4/1/2009: Ryan's Iditarod Tale The team looked nice and strong before the race and I was excited about getting down the trail and racing. The weather was just about perfect, right around in the upper 20’s. Our first run was very smooth and uneventful, we passed a few teams and seven hours later we arrived at Skwentna in 3rd place. Stovepipe and Crackle were my leaders on the first run. Stovepipe was a little off on his performance and I think it was because of all the people that were out on the trail watching the race. I decided the next run to put Marvin in lead next to Crackle. We rested a little over 6 hours at Skwentna, I enjoyed a nice hot meal and got a couple of hours of sleep. The trail was a lot different on the next leg to Finger Lake. It was very soft, some spots were a couple of feet long that was just a hole of super soft snow. My team slowed down a little bit on that run. My original plan was to keep on going past Finger Lake going about another 20 miles to Fin Bear Lake but when we got to Finger Lake, I thought it was best for them if we stopped and rested there. They ate well and rested well. It was unusually quiet there with no air traffic due to cloudy weather.
I am always a little nervous on the next run because of the Happy River steps but this year we had no problems going down the steps. Marvin and Crackle did a great job leading the team to Rainy Pass where we decided to rest again. I knew by doing this it was taking our team out of the race competitively. We would lose a few hours and it would be really hard to make up but it is important to do what is best for the dogs. The run to Rohn was fun, it was at night, and going down the Dalzell George, which was easy compared to my previous experience. I never flipped the sled over and it was an awesome trail. The crew at Rohn made some great bridges to go across a couple of creeks. I left Rohn checkpoint with 14 dogs and we were now traveling with my brother Ray. We had a few problems at Egypt mountain/glacier with the ice. The team didn't want to go left across the ice and my brother led them across the ice for me. He had problems as well and I was able to lead him across. We were traveling a lot slower then we trained and by the time we hit Nikolai, my brother gained around 30 minutes on us on that run. Some of the time that I lost was due to switching leaders, I wanted to give Marvin a break in lead so I switched him for Boomer. Boomer did well for close to two hours and then wanted to play after that I put Snowball in lead and he did well up front. When we reached Takotna, I was glad to get there and take the 24 hour layover. The dogs rested well and got a few good meals. I also enjoyed the rest and awesome food. When we left Takotna, the cook there gave me two double cheeseburgers to take with me. I left with 13 dogs, it was warm out and it took us around 3 hours to get to Ophir. After a few hours rest, the temperature had dropped and we continued down the trail. We left right behind my brother and together we camped about 10 miles past Don's Cabin, about halfway from Ophir and Iditarod. We stopped right after this creek and I was able to go down and get water to heat up for the dogs. That was great and a lot quicker then melting snow. I decided to sleep on my sled with out my sleeping bag because it was warm out. After about an hour, I woke up shivering really bad. I started to walk around and warm up as quickly as I could. It was a nice run then to Iditarod and I finished one of my double cheeseburgers there. I had put it inside my coat for a three or 4 hours before Iditarod and it was nice and thawed out when I got there. I was glad to be halfway in the race, although we were not in the position that I had hoped for, we were not that far away from the teams in the top 20. Our speed was still slow but we were making it down the trail. When we left Iditarod, my brother passed us right away and was out of sight. We were now on the Yukon River and we had 12 dogs. I put Ginger, the youngest member of the team, in lead with her mom Hurley. We had a good run over to Grayling and were now around 2 hours behind my brother. I got good rest there at Grayling and I took off a few minutes behind Jim Lanier. The team left Grayling with very nice with speed. Then right away the trail was blown in, we made it about 3 miles before Jim and I made the tough decision to turn around and head back to Grayling. I knew right away that I would never see my brother again and my chance to make into the top 20 was long gone. We waited until daylight when about 17 other mushers left the checkpoint pretty much together. I traveled with a good friend Bill Cotter from there on to Nome. It was his 20th Iditarod and it was fun listening to him talk about his experiences out on the trail and with the wind. It was so windy at times on the Yukon River that I could barely see the dogs in front of me. It made traveling very slow all the way up the Yukon. One of the great things that I got to watch going up the Yukon was watching Ginger Ale lead and fight right into the wind. She did incredible job especially for her size, she weighs around 40 pounds, and is very young, just shy of 22 months old. Her mom is Hurley and they both did a great job leading. Bill and I decided to rest at Old Woman cabin. After feeding the dogs, I started a fire in the cabin. I made a mistake and put to much wood in the wood stove, after I laid down, it got very, very hot. I was upstairs in the cabin and before I knew it, I was taking off a lot of clothes and I was dripping with sweat. Cindy Gallea, David Swatzky, Harry Alexie and Bill Cotter were all in the cabin as well and even with the door open, it was very uncomfortable. Our friend, Karin Hendrickson, came in right when we were leaving and I think by then it was starting to cool off by then. The coast was still windy but not as windy as it had been for the front runners. I traveled up the coast with Bill Cotter and Harry Alexie. At times we all seemed to be traveling at different speeds but by the time we got to the next checkpoint, we would be within minutes of each other. Our team had 7 dogs for the run from Saftey to Nome. I was pretty happy about our run time from Saftey to Nome which tied Ramey Smyth for the fastest time, 2 hours and 27 minutes. Stovepipe and Hurley lead us into Nome for a 36th place finish, with Ginger Ale, Barbara Ann, Crackle, Snowball, and Patsy finishing as well. I was really glad to get to Nome and get out of the wind and cold. Overall it was a great race and I am super proud of the dogs, they did a fantastic job. I can hardly wait for next year’s race! Thank you all for your help and support and we hope to have you with us again next year!
3/26/2009: Ryan and team made it across the finish line at about 4:30AM on Saturday the 21st! He finished in 36th place and the team looked good and strong coming across the line. He actually tied Ramey Smyth for the fastest time from Saftey to Nome (the award only goes to those in the top 20 though). Ryan was happy to be in and off of the trail, he said that the wind and cold weather sure was not much fun. Sorry for not updating sooner but getting out of Nome turned out to be quite the trip in itself. We had the dogs booked on a Saturday night flight out of Nome, which was cancelled with no warning, and no reason, then rescheduled for Sunday morning. We got half the team to the airport on Sunday morning and then they cancelled our flight again, with no warning and no reason. So we decided to switch airlines and the dogs would fly out of Nome with us on the flight after the banquet. Midway through the banquet the airline paged us early, so we had to run out and get the dogs on the plane. Once all dogs and passengers were loaded on the plane, we sat on the runway for awhile, did a loop around the airfield and then the pilot came on and said that Mt Redoubt had just erupted and we couldn't take off. We were deplaned and waited in the airport for an hour or so. The airline came out and told us that the plane was now flying to Fairbanks and we had the option of staying in Nome or going to Fairbanks. Anywhere on a road system was preferable to being stuck in Nome (great place to visit, thanks to Berda and Steve for their hospitality, but you quickly run out of dog food). So off to Fairbanks we went. Our friends Jeff and Nina, whom we can't thank enough, were kind enough to wake up in the middle of the night (we arrived in FBX at about 3:00AM), pick us and the dogs up at the airport, dig out dog houses for the team, and let us crash on the couch. The next day Jeff then drove all of us back down to Wasilla, we only ran out of gas once along the way and had to wait an hour and a half for a friend to bring some up the road to us! All in all, we were very glad when we got back home. I will get a few stories from Ryan and try to get them posted shortly. Thanks to all for following us along the trail and cheering us on! Ryan can hardly wait to sign up for next years race!
3/18/2009: I am off to Nome to meet Ryan and team at the finish line! This morning he is in Unalakleet, so he has just over 200 miles to go. He and the team still seem to be moving along just fine, it looks as though they have been able to travel with other mushers quite a bit which is always nice. Hopefully he and the team have a smooth run into the finish! The weather on the trail is pretty windy and cold, and this has delayed the arrival of the dropped dogs. Still don't know who he dropped at Anvik, Grayling, and Eagle Island. Nothing to worry about though as the Iditarod takes excellent care of the dogs until they make it home. It will be a surprise to see who makes it to Nome!
3/16/2009: Ryan's run time from Grayling to Eagle Island isn't as bad as it first looks. Word from the trail is that the wind picked up and obliterated the trail on that stretch. Ryan and Jim Lanier tried to head out at one point but they ended up having to turn back to Grayling, wait for awhile, and then head back out to make the run to Eagle Island. From watching Ryan's "spot" on the GPS tracker, it looks like he took off around 12:00 or so yesterday and arrived in Eagle Island a little after 11:00PM that night, giving him an 11 hour or so run time equal to, or better, than the other mushers making the run. Hopefully the wind will die down and give the mushers clear trail! Still waiting to get the next dropped dog back home. Sometimes when the weather turns nasty out on the trail it takes them a few extra days to find their way back to Anchorage.
3/13/2009: The team keeps moving steadily down the trail. After taking his 24 hour layover in Takotna, it looks like Ryan is moving along great. He is giving the team lots of rest, probably due to the warm temperatures, and their run times are staying very good. The dog dropped in Takotna was Bowser. Yet again he looks just fine and was only dropped because he was getting tired. There have been lots of good pictures of Ryan and team especially on the Anchorage Daily News website. Go to: http://www.adn.com/iditarod/ , then on the left hand side click on "Photos". A new window will open, go to "Day 6" where there are a bunch of Ryan and also in "Day 5" there is a good one of the team.
3/11/2009: Mira has arrived home safe and sound. Just like Carmack, he looks great. Ryan and the team are moving just fine down the trail. They reached Takotna early this afternoon and I think that he will most likely take his 24 hour layover there. Because he went out number 13, his adjusted layover time is around 25 hours and 50 minutes. When ever he takes his layover he and the dogs will so get a nice break!
3/10/2009: The dropped dog was Carmack, he has finished with Ryan in Nome before but must have been having a bad day. At home here he looks great, with no issues, and super lively. Ryan and team look like they are making their way down the trail just fine. He seems to be taking it easy in the early part of the race, lots of rest for the dogs but good run times between checkpoints. Hopefully he is having a good time out there.
3/9/2009: Thanks again to Barb for all of the great pictures.
3/8/2009: Hello everyone! Ryan and team are out and on the trail. Sorry for not updating the last few days but it has been busy. Thursday was the banquet, and as you all know by now, Ryan drew bib number 13. This was great and exactly what he wanted, which was to go out somewhere in the top few positions. His brother drew number 10 so for a bit maybe they will be seeing each other on the trail. Saturday and the run through Anchorage for the ceremonial start went wonderfully. I was able to drive the second sled for Ryan and it was neat to see all the folks out on the trail cheering on the teams! Today at the start also went off without a hitch. The team looked charged and ready to run when they left the line. Hopefully he will have a great run up to Nome! Like last year, Ryan won't be able to call home from the trail. I will keep updating though out the race with my best guess at what he is doing and also with any information on dogs that get sent home early. I will get a few pictures up ASAP.
The plan for the first little bit of the race was to run straight to Skwentna and then take a good rest, about 6 or so hours, and then run on to Rainy Pass. We will have to watch and see what the musher does!
Thanks to everyone who has helped us get to the starting line this year, we are grateful for all of your help and support and for cheering on the team on their journey!
3/4/2009: After a busy couple weeks filled with the bloodwork, vet checks and lots of training all of the dogs have been cleared and are ready to race. Ryan went out for his final training run before hitting the trail for the Iditarod. This year's Iditarod team are: Stovepipe, Crackle, Marvin, Boomer, Ginger, Patsy (another dog borrowed from Ray and Julia, she is another leader and will add alot to Ryan's team), Tito, Chop, Snowball, Barbara Ann, Hurley, Athena, Moseley, Carmack, Mira, and Bowser. The team is looking really nice and Ryan hopes to have a great run up the trail. Tommorow is filled with the musher meeting and the banquet, where they will draw for starting position.
Athena
Here are the 18 dogs still training for the 2009 Iditarod team. This year we have a few dogs from different kennels, thanks to everyone who has loaned us dogs to help us get the best team possible! Click on the pictures to enlarge them.
Athena: 4 year old female, will sometimes run lead, borrowed from Ray and Julia Redington
Boomer: 2 1/2 year old female, swing dog, leased from DeeDee Jonrowe
Carmack: 5 year old male, leader, this will be his 3rd trip to Nome with Ryan
Boomer
Carmack
Chop: 2 1/2 year old female, great attitude, first time on the team
Crackle: 5 year old female, leader, one of the core dogs for the kennel she is the mother to Moseley and Tito
Ginger: 2 years old, female, first time on the team and showing lots of potentail for the future
Chop
Crackle
Ginger Ale
Hurley
Hurley: 7 years old, female, leader, always a great member of the team
Marvin: 4 years old, male, leader, excellent attitude
Moseley: 3 years old, male, first year on the team but should be back for many more
Marvin
Moseley
Snowball: 2 years, male, borrowed from Raymie and Barb Redington
Tito: 3 years, male, like brother Moseley this is his first year on the team but he will definitely be back in future seasons
Whistler: 3 years, female, leader
Snowball
Tito
Whistler
Stovepipe
Stovepipe: 6 years old, male, leader, he has greatly improved this year and is now an excellent command leader with a lot of drive
BarbaraAnn: 8 years, female, leader, she is a little dog with a lot of heart
Angel: 6 years old, female, leader, she has been to Nome with Ryan before and is back for another run
Barbara Ann
Angel
Jiggs: 2 years old, male, from the kennel of Raymie and Barb Redington
Mira: 7 years, male, a strong and steady dog
Bowser: 3 years old, male, lots of power
Mira, on left, and Bowser
Callin' Trail Kennel Ryan and Erin Redington P.O. Box 877973 Wasilla AK 99687
