Old Man Time

I can't believe this....2 days after I made a list of "Young Mushers" versus "Experienced Mushers" (over 50 years of age) to help me organize my top 10, Jeff King announces at age 54 that this will be his last Iditarod!!!!! And Mitch Seavey too admits "old man time" is knocking at the door!!! Wow...I can't imagine an Iditarod without these folks running, but the Iditarod takes so much energy out of a musher....the "young ones" jump off the sled numerous times a day to run behind their sled up a mountanside or glacier....they don't hesitate to go out onto the sea ice in a storm (like last year)....they have no fear....or experience has not put the fear in them...BUT this makes them more competitive....because in this race, nothing seems to go off without a hitch....weather and trail conditions being 2 of the wild cards. Youth IS a factor....King (54), Seavey (49), Jonrowe(56), Buser (52), Swenson (59), Gebhardt (53)...I have been following these mushers for 10 years.....they are always competitive....but now you got mushers in the 30' and 40's like Neff, Steer, Anderson, Schnuelle, Barron, Royer, Dallas Seavey and a handfull of others consistently showing up in the top ten. Mackey is 39, and this year is going for his 4th Iditarod win IN A ROW!!! The winds are changing, things are shifting....and now many "older" mushers are wondering...how do you out run youth?
As King said, and I quote "I have seen mushers that look like they should have stayed home...and I don't want to be one of them".