Linwood Fiedler has scratched from this year’s race. He dropped out around 5:00 p.m. on Friday (3/9) from the Iditarod checkpoint. Race officials noted that Fiedler suffered from a severe case of frostbite on at least one ear. He and his 13 remaining dogs will be going home (and we assume he’ll be seeking medical attention for the frostbite).
Fiedler has finished the Iditarod an incredible 14 times since his first run in 1989. He finished all the way up in the #2 spot in 2001 and finished in 6th place in 2003.
Not much further ahead on the trail — up at Grayling — Martin Buser and Jeff King are neck-and-neck heading onto the 130-mile stretch of Yukon river racing, broken up only by the lonely checkpoint of Eagle Island. The short version:
- Buser left Grayling at 9:06 p.m. after a 2-minute stop. He had 13 dogs still on the team.
- King left Grayling at 10:32 p.m. after a 20-minute stop. He also had 13 dogs.
- Both teams have completed their 24-hour and 8-hour mandatory layovers. The only mandatory stop left is an 8-hour rest at White Mountain, a little over 400 miles ahead.
Be sure to check out the analysis on the Crow Village Iditarod Blog, specifically the notes about the recent Kuskokwim 300 race in Bethel, in which Buser and King had a similarly tight race. The difference this time is the extreme distance left between Grayling and Nome (almost 500 miles).
Oh, there’s also the 8 or 9 additional teams closely following the leaders, a veritable all-star roster of mushing talent. It wouldn’t take much for any of the top 10 racers to ride under the burled arch in Nome first. One bad batch of weather, a busted sled or a team that just plain burns out could change everything this weekend.
One wonders if King’s idea, as he follows Buser so closely, is to keep pushing and pushing Buser forward until Buser’s team peters out. Perhaps that special barn King’s been using with his dogs really will make a difference in the end.