Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 6, 2013 Author Share Posted March 6, 2013 Rudy is down 1 more dog after the grueling 75 mile leg from the Rohn Roadhouse checkpoint to the Nikolai Village checkpoint. He left Nikolai in 47th place. Fairbanks local, and 4 time Iditarod winner, Lance Mackey is currently leading the race. Apparently, the mushers need to take a mandatory 24 hour and 8 hour layover during the race. Only one musher has taken their mandatory 24 hour layover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poojer Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 When you say he's down dogs..are the dead??? Rudy is down 1 more dog after the grueling 75 mile leg from the Rohn Roadhouse checkpoint to the Nikolai Village checkpoint. He left Nikolai in 47th place. Fairbanks local, and 4 time Iditarod winner, Lance Mackey is currently leading the race. Apparently, the mushers need to take a mandatory 24 hour and 8 hour layover during the race. Only one musher has taken their mandatory 24 hour layover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fezmid Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 When you say he's down dogs..are the dead??? No no no. They're RESTING. Pining for the fjords. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poojer Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 (edited) phew..... ...seriously though, i didn't know if that meant taken off the team or that they had actually ceased to be....that's a rough gig.... No no no. They're RESTING. Pining for the fjords. Edited March 6, 2013 by The Poojer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 No no no. They're RESTING. Pining for the fjords. They're beautiful dogs, lovely plumage... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim in Anchorage Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 When you say he's down dogs..are the dead??? Could be just a hurt paw. Or maybe the dog didn't wash his hands after going to the bathroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 When you say he's down dogs..are the dead??? They have dog "drop off" points at each checkpoint. Could be the dog injured its's leg, got ill, or just was unusually fatigued. Rudy made the decicion that they couldn't go on with the race. It is my understanding that they have veterinarians at each of these checkpoints. Each team starts off with 16 dogs, and must finish with at least 5 dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim in Anchorage Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 No no no. They're RESTING. Pining for the fjords. Is that line from a movie? I often see it here and have no idea what it means. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poojer Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Could be just a hurt paw. Or maybe the dog didn't wash his hands after going to the bathroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fezmid Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Is that line from a movie? I often see it here and have no idea what it means. You don't know what you're missing! It's from Monty Python's Flying Circus. Pooj posted the Youtube link - it's awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CowgirlsFan Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 No no no. They're RESTING. Pining for the fjords. I thought they had died too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 (edited) Cool video of a ride along with musher Christine Roalofs. Gives you a good idea of what it is actually like. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MTRi1-yTzg&feature=player_embedded The mushers have experienced better than normal weather conditions thus far. That is about to change, however, as there is a winter storm warning in effect for the lower Yukon Valley. Thursday's weather forecast for freezing rain and winds exceeding 50 mph, switching to snow in the evening. It's going to get pretty ugly out there Edited March 7, 2013 by Johnny Hammersticks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 After spending his mandatory 24 hour layover at the McGrath checkpoint, Rudy departed with his team of 12 dogs at 12:21pm Alaska time. Here's a picture of Rudy feeding his dogs in McGrath. From the Anchorage Daily News: "Rudy prepared a gourmet meal for his athletes – soaked kibble, lamb and beef. Twelve pairs of eyes watched every move Rudy made in preparing dinner. When he placed the bowls by each dog, it didn’t take any coaxing to get them to dive in." Rudy currently sits in 54th place, but is still going strong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Vader Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 After spending his mandatory 24 hour layover at the McGrath checkpoint, Rudy departed with his team of 12 dogs at 12:21pm Alaska time. Here's a picture of Rudy feeding his dogs in McGrath. From the Anchorage Daily News: "Rudy prepared a gourmet meal for his athletes – soaked kibble, lamb and beef. Twelve pairs of eyes watched every move Rudy made in preparing dinner. When he placed the bowls by each dog, it didn’t take any coaxing to get them to dive in." Rudy currently sits in 54th place, but is still going strong Keep going Rudy. BTW Johnny, are you changing your Icon with every leg of the race? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 8, 2013 Author Share Posted March 8, 2013 Keep going Rudy. BTW Johnny, are you changing your Icon with every leg of the race? lol...no I think I'm sticking with Depp/Hunter S. Thompson for a while I think. Watched Fear and Loathing last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 Rudy still holding steady in 50th place after making the the 80 mile trek from Ophir checkpoint to Iditarod checkpoint. It took him 15 hours and 46 minutes which is pretty darn good for a 67 year old man. He's resting his team right now before leaving for the Shageluk checkpoint which is 55 miles away. After Shageluk, the next checkpoint is Anvik Village, which is where Rudy was born and raised. Hopefully he doesn't get into the home-brew with his buddies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 Just another update for those who might still be following along. Rudy checked in at the Eagle Island checkpoint after a 10 hour and 45 minute leg of the race. He is currently in 46th place, and is 592 miles into the race with 406 miles to go until the finish line. He is down to 9 dogs now, and that is not good news considering he needs at least 5 dogs in harness to finish the race. Rudy's obviously not a contender at this point, but I really hope he is able to finish the race. He's 67 years old, and just a really, really good guy. This will likely be his last chance to run the Iditarod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fan in San Diego Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 The 1,000+ mile sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska kicks off tomorrow and a friend of mine is participating. One of my favorite drinking buddies, 67 year old Rudy Demoski is competing in his 7th Iditarod race. He hasn't competed in 27 years, but decided to enter the race this year because he "wasn't getting any younger." His best finish was 4th in 1974, and he has also finished in 9th, 15th, and 18th place in his Iditarod career. Rudy is an Alaskan Native who is also a world renowned moose hunting guide. He has shown me pic's of him hunting with celebrities like Larry Czonka and Richard Petty. The guy has some amazing stories. Like the time in 1977 when he was leading the Iditarod after 20+ checkpoints, but stopped to get drunk in some village and had to drop out of the race. He also told me this great story about how he raised 2 Grizzly Bear cubs when he was a kid. He and his buddies woke the bears up from their hibernation (in the crawl space below his home) on New Years Eve, got them completely trashed on home-brew, and then (shocker) the bears proceeded to destroy his home. Truly a wild man! Here's a picture of good ol' Rudy... If you are interested, you can track Rudy's progress here... http://iditarod.com/race/2013/ Today (03/02) was the "ceremonial" start in Anchorage. The race officially begins tomorrow, as the mushers embark from Willow, Alaska. what happened to the bears? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 According to Rudy, they eventually got the bears back down into the crawl space with some coersion (I won't elaborate). He said that in the spring he set them free. It's my understanding that he and his friends found the abandoned cubs...apparently someone had killed the mother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 (edited) Rudy's really trucking along with his 9 dog team. Moved up into 42nd place as of the last checkpoint (Kaltag), and is now almost 740 miles into the 998 mile race. The leader of the race is now 4 time Iditarod winner, and 17 time top 10 finisher, Jeff King. From what I've been reading, he's going to be pretty hard to beat down the stretch. Edited March 12, 2013 by Johnny Hammersticks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CowgirlsFan Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Rudy's really trucking along with his 9 dog team. Moved up into 42nd place as of the last checkpoint (Kaltag), and is now almost 740 miles into the 998 mile race. The leader of the race is now 4 time Iditarod winner, and 17 time top 10 finisher, Jeff King. From what I've been reading, he's going to be pretty hard to beat down the stretch. Thanks for the update! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 14, 2013 Author Share Posted March 14, 2013 Rudy had to drop out of the race after completing about 740 miles of te race. He was running with 9 dogs, and I heard from a friend that he had concerns about the health of 3 more of the dogs. Pretty sad he had to drop out, but I'll sure as hell buy him a beer and congratulate him when I see him at the bar. Here is your 2013 Idotarod champ, Seward, Alaska native Mitch Seavey. He won the race in 2004, and has ten top-10 finishes under his belt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Jack Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 Here is your 2013 Idotarod champ, Seward, Alaska native Mitch Seavey. He won the race in 2004, and has ten top-10 finishes under his belt. So I've got a question. With the staggered start times, is it still "whomever crosses first" or do they compute the time it took to finish to declare the winner? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poojer Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 I would hope they have chips that record their times So I've got a question. With the staggered start times, is it still "whomever crosses first" or do they compute the time it took to finish to declare the winner? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 So I've got a question. With the staggered start times, is it still "whomever crosses first" or do they compute the time it took to finish to declare the winner? Whomever crosses first is my understanding. All teams must rest their dogs for at least eight hours at White Mountain, before the final sprint. From White Mountain to Safety is 55 miles (89 km), and from Safety to Nome it is 22 miles (35 km). The last leg is crucial because the lead teams are often within a few hours of each other at this point. As of 1991, the race has been decided by less than an hour seven different times, less than five minutes three times. The closest race in Iditarod history was in 1978 when the winner and the runner-up were only one second apart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Jack Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 Whomever crosses first is my understanding. And that's my issue. Looking at this site.... http://iditarod.com/...iditarod-today/ they do two minute staggered starts. So lets say the person that crosses second is only 6 minutes behind the first place finisher. But when they started, they started 20 minutes after the first finisher. So their completed time was actually 14 minutes faster than the person that crossed first. You wouldn't have to wait for everyone to finish to declare the winner, because at some point, using math, you could see there is no way someone still on the course could beat the time of someone that already finished. But to me it's unfair that just because someone wasn't first out of the gate or in the front of the pack, that they could not win based on time alone. I'm reminded of Greg Lemond's 1989 Tour De France finish where he made up a 50 second time factor that no one thought could be done... http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1068628/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 Within your link Jack... The difference in starting times is ‘made up’ on a musher’s 24 hour mandatory layover. Each participant must take mandatory 8 and 24 hour layovers during the race. Now my assumption here is that the judges do not "release" the participant from their 24 hour layover until the additional time is served. For example, (again just educated speculation) a participant who started in the first position would have to serve their 24 hour layover plus the total time elapsed until the last participant left the starting line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Jack Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 Within your link Jack... Each participant must take mandatory 8 and 24 hour layovers during the race. Now my assumption here is that the judges do not "release" the participant from their 24 hour layover until the additional time is served. For example, (again just educated speculation) a participant who started in the first position would have to serve their 24 hour layover plus the total time elapsed until the last participant left the starting line. Ah, okay. That makes sense, if that is what they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts