In the early morning hours yesterday, the final Iditarod musher crossed the finish line to end the 50th running of what many call, “The Last Great Race” also known as the Iditarod Sled Dog Race. This 1,049 mile dog sled race runs from Willow to Nome, Alaska and crosses notoriously rugged country including the Alaska Range, the Farewell burn, the Yukon River and Norton Sound.
The race began on March 6th and the final musher crossed the finish line on March 20th. The first musher into McGrath this year was Aaron Burmeister who arrived on March 8th, two days into the race. He came in second in last year’s race and was hopeful to win this year. His dogs looked strong and settled during his rest in McGrath. The McGrath checkpoint was a buzz of activity with reporters, fans, vets and support staff scurrying about to check in/out mushers, check dogs, and complete safety protocols.
Legendary musher Jeff King drove Nicolas Petit’s dog team this year when Nic tested positive for Covid prior to the race. Jeff has won the Iditarod four times as well as many other races over his 45 year plus mushing career. Here’s Jeff’s website, https://huskyhomestead.com/jeff-king-2/. Be sure to scroll down mid-page on his website to see him with one incredible “mustache-cicle” dangling from his face! That is hard core!
An after the race update: Our winner this year for the 50th running of the Iditarod is Brent Sass. He covered over 1,000 miles of Alaskan countryside in 8 days, 14 hours and 38 minutes. The win escaped Aaron Burmeister, who had hoped to capture the win. He placed 8th. Rumors have it that this might be his last race….time will tell.
The most unique person I met at the checkpoint this year was a man named Andre. He spoke with an accent that resembled Great Britain, but with a varying twist. It turns out he is originally from South Africa. He and his wife are sponsors for musher Gerhardt Thiart, the first South African to race the Iditarod. Gerhardt and Andre and their families emigrated from South Africa to the USA years ago and running the Iditarod has been a dream for both all of them. Check out their story in this article.
As usual, McGrath was a hub of activity for a few days but quieted down once teams pulled out and through and continued on down the trail. Ravens strutted around the empty dog yard pecking pieces of dog food off the ground. Clean-up crews raked straw up and hauled it away. The hum of Iditarod Air Force Cessna airplane engines lingered for several more days while pilots back hauled gear, sleds and drop bags from smaller checkpoints to our larger runway for air cargo planes to ship back to Anchorage. And….then only the residents of our small community remained. The quiet stillness of winter was back.
Alaska Wilderness Mom 