Next Saturday: Ceremonial Start

Last night chatted with friends from several different countries on the BSSD Iditarod Forum chat. Everyone is excited and geared up for the start of the Iditarod next Saturday, March 6, at 10 am. That will be the Ceremonial Start in Anchorage. It's an amazing spectacle, this year 71 teams lined up along Fourth Street in Anchorage, all the dogs being harnessed and reacting to all the other dogs around them. Many are outfitted in colorful bandanas, harnesses and booties, a beautiful sight as they take of under the Iditarod Banner for 20 mile 'exhibition run' to Campbell Airstrip.

Lance Mackey's and Jessica Royer's Teams - 2008 4th Street

This weekend the 4 of us who are communicating daily and plan to meet in Nome were packing our bags, keeping luggage limited and light as it needs to be easy to handle on the icy streets of Nome. However, we have to be warm enough to weather temperatures that fluctuate between freezing and 50 below this time of year, with a constant wind that at times approaches 60 mph. As I said before, layers of silk, wool, fleece, down, head to toe..........makes for creative selection and good use of vacum bags.

This week, those of us who are 'died in the wool' dogsledding groupies (we call ourselves Iditabuds) will be laboriously studying the musher listing, training schedules, rumors of dog strength and leadership and up and coming teams, wins this season, and 'who wants it bad' stories, as we select and edit our "Top Ten Pick", the first 10 to cross under the Burled Arch in Nome. We slave over this list, with honor and a hat to the winner each year, and good humored joshing among those who were way off the mark.

Also this week, most of us continue at our jobs, giving a hundred percent of ourselves to the 9 to 5, (yeah, that's a laugh!----at our jobs, but brain on next week...............I think my brain just drifted.....maybe Jeff King will but on a final show before he sells his dogs.........maybe I should put him number 1........but Lance is still cookin'........could easily win a 4th.....and don't forget Sebastian........you where going to put him in the #1 slot..........hhhhmmmmmm.