personal experience.  As a team, the musher and dogs share a bond that is unique and beautiful. It is a bond that develops as the race unfolds – with the trust that the dogs give to the musher hinging on that musher’s decisions and behavior during the miles of trail that they have shared together. For the musher, Paul has been quoted as saying “trust the dogs” – he knows that they have an uncanny sense to fish out the trail, as well as showing him what they need if he is keen enough to understand the signals they are giving him. The relationship and intimate knowledge of each individual
on a musher’s team is so fine tuned, that the slightest anomaly in a dog’s gait is detectable to a competent musher. For this reason, I never question when I see Paul or Kristy dropping dogs from their teams. Because I know that decision hinges exclusively on what is in the best interest of that dog. It was this philosophy that caused Paul to alter his race strategy several hundred miles ago, but it is also one now that will see him to the finish line with a healthy team.

Stay tuned for a couple more updates – the race isn’t over yet!

Until later, life is a journey, enjoy the ride …. Evy.