These Aliy Cams are a fun and interactive way I try to share my team’s experiences on the Iditarod Trail. In the 10 days, 7 hours, 28 minutes and 30 seconds that we traveled the trail I tried to capture the real images from the wilderness, the weather and the trail.
My dogs are the center of the videos. The race revolves around them. Their individual positioning in the team varies throughout the race. I moved them around depending upon their moods and energy. Their positioning also depended upon the trail and weather conditions or other random influences. The dogs on the team are: Amber, Bruno, Chevie, Cloud, Dutch, Decaf, Five, Jefe, Junior, Kodiak, QT, Rodney, Spark, and Violet. If you watch closely, you’ll get to know their gaits or their ear “bobs” or their little quirks.
We had a quality rest in the Kaltag Checkpoint. Our energy and spirits were resupplied with a long nap and a meal. But the formidable Portage Trail lay ahead of us and it is always a challenge for me. The composition of the team was Spark and QT in lead, then Junior and Dutch, Decaf and Cloud, Rodney and Five, Jefe and Chevie with Amber and Violet in the rear position.
The fact that the Portage Trail travels for many miles and passes through vastly different ecosystems, as well as different human cultures can exhaust a musher who thinks about such things. Obviously, I think about such things. For the 20 years that I have traveled that trail, my mind wanders: how different is my world from the world thousands of years ago and the people who used this trail then? What did the trail look like back then? What did their dog teams look like? Where did the Athabascans and Eskimo actually trade? Were there culture wars? Or did they understand the benefits of fair trading the moose meat, bear fat and other interior supplies with the seal fat, muktuk, shells and other seashore supplies? My mind reels. How hard was life thousands of years ago? My guess is that I can’t even imagine the hardships of those days. What I call hardships would simply be called: life.
The Portage Trail is the perfect spot to contemplate everything. I will admit that “everything” to me on March 15th is very different from “everything” to me several months later. Who would have thought? Regardless of circumstance, I think I was somewhat lucid while talking about adversity. My words don’t come perfectly but I knew what I wanted to say. Perhaps I need to watch this video more often!
What do I eat out on the Iditarod for 10 days? I have never been a ‘good eater’. We describe dogs as good or poor eaters. I’d be the latter. I know that I have to eat and I can make myself consume calories, but I’m not one of those mushers who grazes constantly for 1,000 miles. Plus, I don’t like to eat sugar and most easy, tasty snacks are full of sugar. Years ago, Allen, Moira and I came up with a low sugar, high fiber, somewhat healthy, snack that doesn’t freeze solid in frigid temperatures. Allen is a good eater and when he raced both the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod we needed many. So Moira made hundreds of these bars.
Then we met Claire and Wayne. They take nutrition and health seriously. They began to make bars for us. And these are some seriously nutritious, power packed, delicious meal bars. They have a healthy combo of oils, seeds and nuts plus the original high fiber, low freezing factor of the original bars.
These days I can eat just bars during the 10 day race. Sometimes… I can force myself to have a hot meal at a checkpoint or at a camp spot. But more often than not, I eat bars. As I write this… I can mentally taste one. Ha! Claire and Wayne live in Anchorage but they made a visit to SPK several years ago to visit Quito’s Golden Harness litter as baby puppies. They know us personally and they take a vested interest in making these bars. They label the bags with fun sayings and inspirational quotes. Their “Adversity makes us stronger” Bar sure was a big hit for me on the 2020 Iditarod and it still rings true today!
The race took my dogs and I over 10 days to complete. In total, I recorded only one hour of video. So these Aliy Cams are only a tiny segment of that experience. I also did not video during the most challenging trail or the worst blizzard conditions. I was too busy clinging my handlebars or navigating hazards. I also never recorded a video when I felt like it would intrude in our personal space.
Here is a map so that you can follow along.
Well maybe you and the Red Team didn’t think you were “competitive” but you (2-legs) were.
And so were they (4-legs) – missing so many “stars” in the lineup but yet they still managed to make the top 20. As the saying goes, attributed to the Brooklyn Dodgers, “Wait ’til next year!”
It was so consoling to be able to follow along this year. Back here in Connecticut as the Pandemic crushed the life out of all things familiar, the Red Team forged on!!!
Here’s a cheer for SP Kennel – the best of the best!!! WOOF WOOF WOOF
Love that… adversity….builds strength, character and definately makes you stronger! Dogs are motoring along…I know it’s a race but super cool dog power gets you across Alaska to the coast….always love the portage trail and all its history!
Got my fix with SP Post! The people years ago were some tough cookies. Stay well and Thanks for the ride!