The Coast

Well, the team is still "coasting" along (forgive me, but it had to be said). At 3:12am AST, Bill and the team left Shaktoolik checkpoint on the coast of the Bering Sea. They are currently at mile 740 out on the barren ice.

Yesterday afternoon, they left Unalakleet checkpoint out on the coast. They had already been at Unalakleet for 10 hours since officials were asking mushers to wait out a dangerous storm. Finally, they were given permission to head up the coast and battle the harsh winds and biting cold. Many mushers decided, instead, to scratch from the race. They seemed to drop suddenly; 12 mushers in all have now scratched. That leaves Bill as the only musher from Colorado to continue in the race! I knew our dogs were tough...
Early this morning, it seems that Bill took off with the team and then had to turn back a few miles out. I am assuming that the winds were severely limiting the team's sight. Out on the ice, the cold and wind can wear down at you with no place to hide. After waiting it out a bit, the team turned back north and continued up the coast. They are about halfway across Norton Bay and heading straight for Koyuk checkpoint.
From there, they will be able to stay mostly on land and avoid the desolate ice. At Koyuk checkpoint, it is 123 miles to Nome. I believe that my team will arrive sometime tomorrow evening.

Dallas Seavey coming into Nome

Meanwhile, the leaders have already finished the race. Dallas Seavey, a 25-year-old musher from Alaska, came in first place. He is part of racing legends and a 4th generation musher. He held onto an hour lead all day yesterday to beat out Aliy Zirkle. The frontrunners were all able to miss the storm that hit Shaktoolik and caused the other mushers to delay in Unalakleet. Therefore, they could push hard over the ice to Nome. While the winners have completed the course, several other mushers are fighting hard to survive. Racers will trickle in over the next few days. I'll certainly be beaming with pride when my team crosses that finish line!