Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Iditarod Surprises

1) the Happy Steps were no problem

2) Aliy Zirkle leading the charge to McGrath. In her 12th iditarod she typically starts strong but the highest she has finished is 11th (twice). We still aren't sure how many of Allen Moore's Qwest dogs are on the team.

3) Kelly Griffin running with the leaders. Someone in the know picked her in the CVIB Challenge so there must be something there. She had a run in with a moose during training a few weeks ago that shook her and the team up. Her 4th iditarod - she finished 26th last year. First year in many however that she hasn't run the Qwest.

4) Busers are lagging. Both have shown a passion to charge hard from the start in the past, yet this year they are more then a checkpoint behind the leaders, so what's up with dat?

5) Too many Seaveys to track. Dan (aka the ol' man) placed 3rd way back in 74 and decided he needs one more kick at the can at the tender age of 74. He is definitely bringing up the rear, and may get booted from the race if he doesn't pick up the pace. Dallas and Mitch are right in the thick of things, so watch for them as they typically make their move towards the front along the Yukon river.

6) Hugh and Lance must enjoy each others company. After running neck and neck a few weeks ago for 1000 miles of the Qwest, they don't ever seem to be more then a sticks throw away from each other in this race so far.

2 comments:

Tulukaghogamiut said...

I think there would major complaints from the fans if they kicked Grandpa Seavey from the course. Did you see Keller blog says that R Smyth fell asleep and lost his team for a couple hours? I don't understand what is going on with the Busers.

L Hammel said...

They would never kick Grandpa Dan off of the trail. I cannot believe you made a comment like that. He is Iditerod royalty. Get real.