2023: Day Two Update - Bentalit (Mile 76.6) to Maybe Finger Lake (Mile 123), But At Least Shell Lake (102.7)

 After a lovely and comfy night at Bentalit Lodge, most of the chatter surrounded an impending snow storm.  9-14 in. of snow and strong winds predicted, with drifts and poor visibility being of most concern.  Thankfully, cold temperatures weren't going to be an issue.  Turns out the storm stayed mainly south of most racers (certainly not all though 😞) and the riding was pretty good.

Ryan was able to have lunch with his friend Nicholas (the bike angel from Anchorage), who is casually biking to Nome for "fun".  Here he is with his bud George again.

Ryan and a few 1000 bikers left around the same time in the morning, just before 8am AKST.  I was able to briefly chat with him by phone and said bike was behaving, they ended last night in a heat wave (-5), and he was able to get some quality sleep.  Vibe: quite content.  He reported no wind and only about an inch of snow when he got to unofficial checkpoint, but frequent respite, Skwentna (86.6), two and a half-ish hours later (10:40am AKST).  Took a load off, had a bit to eat, and hit the trail two hours later.  By this point, foot was off the gas a bit because he doesn't want to get to some of the next checkpoints with a bottleneck of racers (the south-shifting storm eases that concern a bit)...(Emily's observation: but also because his pace was projecting a 15 day finish and we all know that is just unacceptable 😂😂😂).

Ride to Shell Lake (102.7) appeared fast; being able to catch some foot friends had to be uplifting (Go Jeff, Go!).  He timed it just right with his 8pm arrival, as I missed his text due to night class by 13 minutes.  Prior to class (okay, during class...but it was during students' small group discussions...swear!) I was able to share some 3-week update photos of soon-to-be new puppy.  I'm so glad Shell Lake has cell!

Side note: Shell Lake has historically been a welcomed checkpoint for racers, but two weeks ago (!!!) the property was destroyed in a fire.  For more on this devastating loss, see here and here. They do have shelter cabins, where 12 racers are currently holed up in at least two cabins.  Nothing like "solitude on the trail" 😝

Ryan shared a video of the close quarters, as well as images of his delicious looking Moose's Tooth Pizza (if you were going to ask, "isn't that in Anchorage?" you should and would be correct...text said, "Carried this 110 miles.").

 

Plan this morning was to hopefully get to Finger Lake (123) by day's end, but I haven't broached the subject tonight. He's curious about number of racers at or soon-to-be-at Finger Lake, as well as whether people have been using the same routes. He's sporadically texting, so not resting or (re)packing. So, ya, no clue if that means a push on or camp out.  I do know that we will find out!

...and find out we shall!  Looks like it's push on! "Talk to you at Rainy!"

Iditarod Trail Invitational - 2023 Edition

 

Well, here we are again friends!  Or, maybe you’re dot watching for the very first time.  Either way, thanks for caring enough about Ryan’s adventures/antics to tune in!  For a recap of how we got here or what the Iditarod Trail Invitational is, check out the very first posts from last year.  Only two big changes are that this year’s journey from Knik to Nome will take the southern route and will feature a bike as the mode of transportation vs. a left and right foot (although, to be sure, if you’ve seen this promo video you’ll be expecting a lot of walking/pushing from the bikers).

Ryan arrived in Anchorage on Monday, February 20th to a cracked bike frame (eek!). 

Good news is that he befriended the wonderful Nicholas last ITI and they were able to get cracking (tehe) on repairs while also lending Ryan a bike to play on while waiting for race day. 

I saw from pictures of Ryan’s ride on race day that repairs were completed in time…now Ryan will get all the QT with his beloved Salsa Mukluk!

After romping around Anchorage, visiting with old friends (special shout out to Tim & Alice Samuelson for opening their home up...again!) and race friends, Ryan started his 1000 mile journey Sunday, February 26th at 2pm AKST (5pm CST).  I got a picture of the pre-race ritual (burger, fries, and a Coke at the Knick Bar), but not much else, as there were a number of last minute route downloads and tracker issues to get sorted out.  Thanks to Todd Gabrielson for being my eyes/ears on the ground!

I didn’t hear a peep until 9:30 CST, where I got this picture and the caption, “I made it!” (to the first checkpoint, Butterfly Lake (mile 27.5)). 

Pictured with him (twice)  is George Adams...apparently, another ITI, another journey with an Aussie ;-).

  Making it to Butterfly Lake was a good feeling for the Dot Watchers, as racers were all.over.the.place.  Reminder for those following along at home: there is no official route to follow…there are checkpoints that must be visited, but how one gets there is up to the individual racer.  This year there were lots of choices made in terms of route, some good - some not so good, some intentional - some user error.  Since Ryan made good, intentional choices, I can say this made for a fun night of dot watching (I will only say this now). Pro tip: my favorite way to dot watch is to put the “Tracks” filter on. Sooo much arm chair quarterbacking to be had!!

Short stay at Butterfly, then an amazing Northern Lights show overnight en route to the unofficial checkpoint of Yetna (mile 56.1). 

The Yetna River was a brisk -35, with numerous race casualties due to frostbite (to be clear, race casualties = race is over, not something more dire).  Ryan said he handled it all okay, but “we’re all freezing” was the response when I asked how the vibe was at Yetna Roadhouse.

(they look fine to me 😂)

A meal, a nap, a lot of camaraderie (yay for being able to see all the foot friends…Go Jeff! Go Carla!), and off to his beloved Bentalit Lodge (a few years ago the caretaker took extra good care of him/all the racers and she’s becoming a fan favorite!).  20ish miles until another warm place to rest and recover!