Kristy and Anna have had a full week back in the kennel with the dogs and I would imagine nearly all mushers are back at their home kennels by now.  It's high time this Mad Blogger stops dragging her heels and wraps things up for 2022.

When the twins called home after the finish, they had a lot to share but largely in soundbites.  Here is what they had to share when everything was still fresh and they hadn't yet caught up on sleep.

Arriving in Nome was such a wonderful feeling.  Both of the twins were so grateful to have comfy beds, showers, and warm meals with the Alaska Mission.  Although Kristy and Anna have had some wonderful host families in the recent past, being back at the mission is welcome.  It's right outside the finish line on Front St. so they can easily pop out and cheer on other finishers, and it's close to the dog lot where their finishing pups hung out until they were flown home.

Kristy launched into a story about her sled being launched by the wind while facing the winds along the coast.  Her sled was literally lifted up and blown over three times.  At other times, her sled was sliding sideways, perpendicular to her dog team.  Eventually, she cut something off the caboose section of her sled and stuffed it in the sled bag.  It was just catching more wind and likely to snap off at any time anyway.

I asked about the "whoops" - an actual motocross term for a long series of evenly spaced bumps often 1-2 feet tall - that mushers reported encountering earlier in the race.  Anna said at times her sled was groaning like an old ship, but it held together.  In all, the twins didn't think the whoops were all that bad.  Better than the ice and dirt out on the Burn.

See any critters out there?  An owl, some eagles.  Snow buntings.  Some big wolf tracks near Galena.  But otherwise not very much by way of animal sightings.

Which is a blessing.  Most sections of North America that have moose were reporting problems with them this winter.  Snow and food conditions made the moose ornery, and scary encounters or downright attacks were reported from Minnesota to Alaska over the season.  It can be particularly daunting with a dog team.  Dogs and sleds move very silently down the trail, and if you round a tree-lined corner and come upon a moose, you startle them.  Fight or flight kicks in, and when deep snow or trees prevent flight, prepare for a very scary fight.  Moose have been known to attack and trample dog teams.

The twins were among many mushers with moose on their minds.  In addition to flare guns, the twins also carried a .357 with them the first 352 miles to Ophir, where it was left with a friend after the most moose prone territory was left behind.  

Rule 34 in Iditarod addresses encounters with game animals.  A musher is allowed to carry a firearm and kill an animal in defense of life or property.  If an edible animal is killed, the musher must gut the animal and report the incident at the next checkpoint, where officials will retrieve the animal for local use.  Any team coming upon this situation must at the least stop and cannot pass and is encouraged to assist dressing the game animal if wiling and able.  Apparently musher Matt Failor had to do just that this year, and pulled into Nulato up to his elbows in blood from dressing a moose and with quite a story to tell.

Anna and Kristy had some cute stories to tell about their attempts to be good sportswomen out on the trail.  They loaned one musher a knife and a few spare dog jackets.  Another musher scored when they gave him some extra runner plastic.  They got the ok from Iditarod officials to loan one of their race GPS trackers to Reily Dyche for a while when his quit working.  And at one checkpoint, volunteers found a headlamp battery in some straw recently vacated by Matt Hall.  They gave it to the twins and they were happy to tuck it away and run it up to him in the next checkpoint.  He was grateful.

It sounds like Ophir wasn't an ideal place to 24 this year.  There was only a small tent with 8 bunks, and 12 mushers looking to dry out gear and get some sleep when the twins arrived.  They ultimately went outside under some spruce trees to get a little shelter from the snow, unrolled their packs near the resupply area, and crashed out.  There is a pic, below, of where the twins were sleeping.  They started a few people that came along digging through drop bags and weren't expecting people to pop out of snowy sleeping bags!

They talked about snow and trail conditions.  In addition to the things I mentioned so far by way of ice and dirt, and the snow whoops, they talked a lot about the snow and drifts they encountered.  20 miles out of Cripple, race mile 425, the drifts "were like meringue" and when they hit the trail, there was absolutely no sign of a musher that had pulled out just an hour and a half before.

Overall, the twins seemed happy with their race plan and how they executed it.  They really enjoyed their stay at the Tripod Shelter cabin, which had been in prior year's race plans but didn't come to fruition.  They had the cabin to themselves for the majority of their rest, and found enough dry wood in the nearby woods to get a fire going in the small stove.  

They reported some frustrating problems with the dog meat in the drop bags through the second half of the race.  There was evidence the bags were exposed to a freeze/thaw/freeze cycle, so they had to avoid anything they packed that was too fatty (like chicken) and might have gone bad.  Fortunately they both had packed plenty of fish and high protein endurance kibble, which hold up far better in those circumstances.  

They really enjoyed the prime rib and Brussels sprouts in Ophir, and pancakes with bacon in Unalakleet.  In Shaktoolik, their accommodations were actually in the armory where someone had built bunks with real mattresses.  They both laughed - we were so spoiled and actually had real mattresses 3 times this year!!  The musher cabin in Rainy Pass was memorable (outside of all the time they spent working on Anna's busted sled), and White Mountain for their final 8-hour was far more comfortable than they had been led to expect.  

They talked about a dicey bit of trail outside of Elim, on the coast and some 852 miles into the race.  A musher had reported a dangerous break in the ice with open water, and search and rescue went out to assess.  They built a makeshift bridge to help get across, but by the time the twins and many later mushers got there, it was more of a floating dock bridging the gap.  Some mushers had a rough go of it, but the twins got lucky going through at night when the moon and tides kept the worst of the water at bay.  Those tides mean a difference between navigating a span of 2 feet of water versus 20 feet.  

Otherwise, it sounded like a reasonably dry race compared to some years.  The only bad overflow they encountered was out of Rohn.  And temperatures weren't too bad either.  For girls that have seen -65 ambient air temps, -20F (or -30F with windchill) is more tolerable and about the worst they saw this year.    
They were so happy to travel the traditional trail all the way to Nome again, and said all the villagers they saw from a distance but still along the trail were super supportive.  The Iditarod is a bright spot in a very long winter for these communities.

So after a week of unpacking after a 975 mile race, tending to all the dogs in the kennel, what else do you think these two are doing?  Analyzing aspect of Iditarod 2022 and making plans for Iditarod 2023.

With that, it's time for this Mad Blogger to sign off.  On behalf of Seeing Double, I want to sincerely thank the twins' sponsors, fans, and friends for everything you do.  Thank you race organizers, veterinarians, and volunteers.  Thanks to the villagers and the trail breaking crew.  Thanks to Andy, Aaron, and Courtney for taking such great care of things at the kennel while Anna and Kristy were out on the trail.  

Thank you to the dogs, without which this race would be neither possible nor worthwhile.

Life's a journey, enjoy the ride.  Thanks for coming on this journey with me.

See you next year!
Kat
a.k.a Seeing Double's Mad Blogger and Not-A-Twin Sister

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When Kristy and Anna get up in the morning, the first thing they do - aside from getting dressed and hitting the facilities - is take care of their dogs. They're fed, the yard is cleaned, and everyone gets a little love. Then the twins get some breakfast themselves.

Sometimes the dogs send up an alert, a special tone of barking or howling, that gets one or both of the twins up in the middle of the night, long before breakfast is due. Kristy and Anna know the pack's sounds, when something is afoot and their presence is required. Maybe a moose or other critter on the perimeter of the yard.  Whatever and whenever, the twins always answer the call.

The rest of the day? Maybe head to work. Maybe head out with part of the pack on a free run, or in the summer hook a couple dogs up in harness to a bike for some canicross. Kristy and her husband, Andy, might plan a long bike ride, and Anna might go for a run or catch up with friends. But there's always a plan - who will be home for the dogs.

Vacations, trips to visit family? What's the plan for the dogs? Funds a little tight this month but you really kinda want a new pair of running shoes? First check the freezers and kibble supply.

Feeling a little blue? Walk outside, breath in a little Alaska, and watch as over 40 furry faces turn to greet you, ready to make you feel better.

What I'm trying to get at, is the Iditarod is only a portion of Anna and Kristy's lives with their dogs. It's the most public portion, certainly a driving force in a lot of what they do year round. But ultimately they love dogs and want dogs to be a key component of their lives. The twins love the outdoors, they're very athletic, and enjoy challenges. What better way to harness all of that together than the best of the twins bringing out the best in a pack of Alaska Huskies?

And these dogs do so love to run. And pull, and travel forward together as a team.  Anyone who has witnessed this firsthand can't help but agree.

In some ways, the circle starts just after Iditarod. Easing veteran racers into a more relaxed summer season and getting pups used to harnesses. The snow melts, human working season heats up. The dogs' adventures are often closer to home.  But there are still plenty of activities, and the twins are almost always out in the yard doing something.

When temperatures start to drop a bit in early fall, it's time to start hitting the trails. Slowly at first, a couple miles. Usually "moto-mushing" with the dog team hooked up to a four-wheeler. This allows for the greatest degree of control and safety for a larger number of dogs to stretch their legs. Never letting the team go too fast, the wheeler primarily slows them down.

The miles increase much as a human prepares for a marathon. The wheeler is traded for a sled when there's enough snow. Mid-distances races of increasing lengths are run.

As you might expect with any track or cross country team - arguably most athletic disciplines - injuries happen over the season. Canine and human alike. The key is to spot any problems early, treat any issues thoroughly, and respect any individual's limitations or boundaries.

Which sheds light on why Kristy and Anna have just over 40 dogs at the kennel. The majority of those they own and are Seeing Double Dogs, but a few will be borrowed from other mushers for the season. They're always treated like family.  Anyway - from that 40 or so dogs, you need 28 Iditarod caliber dogs to run two teams, you have a few puppies or yearlings, a couple retirees. And any professional team needs alternates. It's the only way to properly treat any injuries or illnesses without sacrificing the overall program.

So you care for your pack and you train and along comes Iditarod. Kristy and Anna live with these dogs day in, day out, year round. They train, see which dogs love it, which dogs like going the distance. Who's happy, healthy, has a great appetite, is strong. Kristy and Anna decide on their dog teams, typically a reflection of the dogs they have already run the most that season. They each get 14 dogs on their team.

Each of those dogs, and typically an alternate, go through a series of tests leading into the Iditarod. Of course they get regular vaccinations like any dog.  But now there's blood work, EKGs, overall vet checks and confirmation each dog has viable characteristics by way of coat and size for the event ahead. Each dog has a microchip and a specific collar tag to confirm it's identity. Immediately before the race, the dogs are also urine tested for any prohibited substances and their microchips confirmed again.

After they hit the trail? Each musher carries a mandatory veterinary log book about his or her dog team. This is a relay of information to the volunteer vets at each checkpoint along the trail. Mushers must leave the start with 12 to 14 dogs, and every dog is accounted for at each checkpoint. No swapping, no trading, and most certainly no leaving a dog behind. Unless a musher opts to leave, or "return", a dog within a checkpoint with vets and authorized dog handlers. These returned dogs are then flown back to Anchorage by the Iditarod Air Force or, nearer the end of the race, transported forward to Nome to rejoin their team.

What if something happens out on the trail? Another mandatory gear item is a sled capable of safely securing at least 2 dogs and continue traveling. A dog twists a wrist on a stump, you secure him in the sled bag, mush to the next checkpoint, and return the dog home from there.  Then you mush on with your remaining dogs. Each musher must arrive at the finish with a minimum of 5 dogs in harness.

Mushers have a lot of gear in their sleds, but it's more for the dogs than themselves. Food (kibble and a raw protein source), dog snacks. Dog jackets, booties, shoulder coats, leg wraps. Paw ointments. Dog-sized fleece blankets. Bowls, a ladle. A big cooker and HEET to boil water for the dogs' stew. If a campout is expected along the trail between checkpoints, at least a half bale of straw is strapped to the top of the sled, used to make dog bed nests along the trail.

And so they mush along, checkpoint to checkpoint, all 975 miles until they reach Nome.  It's a pretty amazing journey to make with some of your best furry friends.

This year, Anna left the start with 14 dogs and 11 of those dogs arrived with her in Nome: Astro, Bolt, Chaos, Drax, Yondu, Forrest, Diego, Barb, Rizo, Dane, and Platinum. Anna had nothing but amazing things to say about each dog on her team, but throughout it all, little Rizo was an absolute champ. A true leader of the pack through anything they encountered. But after a breath, Anna was quick to rattle off other dogs that happily led the team - Yondu paired with Rizo. Drax, Kevin, Bolt, Platinum. I know they all stood out in their own way along the trail.

What of the three dogs she returned home early? White Sauce had a sore wrist, Randy's movement wasn't as smooth as usual, leading Anna to believe he had a sore shoulder. Kevin had a mild cough. No labored breathing, no fever. But you don't run hundreds of miles with a nagging cough. Sorry, Kev.

And Kristy? It was a bit tougher with her team health-wise this year. Hold the line, though, cuz six amazing canine athletes led her sled into Nome ~ Moocha, Brezerker, Shadow, Bogus, Mayhem, and Rampage. Wallace was 22 miles away from making it on that list when Kristy, in good conscience, chose to leave him with vets in the last checkpoint of Safety. He's a strong fellow, but he was just getting a bit too banged up by the winds in the last stretches. Kristy said that when Wallace arrived in Nome via snow machine a bit behind them, he was completely full of beans and so happy to be with his pack again.

Over the course of the race, Kristy did return eight members of her team.  Early on, several of Kristy’s dogs got hit with some sort of stomach bug. It happens in a kennel, it happens in a classroom. (Um - Covid? Right. Anyway ~ ). Havoc, Ruckus, and Bulliet had a bit of a stomach bug, Saison had a variation with a little more temperature fluctuation. You sure as heck don't ask your best friends to go for a super long run when they're not feeling well!  Another dog, Sherman, showed signs of a sore shoulder, and Crocket had a prior injury come back to haunt him. Finally Bootleg, in a silly twist of fate, was doing great when Kristy opted to give her a brief ride in the sled basket going into a checkpoint, and Bootleg caught her leg in a little pocket within the sled bag. Not a major injury, but enough of an ouch to not immediately run a few hundred miles. She was not keen on being left by her team in the checkpoint!

Of the six that made it all the way to Nome with Kristy, she had a ton to say about Mayhem. This girl did finish the 2021 race with Kristy, but remember - that was the loop. This was her first time going to Nome and facing the coast. And in all that wind this year? She really did amazing. Steady, focused. Moocha also did a great job in lead.

Most importantly, all 28 dogs who left the start were back to the kennel either within days of leaving the trail or the finish. They're all back in their familiar dog houses with their friends, healthy and happy. The few that were on loan will return to their home kennels. And all of these dogs will get some recovery time and be raring to hit the trails once again.

Seeing Double isn't just Kristy, or Anna, or the dogs that made it all the way to Nome during the Iditarod.  It's one big family, every dog, every day of the year.  Nothing illustrates that better than all the pictures the twins sent me over the last few months.  Here's a sample.  

The first third of the Iditarod trail almost always claims a few teams early in this race.  And while that section of this year's trail wasn't easy by any stretch, it wasn't until Nikolai - race mile 263 - that the first musher scratched.  Even by the time we hit Unalakleet - race mile 714 - the scratch tally had only reached 6.  That's just 12% of the field and well below the average.  Funny thing about the law of averages, though.  They're considered laws for a reason.  

Six additional mushers ultimately scratched in White Mountain, nearly 900 miles into the event, bringing this year's scratch tally to twelve.  That's 24.5% of the original field, above both recent and historical averages of 20-22%.  I reported on three of those six teams in my prior post.  The more recent three included Jeff Deeter, his spouse and Iditarod rookie KattiJo Deeter, and rookie from France Sebastian Dos Santos Borges.  Although none of these mushers were injured, they did require search and rescue assistance to get off the ice between White Mountain and Nome.  The mushers and their dogs were all collected safely and certainly have a whopper of a tail to tell from their time on the Iditarod trail.

After that chaos out on the ice, I believe the storms and winds subsided somewhat, granting better passage for our final five teams over the day on Saturday March 19th.  This year's Red Lantern, or final finisher in the race, was Apayaug Reitan of Kaktovik, Alaska.  This is her second Iditarod finish, having seen the burled arch before in 2019.  This year, she finished in 13 days, 8 hours, 39:13 minutes.  She had the privilege of extinguishing the widow's lantern under the burled arch, symbolizing that all mushers were safely off the trail.  

After all, don't you leave a light on until the last of your household is home?

And there you have it.  The 50th running of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race had 49 off the line, 37 finishers, over 975 race miles, in less than 14 days.  Of those 37 finishers, 7 were rookies.  And you know what that means?  They just joined a very elite echelon.  Not only of mushers, but humanity overall.  By my tally, there are now only 825 separate individuals in history that can claim to have successfully completed the Iditarod.  Ever.  

Anna and Kristy are two of those 825.  And while there are many mushers over the years that completed the race more than once, these two have now done so a combined total of 22 times.  Certainly the only sisters, the only identical twins, that can say that.  

You're probably ready for me to drop the mic and wrap up this year's blog, but I'm not done quite yet!  The twins and the other finishers are at the banquet in Nome this Sunday evening, and the twins won't be settled back into the kennel in Knik until very very late.  Their dogs are all confirmed home safe at the kennel, but until the twins join them, why not wax poetic for a couple more posts before I sign off.

Coming up in the next day or two:  a recap of my two hour conversation with Kristy and Anna; and a thorough recap on the dogs - how amazing they were out there this year, who finished, and who returned home early and why.  

Hope you all had a good weekend and I'll be back!

Since my last post on Thursday, we had four additional teams arrive in Nome:  Deke Naaktgeboren, Matthew Failor, rookie Matt Paveglio, and Karen Hendrickson.  This brings out finishers count to 32 so far in the 50th Iditarod.  

We also had an increase in our scratched tally, thanks in large part to Mother Nature.  Alaskan winters are always unpredictable, but the approach of spring often increases weather's variability.  And severity.  Especially along the Norton Bay coast and Bering Sea.  Ground storms with wind gusts of 30 - 35 miles per hour were reported, likely making the final miles of the Iditarod trail to Nome even more arduous than what the twins and earlier finishers experienced.  And we've seen how nasty that looked.  

We know each musher carries a GPS tracking device.  That is great for us fans following the race virtually.  But it is also a key safety feature.  If a musher has an emergency out there, there are special alert and SOS buttons he or she can activate to have help sent.  Hitting one of those buttons automatically ends a musher's race, but out on the Iditarod trail - you do what you have to do.  If keeping yourself and/or your dogs in one piece means hitting the button, you hit the button!

That's just what Gerhardt Thiart, an Iditarod rookie currently from Michigan, did after he injured his leg after leaving White Mountain.  Rookie Bridgett Watkins of Alaska used a satellite phone to call family that was awaiting her arrival in Nome when she was also injured, and a rescue team was promptly deployed.  Alaska rookie Sean Williams also scratched after leaving White Mountain after facing the same winds and hard trail.  According to an article on ADN.com, veterinarians were deployed as part of the search and rescue teams to access the dogs and help transport them first to White Mountain and ultimately Nome.  As far as I've read, all of the dogs are ok and the mushers who were injured are receiving treatment.

With the addition of these three rookies, our scratch tally is at 9.   

Which means, after 12 days and nearly 18 hours on the trail, we have 8 mushers still making their way to Nome.  Two veterans, two rookies.  Four are reported out of White Mountain, four remain in that checkpoint.  I hope they know we're all still cheering them on and hope they stay safe out there.  

The twins are still in Nome, meeting with some fans and continuing to recharge their batteries after this long event.  They have continued to care for their dogs, who will be secured in their individual sky carriers and flown back to the kennel in Knik later Saturday.  Kristy and Anna will wrap up their time in Nome after the finishers banquet on Sunday.

I have played a bit of phone and text tag with them and hope to connect more before the weekend is out.  I will also be back with more updates as our final teams complete their time on the Iditarod trail.

Oh - before I go:  if you consider yourself a Seeing Double super fan, did you notice you can get Seeing Double merch?  I recently added two new products ~ a cozy fleece neck gaiter and a zip hoodie that celebrates the twins' bond between themselves and their dogs, Seeing Double, Running As One.  Check under the Merch heading or click the Go Shopping! button in the sidebar.  Mad Blogger does all the work, the twins and their dogs receive all the proceeds!  
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St. Patty's day has advanced into mid-evening in Alaska as of this post. 28 of the starting line 49 are into Nome. Our scratched list stands at 6, leaving a hearty 15 teams mushing to Nome. They've been on the historic Iditarod trail for over 11 days.

There are a lot of mushing greats amongst our current 28 finishers, but there's a few in particular I have yet to mention... Mille Porsild, the first woman into Nome this year in 14th, after a 5th place finish in 2021 and a rookie of the year 15th place finish in 2020. Speaking of Rookie of the Year, our first rookie to cross the finish line this year was Hanna Lyrek, claiming 19th place. Although this is her first Iditarod, she's no stranger to mushing and her experience showed this year. Three other rookies in addition to Hanna are into Nome right now. And at the other end of the spectrum? Jeff King. Now this guy? First Iditarod appearance in 1981. Took a decade off. No big deal. Since his return in 1991? 20 top 10 finishes, 4 of which were championships. Today? He's a grandfather of four and just finished his 30th Iditarod. With a dog team he first drove days before the race. I mean, that's just... it's just...

While I struggle to find an adequate way to end the prior paragraph, let's return to the trail. 15 mushers still out there. Four are out of Safety as of this post, and should be in to Nome before long. Two mushers are in White Mountain, taking their final 8 hour rest and then will head out on the final 77 miles. Five mushers, all rookies who have been traveling a good portion of this race together (which I think is a fantastic show of solidarity myself), were out of Elim (race mile 852) over the afternoon Thursday. Finally, we have four mushers in Koyuk - race mile 804 with 171 miles left to go. Half rookies, half Iditarod vets. One of these will almost certainly be our Red Lantern and final musher into Nome.

I've gotten a few communiques from the twins and hopefully will have a longer chat with them in the next day or two. In the meantime, and particularly if you don't follow Seeing Double on Instagram (where I posted these earlier Thursday), enjoy a couple videos. The first is footage Anna got of the insane winds as they left White Mountain and mushed to Nome. Be sure your sound is turned up, as that definitely takes it up a notch.

The second video is something Anna and Kristy crafted themselves earlier this year. They needed something to present to a sponsor. And then they heard about some fans at a retirement community in Oklahoma City and crafted it into a special hello for the residents. I think it is really well done and gives viewers a lot of insight on what happens before the Iditarod happens. Ya know - this crazy thing Kristy and Anna call life. They work a lot, these girls.

More Friday and/or over the weekend.
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Happy St. Patrick's Day, Seeing Double Fans!  And what a great way to start the day ~ celebrating Seeing Double's arrival in Nome!

After a wildly windy and icy ride, Anna pulled under the burled arch at 11:44pm Wednesday March 16th in 23rd place after 10 days, 8 hours, 44:26 minutes out on the Iditarod trail.  She had eleven amazing canine athletes in front of her sled:  Astro, Bolt, Chaos, Drax, Yondu, Forrest, Diego, Barb, Rizo, Dane, and Platinum.  This was Anna's 10th time successfully finishing the Iditarod and her second fastest time doing so (excluding the shortened Gold Trail Loop from last year).

Kristy, of course, was only about 30 seconds behind her, coming in spot on 11:45pm in 24th place.  She had six dogs in front of her sled:  Moocha, Berzerker, Shadow, Bogus, Mayhem, and Rampage.  Wallace also almost made it all the way, but Kristy opted to leave him with handlers in Safety as he was really getting banged around by the winds on this final stretch and seemed to be getting a little sore.  He'll get a ride to the finish by race officials and will be joining his team very soon.  Kristy sounded a little sore, too, as she had to pedal her butt off on the back of the sled to both combat the wind and help her smaller dog team keep up with Anna.  This marks Kristy's 12th successful finish of the Iditarod and is also her second fastest time covering one of the traditional race routes.

Congratulations, Anna, Kristy, and all your dogs!  On behalf of all your family, friends, and fans - we're all so very, very proud of you.

With 24 teams into the finish and one additional scratch in this year's race bringing that total to 6, we still have 19 teams racing to Nome.  It is my tradition to keep the blog open until the Red Lantern also reaches the finish, so I'll be back with more updates.  After the twins tend to their dogs and get a well earned nap and hot meal, hopefully I'll hear from them as well and will have lots of juicy details to share.

Check back later!  The 50th Iditarod isn't over yet.

It's been a very exciting couple of days since my last post, race fans, and I'm terribly sorry for leaving you to your own devices!  But as far as I could tell, nearly every major news outlet had some sort of update on the "last great race" out there, so I know there was plenty to see and read without my lengthy ramblings.

But nothing focuses on your favorite mushers quite like this Mad Blogger, so let's get back up to speed.

First things first, a huge congratulations to Brent Sass and the amazing eleven dogs that guided his sled into Nome early Tuesday morning to win the 50th running of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.  Brent is a very accomplished musher, but this is his first time winning Iditarod.  He did so this year after 8 days, 14 hours, 38:43 minutes out on the trail.  Although not quite enough to top the fastest finish in history, it was a very impressive time in its own right.

Second things second, we had Dallas Seavey running with 7 dogs under the burled arch at the finish only a little more than an hour behind Brent.  While I know Dallas had his eye on his 6th championship and the claim of being the winningest Iditarod musher in its history, he has every right to be proud of himself and his dogs for a most respectable 2nd place finish.  Plus, only Brent and Dallas finished the race this year with an 8-day handle.

The remainder of our top 8 mushers trickled into Nome over the course of the day Tuesday.  Ryan Redington, grandson of the race's founder, was the first to arrive just after midnight early Wednesday morning claiming 9th place.  Aaron Peck rounded out our top 10 this year with prior champion Joar Leifseth Ulsom arriving in 11th place before 8am Wednesday morning.

There are still only 5 scratches from the race this year, leaving us 33 mushers still making their way to Nome.

Key amongst them, of course, are Anna and Kristy.  We last left them resting in Unalakleet (race mile 714) Monday morning.  They rested in checkpoint for about five and a half hours before setting off again around 10:30am Monday.  Kristy ended up returning two more dogs from Una, leaving 7 dogs in front of her sled.  Anna pulled out with her remaining 11 dogs.  

You might have expected Anna to pull away from her twin given the 4 dog differential in their teams.  And I know Kristy would not have held her back from doing so.  But that's just not really how these two operate.  For as strong as they are individually, they're even stronger together.  Yes, they're individual competitors in this event, caring for their own dedicated dog teams and mushing their own sleds.  But never underestimate the power of emotional support, of simply being together with your best friend and sister out there on the trail.  Nothing prevents one from giving the other an encouraging hug, or an opinion on a dog or the race plan.  No rules were violated when Kristy hung back at mile 50 so Anna could rig up a fix for her broken runner, nor when Anna led the way hundreds of miles later across the sea ice first so Kristy's team could benefit from a little drag.  Race commentators often lament that the twins should focus on putting together one A-team and really go for the gold... but I don't necessarily agree.  The fact that they go out there and do this together year after year after year, with excellent dog care and smiles on their faces, is what truly makes them winners.

The twins spent 5 hours 45 minutes mushing the 40 miles to Shaktoolik, arriving Monday afternoon.  It was a long, windy, icy, difficult slog up this first section of Norton Bay coastline.  When the twins got into Shak (race mile 754), I think they were both getting a little down.  It was a while since their 24, the trail was ugly, the hope of a top 20 finish becoming far more elusive.  I think you can imagine how all of that can take a toll.  So, they did what I consider a smart thing - they took a good long 9 hour rest.  And I think that did the trick!  They hit the trail again at 1:15am Tuesday morning bound for Koyuk.

​They arrived in Koyuk a little after 7am on Tuesday and rested in checkpoint for less than 6 hours before pulling their snow hooks before 1pm.  The next five and a half hours were spent on the 48 miles to Elim (race mile 852), where they arrived a little before 6:30pm Tuesday evening.  Once again, they spent less than 6 hours resting before moving on.  It was 10 minutes after midnight Wednesday morning when they called to their dogs, "Ready, All Right" and moved off into the dark and cold.

Six hours later, just after 6am Wednesday morning, Seeing Double arrived in White Mountain, race mile 953, and the last planned stop of any substance before they finish.  They arrived in 23rd (Kristy) and 24th (Anna) place.  

And now esteemed Seeing Double fans, it's prediction time.  When do you need to be in front of the Iditarod live feed to witness Anna and Kristy finish?!

They will spend their required 8 hours in White Mountain, but hopefully not a minute more.  So they should hit the trail again at 2:08pm Alaska time Wednesday afternoon.  I think they'll need 6 1/2 hours to mush the 55 miles to Safety, only a couple minutes there to grab their race bibs and maybe extra dog snacks, and then I'll say another 3 - 3 1/2 hours to cover the final 22 miles to Nome.  Well folks, looks like many of us will be setting alarms for the middle of the night.  I think we'll be Seeing Double at the finish on either side of midnight Wednesday into Thursday.

Hey - Don't Blame the Mad Blogger!  I'll just be glad to see them finish.  Won't you?!
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Stop and think about all the things you've done in the last seven, nearly eight, days.  The meals you ate, hours you slept, showers you took.  I suspect lots of you did some laundry, drove a car, watched something on tv.  When you think back on it, your list of activities was probably very long, and very diverse.

The mushers making their way to Nome, however, have done one thing and one thing only in all that time.  They have mushed.  I will grant you, that primary task has its own list of subheadings.  But in the end, it all boils down to:  care for dogs, care for self, move forward.  Rinse and repeat.  No matter what you face - challenging terrain, gusting winds, broken gear - you deal with it in the context of those three main things.

After seven days and about eighteen hours of single-minded focus, it's pretty mindboggling what these women, men, and their dogs accomplish.  Brent Sass and his dogs were already out of Elim by around 5:15am Monday morning.  That's race mile 852!!  When I last looked at the GPS, he and his 12-dog team were around mile 880 and closing in on White Mountain.  He's got a 20 mile lead on Dallas Seavey, who was out of Elim running a 10-dog team a little more than 2 hours after Brent.  All mushers have to take one final 8 hour mandatory rest in White Mountain before mushing the final 77 miles to Nome and the finish.  Given all of that, I feel it is Brent's race to lose at this point.  But this is the Iditarod, so anything can happen.

The next twelve teams were all reported out of Shaktoolik before 8:30am with another four teams out of Unalakleet and on the way to Shak.  We had one further scratch from the race, Iditarod veteran Joshua McNeal of Fairbanks.  He scratched in Galena with 10 dogs in harness and we wish he and his team safe and swift travels home.  The Red Lantern is out of Ruby, and we have a total of 44 teams still active in the race.

Kristy and Anna arrived in Unalakleet (race mile 714) ranked in 20th (Anna) and 21st (Kristy) just before 5am Monday.  They had arrived in Kaltag mid-day Sunday, stopped for only 18 minutes, and were off again.  They did end up camping along the way at Tripod Shelter Cabin, sticking to their race plan.  In all, it took a little over 17 hours to mush the 85 miles from the prior checkpoint.  

I suspect the twins and their dogs will rest in Una for 5-6 hours over the remainder of Monday morning before heading out on the 40 miles to Shaktoolik.  Aside from brief trailside stops, Seeing Double will likely only rest within checkpoints over the remainder of the race.

Forever thoughtful despite their exhaustion, I did get a couple texts from both Anna and Kristy after they cared for their dogs after arriving in Una but before settling down for a couple hours sleep themselves.  Sounds like they had a really good rest at Tripod cabin along the way and the dogs were just amazing on the trail coming into Una which was plagued by tons of ice.  That's about all I received for commentary, but then again, the pictures they sent kinda speak for themselves.
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It's not even 10am yet in Alaska Sunday morning (adjusted for Daylight Saving Time) and the twins are only about 20 miles or so outside of Kaltag (race mile 629).  When they reach this point, they'll have 346 miles to mush before they reach Nome.

They arrived in Galena Saturday afternoon around 12:40pm and rested in checkpoint for 5 hours 20 minutes.  Anna opted to return one dog here while Kristy retained her current team, giving the former 11 dogs on the line and the latter 10.  They hit the trail out of Galena around 6pm Saturday evening and spent about 6 hours mushing the 37 or so miles to Nulato (race mile 582), arriving just after midnight Sunday morning.  

The twins rested with their dogs in the checkpoint of Nulato for about 6 hours.  Kristy returned one dog leaving 9 in harness in front of her sled.  Anna retained all 11 of her dogs.  They were all on the trail again Sunday morning around 7:20am.  As of this post a couple hours later, GPS has them at mile 610 and traveling at 9.3 miles per hour.

If Anna and Kristy stick to their race plan at this point, their stop in Kaltag should be fairly brief and primarily to resupply.  Look to see them hit the trail again only to stop about a third of the way between Kaltag and Unalakleet at the Tripod Shelter Cabin, a winter shelter cabin managed by the Bureau of Land Management and a popular trailside stop on this stretch.

I did get a couple texts from the twins since Race Update 5.  Kristy sent me photos of her team camping in Ruby and then heading out onto the Yukon River while leaving that checkpoint.  You can just make out a speck that is Anna and her team further down the trail, and that's likely when she was on the phone with me!  Kristy also sent an adorable pic of her and "Zerker" in Galena.  Berzerker is part of the B-Squad litter running with 3 siblings on Kristy's team this year.  Anna didn't send any pictures, but she did let me know it was Randy she returned home from Galena, and Bootleg Kristy returned from Nulato (so I guess Berzerker is now running with two siblings).  They were getting ready to leave Nulato at the time.  Anna also said it was windy, and warned I wouldn't hear from them again for a while as reception tapered off.

There is a special weather statement issued for the portion of trail most mushers are currently traveling, with wind being the primary culprit.  Sunday's temps should range from +18F during the daytime highs and down to minus 9F overnight, but winds may take the "feels like" temp including wind chills down to 30 below.

We still have a total of 45 mushers out on the trail with no additional scratches from the race.  Brent Sass is flying and reached Shaktoolik (race mile 754) in first place a bit after 9am Sunday morning.  He didn't stay more than 8 minutes before hitting the trail again with 12 dogs in front of his sled.  Dallas Seavey was last reported out of Unalakleet a bit behind him with 10 dogs, with the rest of the top 18 teams all on the trail out of Kaltag.  Kristy and Anna are holding their positions in the standings in the low 20s, and I'm cautiously optimistic we'll see them start to make a push after Kaltag to pass a couple teams.  The back of the pack is out of Cripple and near mile 450, giving us a spread of around 300 miles between our leader and our red lantern.

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Uh-huh.  It's got you, doesn't it?  A little bit of the mushing bug.  A wee bit of Iditarod fever.  I know, I get it.  This is my 11th year writing this blog.  My 38th year knowing Kristy and Anna - esteemed older sister I am.  To know them is to love them.  

If you're ready to get your Twin Binge on the rest of the weekend, here are a few suggestions.  

Smithsonian Magazine:  A thoroughly informative article on the Iditarod and it's history.  Be sure to catch a feature picture of Anna and her team at the restart of the 2020 Iditarod and the video at the end.

HumansOutside:  Whether you want to listen to the podcast or read the transcript, here's a great way to get to know the twins better and immerse yourself in their world.  An excellent interview covering a wide range of topics.  

Man, Woman, Dog:  It was a privilege for Kristy, Anna, and their dogs to be featured in a National Geographic Wild series focused on several humans' current connection with dogs and the deep human-dog bond that has existed for centuries.  The twins feature in episodes 2, 4, and 7, but I strongly suggest watching the series in its entirety.  You can watch a preview on YouTube.  If you are a National Geographic subscriber or have a television package that includes NatGeo, find your creds and check this out.  You can also stream all 8 episodes if you subscribe to a service with Disney+.

Still not enough?  Hit the Seeing Double archives.  There are links to several videos and article features with the twins that should more than satisfy your appetite.