2007 Season - Mid February Post Kusko 300 & Countdown to Iditarod Update
as of February 7, 2007

With the approach of the 2007 Iditarod barreling through the calendar like an approaching freight train, it seems to be a big focus for us right now.  The brief, but intense, mid distance season is behind us now.  Paul's participation in both the Knik 200 and the Kusko 300 with some of our younger dogs have provided him with the desired training opportunities he was gearing towards for the season.

In my last update, I had given you the story about his wild Knik adventures when his lead dog, Governor, took off down the trail on his own.  While the Kusko race fortunately did not involve any loose dogs, sleds or otherwise, it did add its own little story to Paul's list……..During the last legs of this 300-mile race, he and his fellow competitor, Aliy Zirkle (who was the first woman to ever win the 1000 mile Yukon Quest race) had been jockeying back and forth in positions.  Paul's team was the faster of the two, and Aliy would later comment to me that she literally had blisters on her hands from using her ski poles so hard to try and keep up with Paul. However, Paul had dropped several dogs from his team, and was racing with a reduced team compared to Aliy's.  When they left the final checkpoint before the finish line, the two teams were extremely close. 

In every race, there is a distinct point close to the finish line, usually a mile out, called "no man's land".  It is at this point in the race that all of the rules of passing etiquette go by the wayside, and teams will race neck and neck to the finish line.  This is the theory anyway, usually there will be one team with just enough of that edge to outrun the team next to it. But on the rare occasion you do have two teams that come into "no man's land" within close proximity, it makes for some real racing from the spectator standpoint.  In one Iditarod race, the difference between first and second place was quite literally a matter of seconds.  A few years back in the Copper Basin 300 race, Susan Butcher and another gal were racing neck and neck down the length of the airstrip that served as the official "no man's land" for that event.  The two teams literally came down the finish chute side by side.   The race officials were focused entirely on the exact point where the first nose of the lead dog crossed the finish line, and did not know who had placed ahead of the other until they worked through the traces from that lead dog's nose back to the musher's sled. 

Such was the case as Paul and Aliy Zirkle were racing as they approached the finish line in Bethel at the culmination of this year's Kusko 300. Racing neck and neck towards the chute, Aliy credits her little female leader with putting her head down, while Paul's leader, Governor, decided to take in the crowd a little more before crossing the finish line.  Just one second marked the difference in finishing times for the two teams.  What was beautiful about it though, was that the teams were loping in full of energy after having just raced the 300-mile circuit.  Paul wondered if someone hadn't been out on a snowmachine along the trail and came back in to report the two mushers running so close together, as he said there were a ton of the local villagers at the finish line when they came in.  It was neat for me to later receive a photo from a race volunteer of Paul and Aliy hugging in good-natured camaraderie at the finish line. 

We were able to spend time with Aliy and her husband, Allen Moore, just after the Kusko race, when they traveled to our neck of the woods to race in the Tustumena 200.  This was the event that Paul served as the race marshal for rather than running it as a participant.  The Peninsula Clarion newspaper ran a nice article about Paul's volunteering in this capacity towards this race that we have put a great deal in to for some time.  This year the T200 organization honored us by dedicating the 2007 race to Paul and I.  There was a lovely tribute in the race program, and even though I did the announcing throughout the event, the race president noted our contributions during his presentations.  It was a different space for Paul to be in as a volunteer rather than a musher.  But we enjoyed opening our place up to Aliy and her crew, as well as our good friend Stan Smith and Ramy Brooks.  Remarkably, Ramy is a lifelong Alaskan, yet this was his first trip to the scenic Kenai Peninsula that we call home.

With the Tustumena behind us now, Paul is very focused on the Iditarod.  With the help of our great helper, Tyler, he has been busy packing meat and supplies for his food drops.  He has also had time to work on a new sled design.  He has run it with the dogs and it withstood that initial test, but he has indicated the need to "really beat it up good" to know for certain if it will make his elite cut for the rigors of the Iditarod trail. By this, he will hook up a big string of dogs and take it through some challenging terrain.  On runs like this, it is the sled in back and the guy on the runners that kind of take the brunt - not unlike the old "crack the whip" ice skating game you may have played as a child. With the collective power and speed of the big teams that Paul is noted for running during training, the chance that the sled will bounce off a few trees going around corners is fairly certain.  That is precisely the testing he needs to put the sled through.  I often chuckle when I see the auto manufacturers' test crash dummies on commercials, because that is what Paul is in person when he tests the new sleds out.  This new one is a very different style than he has traditionally run, and the material is both innovative and practical.  I will keep the details under my sleeve for the time being…. I guess you can think of this as a "to be continued" story for now.

Paul is also spending some time mentoring a new neighbor who is running this year's race as a rookie.   Many evenings when I come home from work, Bruce and Paul have been chatting.  The other night, Paul was going over the details of things such as a good run/rest schedule for the dogs as well as what type of gear to pack.  He has been helpful to Bruce in terms of providing insight on feeding his team, to caring for the dog's feet.  I really admire Paul for this, as he is not doing it for some great glory or recognition.  He did the same thing last year with Rachael Scidoris, the blind musher that ran the Iditarod with the aid of another musher.  Throughout the final weeks of training, Paul's expertise was called upon repeatedly by Rachael's father, who was a driving force in Rachael's bid to run the Iditarod.  When it came time for Rachael to take the podium and say her thank-you's, Paul wasn't included. But we both knew that a contributing factor to her team making it to the starting line successfully was due to Paul's influence at this time in the season last year. I do believe that Paul's rewards come from knowing he is providing knowledge that will ultimately benefit the dogs in the team of that musher.  I know it is certainly a level of dedication that factors into Paul having won more than one Humanitarian Award over the years.

On a different note… Many folks have been asking about our annual fundraiser.  We are excited this year, as we are partnering with a new sponsor, The Crossing restaurant in Soldotna, to hold the event in their upscale facility on Sunday, February 25^th.   They are doing some matching contributions and we are doubling up our event as a benefit to help the local Food Bank as well.  If you can join us, or would like to contribute towards the action, we would love to have you on board.   This is the Sunday before the start of the Iditarod, so the energy level ought to be pretty charged right about then! I know it is hard to go anywhere right now and not have someone inquire about how the team is shaping up.

Right now the team is looking HOT HOT HOT.  (And I don’t say that in the sense of it being due to the fact that last week the thermometer was creeping upwards of 50 degrees here… yuck!)  But I do refer to the attitude and muscle capacity of the team. Last weekend I helped Paul harness a team up to run and I can sure tell the veteran members on the team.  When Paul went out to Bethel to race, he left his lead dog Houston home, who happens to be next to Red Dog in the kennel.  Those two did NOT take kindly to being left at home and were as cantankerous as I have ever seen them be.  Paul and I often talk about how it seems that the dogs actually know when they see him packing gear for a race that they are cognizant of what is going on and what is about to happen. 

Over the next few weeks, Paul will be very deliberate with the training runs he takes the team on.  He is continually gauging their weight, and paying close attention to their feet.  This is the point in the season when the fine line is walked where a dog either makes the team or is left at home.  In my next update, I will outline the anticipated members of the team.  We have their labwork coming up on February 17, so I can fill you in on that.

Until later…. Happy Trails - Evy