Nanuq Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 I was at the Cordova Street Hill today watching the races and it was incredible. The athletes this year are lean, their feet are hard and they're running like the wind! GO DOGS GOOOOOOO!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSTEEL Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Brilliant, thanks for sharing. Brings back some fond memories of when I used to train Siberian Huskies Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cornerstone Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 So cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cc33 Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Amazing! N is that the ididarod or just a local race? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted February 25, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 CC33, this is actually the World Championships. People are here from all over with their teams. Next weekend is start of Iditarod, from downtown along the same course. Check out how fearless the dogs are... Cordova street is steep enough it's hard to walk up, and the dogs are full on RUNNING down it. The drivers all have big eyes and are trying to control their speed. The turn at the bottom is where lots of teams bite it. Look at the power at the starting line. Man, all you can do is try to hang on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSTEEL Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Cracking photos, and I can imagine the sheer fun they had doing that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asciwhite Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Lots & lots of happy dogs ♥ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cc33 Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Thanks for sharing, I can't believe how brave these guys are, risking their health for a race. Amazing. I saw a documentary about the ididarod, not many finished and those that did, were doing it on sheer willpower, I couldn't believe what it took. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted February 25, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 They don't call it The Last Great Race for no reason. 1,000 miles across some of the gnarliest terrain on the planet, mostly in the dark, through mind numbing cold. Racers lose fingers and toes to frostbite, they come in impaled or blinded by branches broken off trees beside the trail, they come in running on broken feet and ankles, and hanging on with one hand because the other arm is broken. And they have to be FORCED to scratch. And the best part is, they all recognize it's the dogs that are the true champions. In 2007 Lance Mackey's lead dog Larry did the impossible, winning the Yukon Quest and Iditarod back to back. At the finish line he posed with Lance and it was very emotional. They repeated the next year, and Larry retired in 2009. That in itself is a heck of a story: http://www.adn.com/2009/03/19/729908/mackeys-famed-lead-dog-retires.html Here's Lance at the finish line with Larry and Maple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted February 25, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Here's a topic I started way back when Larry retired. Good dog! http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/94289-larry-hangs-up-his-harness/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cc33 Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 I'm a big dog lover, I have 2, so I can relate to the bond but I can't possibly imagine just how strong it must be for them. Hats off to the dogs and their human leaders, I have so much respect for them. Thanks again for sharing. And yes, I saw all of that in the doc, injuries, frostbite, and so much more. It's absolutely amazing to see. The guy in the phot was the guy that won I think, he's a machine.. He would get up and head out on 2 hrs of sleep, the others couldn't keep up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted February 25, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 There was a musher years ago named Don Bowers who was never very fast, but he loved to document the race. He was killed in a small plane crash, and before his ISP could close his account, I downloaded and saved his life's work. The Iditarod and Serum Run portions are hosted on my server and it's amazing the number of hits they get. So take a read, this is as close to the real thing as you'll get. http://www.nanuq-alaska.net/donbowers/index.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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