Liz calls from Takotna!

Liz took her mandatory 24 hour layover at Takotna, as planned. She called yesterday and left me a message. I just missed her call and ironically I was at the Iditarod Headquarters on Wasilla checking on the race status, buying a few souvenirs and looking at the historical displays they have on the past winners of the race. In her message she sounded great and said all was well and the dogs were fantastic! She advised me to call Lori in Wisconsin with whom she had just spoken. I called Lori and got more details.

All the dogs are eating well--even Circle--who is a picky eater. Physically they are in great shape. Foot pads in good shape and no problem sore muscles. I relayed this information to Jamie Nelson and Jamie was of the opinion that the dogs are getting stronger as the race goes on, which is wonderful!!

Liz herself did sustain an injury on the part of the trail known as Buffalo Camp which is on the way to Nikolai. It is an area which is inhabited by herds of buffalo and they make trails through the willows which creat "tunnels". She was going through a tunnel and dumped the sled and as she fell, fell upon one of her snow hooks. Snow hooks are cold, hard steel. Luckily, she only got a huge bruise on her butt and no laceration. However, she said the pain was tremendous and she could not move for a while. She managed to get back on the sled and made it into Nikolai where the veternarians checked her out. She had only intended to stay 8 hours at Nikolai but stayed 16 hours to allow her bruise to start healing. The vets did a tape job on her leg/butt muscles to alleviate the pain and she made it to McGrath where she got her new light weight Gatt sled with the seat and "caboose". She reported that the sled feels great to drive! She enjoyed much needed rest at Takotna and took a long, hot shower. Takotna is known as the best checkpoint with the best hospitality and food.

She left Takotna at 6:24am this morning and made in and out of Ophir, at 9:12am, and 10:28am, respectively. She is now on her way to Cripple.

It was so good to hear the energy and enthusiasm in her voice and hear that the team is doing an outstanding job. They are a great bunch of Alaskan Huskies that truly want to get her Nome. I could feel their eagerness and enthusiasm to get on the trail, and they are proving that they have what it takes. It also demonstrates that Liz is doing a superb job of dog care on the trail.

I'm still working on some pictures to post. I have plenty to keep me busy while Liz is on the trail. Making housing arrangements in Nome for us, caring for the 10 dogs that didn't go on the race, organizing gear and equipment in readiness for packing the truck/trailer for the return trip home, etc. I'll be taking the dog crates to the airport Monday for shipment to Nome. Mushers have to supply their own dog crates to transport the dogs from Nome back to Anchorage via Alaska airlines. The airlines used to supply them, but the policy changed last year.


I also took some time out to have fun. Went to hear Hobo Jim perform in Wasilla. He is famous for his "I did the Iditarod Trail" song. He was very entertaining, playing golden oldies for us baby boomers.

Today I played in a snow golf tournament here in Willow. The Chamber of Commerce makes a 9 hole course on the Willow Lake surface, which was the site of the restart last Sunday. 16 teams participated and I played with the women of the United Methodist Church of Willow. We had a great time and I won the trophy for women's low score. Each golfer played with one iron and putter and orange golf balls. It was a real kick to hit the "ice fairways" and try to putt through ice,snow and water to a cup filled with icy lake water. No one wanted to retrieve their ball out of the ice water cup, so we had alot of "gimmies".

Well, that's all for now. The library, where I can access wireless is closing in 15 minutes. Back to the cabin and dog chores!

Elaine