Iditarod 2019 begins TODAY!!!

Here we go again!!!  Happy IditaDay!!!  Its been a week of Iditarod preparations....here in the Adirondacks we held our annual IditaLunch at work and I suspect there will be a stack of Top 10 picks on my desk when I get in on Monday.  I figure there is about 20 Teams that have a good possibility to land in the top 10 this year.....so many caliber Teams to choose from! I of course am a little biased and will be rooting for Aliy....this will be her 19th Iditarod and she is Bib 19....Chemo and Outlaw will be watching their former Team mates from the comfort of the couch this year......go Aliy! 

If I were to put in my 2 cents, I think the weather could play a big part in this years race.  When I look at the 7 day forecast for the Trail, it actually looks like Adirondack weather.....maybe even a little warmer??  Dogs like to run in temps below 0, so I would think Teams will want to set up a run/rest schedule where they are resting in the heat of the day, and moving at night.  Mitch is up to his dog carrying tricks again with a sled that can house 2 dogs in it.  I was really hoping Mitch would ditch the gimmicks and just mush, but apparently not.  Will Jesse Holmes be able to follow up his Rookie run last year with another stellar performance?  Can Joar make it 2 in a row....and of course can Nic Petit stay on the right trail this time???  We will just have to watch how it all unfolds....but my biggest question and concern is Mother Nature.  She had been blowing a lot of storms into the coast....and dumping a lot of snow on the interior.....just like here in the Dacks!  I think she is the wild card for 2019.  I think Teams with several veteran Iditarod dogs will be a key asset if trails are blown in or visibility gets difficult....they can feel the trail, find it, and most importantly stay on it.  In 2014 Aliy's fantastic leader Quito found the checkpoint of Safety in a severe ground blizzard.....its that kind of dog you want on your Team when Mother Nature throws down. 

A few rule changes this year...the big one is 14 dogs maximum instead of 16.  I like that change.  Now if they would just get rid of that rule about allowing multiple sleds (I think up to 3) to be used that would definately level the playing field a bit. If you have enough money you can fly a lighter sled to the coast, and stash another one after the Alaska Range....that rule seems to favor the big kennels for sure.  I like the Yukon Quest rule of one sled and 14 dogs.  At least the Iditarod has it half right!

So starting tonight....check into IditaDacks early and often, as I will be blogging my way through the race, getting up at all hours of the night to check the Tracker and reporting what I see and hear along the way! 

Lets get this race started....6 pm Adirondack time!