Dash to Cripple by Myron Angstman

Myron's Analysis

Mitch Seavey’s dash from Takotna to Cripple is shaping up as a classic run. He should arrive in Cripple shortly, and will have a significant lead when he does. The trip has been close to non-stop, yet he has maintained speeds from 8.5 to over 9 mph the whole trip. Previous reports here have noted that John Baker has a slower moving team and succeeds only when the faster moving teams slow up. If Seavey doesn’t slow up, he will be tough to beat.

Seavey also managed to avoid the afternoon run which most champions prefer to do. He will arrive in Cripple in early afternoon, rest comfortably in the sun, and be off again in the late afternoon as the temperature cools. One other advantage of being near the front also works for him—reports from the trail say the snow conditions are dry, meaning the snow doesn’t pack well. The early teams over the trail after it is set by the trail breakers get a better surface than the later teams.

However, no one should concede the race to Mitch Seavey just yet because Nome is a long way down the trail, but today’s move clearly gives him an edge right now.

Myron Angstman, lawyer, pilot, and dog musher, lives in Bethel, Alaska. Read more about dogs, law suits and rural Alaska gossip by checking http://www.myronangstman.com/