Iditarod 04 saw so many lead changes you could call it a musical event. That feeling was enhanced by the great music I had playing on my new iPod I received as a Christmas present from my wife this year. Some races I tackle in complete "radio silence" and some races I listen to music a lot. This one was a very entertaining and diverse run.

At one point, the race organization was really worried about the over 100 teams signed up, but only a manageable 87 racers made it to the starting line. There was to be certainly no lack of competition, with five Iditarod champions representing 17 wins and last year's victorious team from Norway being driven by a different but very experienced driver.

We made some changes to our team from last year. A handful of new racers, such as Godzilla, Shakelton, Van Gogh, Copper and Harlem were all graduates from the recent Serum run adventures in which our young dogs travel from Nenana to Nome on the traditional route that the diphtheria vaccine was relayed in 1925.

Copper especially is taking more and more of a leadership role in the team. He ran the Copper Basin 300 as well as the Tustemena 200 in lead this year and earned himself a spot on the main race team with his skills. He does stand out from the rest of the dogs since he is of totally different coloring, a truly orange coat, giving him away as stemming from a different gene pool going back to Joe Runyan's Iditarod dogs.

It is really advantageous to have lots of dogs that can guide the team, so with nine leaders no single individual should get taxed too much. Shakelton, named after the famous Antarctic explorer Ernest Shakelton, son of the legendary D-2 and Iditarod record holder Luna, is a happy-go-lucky young leader. 'Shaki' is a very handsome and striking looking dog. He has one and a half blue eyes, a distinct black and white mask, and an easygoing temper. Nothing seems to stress Shakelton out. Godzilla is the youngest of the new leaders. This white son of Kira was appropriately named for his size, his brother King Kong is probably even bigger, but he stayed home.

During this year's Kusko 300, Jeff King unveiled a new sled design that has the driver sit on part of the load. The traditional loading area is shortened in the front of the sled, and about a third of the storage space is then added to the back of the sled, creating what Jeff calls a "tail dragger" or a "caboose". I simply call it the "OMS" for old musher's sled. We joke that you have to have run at least fifteen Iditarods or be fifty years old before you can drive one of the "OMS" sleds. The sled is a bit more difficult to drive in challenging trail sections but provides a tremendous amount of back and leg relief on the long straight sections of the course. With a few modifications these will definitely be sleds of the future .... Thanks, Jeff, for giving me enough time to build my own version.

In order to help the sled steer properly I have my wheel dogs attached to the front corners of the sled. Harlem, one of the "New Yorkers", has become a skilled "wheeler". Wolfy or Frazier usually helps out at the back of the team. Both of these males were in the team last year. Wolfy is a bit of a grump, not really aggressive but a bit growly towards the other dogs, so running him next to a mellow fellow such as Van Gogh helps to keep the mood of the team even. Van Gogh, of course, was appropriately named right at birth, as he had a part of his ear missing. One of the all around dogs in the team is Ranger. He runs in lead, implementing the directional commands given to him sharply, but he also knows how to steer the sled when he finds himself in the wheel position.

My sons, Rohn and Nikolai, both ran the Junior Iditarod this year, finishing in 4th and 5th place, with Rohn taking the Rookie of the Year honors. Their teams were made up of some of my best racing dogs. I only held out a few of the racers from my team, and ironically these dogs either did not make my team or now were the first ones dropped from the race. Snake and Lucillia were great performers in prior races, including the Iditarod, but this race they were the first two to go home. I know from experience that they will be just fine in years to come, and I will not hold one poor race against them.

The only really cold night during this Iditarod was on the way to Nikolai. Jeff King and I camped out at the same spot resting the dogs; we were wearing all our clothes to stay warm. It is hard to imagine the temperature climbing into the mid forties farther along the trail when the mercury is huddling at about thirty below. We both thought that our rest run pattern was shaping up to be the formula for success, but the hard fast trail soon gave way to slow punchy going for hundreds of miles.

Logan and his brother Hunter were setting a good pace into McGrath. The temperature was warming up rapidly now, and it started to snow. We arrived there just a few minutes after Jeff. I switched leaders often during this race. When the going got really difficult, I put Bronson in lead by himself. He can feel the trail under his feet and tried to follow the existing base as much as possible, and he also seeks out the trail markers visually, often running into them with his nose. Maybe he is nearsighted.

Lead changes kept happening throughout this Iditarod, in my team as well as in the race. There are several awards along the route, in McGrath, Cripple, Ruby, Unalakleet and then of course Nome. Jeff got to McGrath and Ruby first. Our team pulled into Cripple first to receive the halfway prize. Kjetil Backen was first to the coast in Unalakleet, and then of course the big prize was won by Mitch Seavy in Nome. Mitch is to be congratulated; he ran a very conservative race in the beginning, resting often and always staying within striking distance of the leaders, and then still having the energy and the drive to outrace Jeff King and Backen over the final two hundred miles.

A couple of real pleasant surprises in my team were Danny and Daisy, especially when they ran in lead. Danny stayed home last year due to a sore shoulder, and Daisy was dropped in "Kaltag 2" as we called the checkpoint the second time we got there. What a difference a year makes. They both worked really hard this year. We always knew that Daisy is a bit of a lazy trainer and because of that does not run lead often, but in this run she really turned it on in lead, and together with her brother Danny led the team in some very challenging race sections. They not only pulled really hard, but followed my directional commands flawlessly. The storm we encountered during the last fifty miles, however, was too challenging for either of them, and I was glad that F-150, a record holder and accomplished leader, was still in the team to be counted on. So 'Fifty' drug me through the "blow hole" and on into Nome. Godzilla earned the honor to finish in lead as well, so it took us a bit longer to finish under the burled arch, since the younger leader wanted to visit with all the people and perhaps tried to visit the famous Nome watering holes.

We eventually got to the finish line in eleventh place ... about ten places from where I hoped to finish. I sustained a hernia somewhere during the race that now is surgically fixed, and all the dogs are home helping to train the next generation. With a tougher team, more miles and even more experience will we enter the next Iditarod .... looking to improve in time and places.

Thanks for following our progress,

Happy Trails,