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Sorry, tied up at work today, so cannot do much with the updates during the day. But we did have our first team dropping out. Rookie Jaye Foucher scratched today at Rainy Pass. From the Iditarod website:
"Rookie Iditarod musher Jaye Foucher (bib #28) of Wentworth, New Hampshire, scratched at 6:30 a.m. today at the Rainy Pass checkpoint due to personal reasons. Foucher's team remains healthy and doing well. After traveling through an extended wind storm, she made the decision not to continue further along the trail.
Foucher had 15 dogs in harness at the time she made the decision, all in good health."
Thanks for the pep talk!
The older i get the truer this is
Return to the District
Tim Settle signed with the Commies.
I will admit to be shocked Jaden got it done. Early in the year you could watch his gas tank hit empty at the start of the 3rd. He definitely was more complete the last month.
if anyone knows how to chip in, it's Tiger
I have faith that the Giants will be able to waste his talent.
HOKIES!
HOKIES
LET'S GO...
LET'S GO...
Kudos to coach Haught for getting the upper weights peaking at the right time. Lots of complaints, some justified, early in the year about development but Tech has gotten the most out of Jaden Bullock, and Sonny Sasso looks night and day from a month ago. Coach Robie said they were working on getting Sasso moving his feet a bit more and not getting stuck in the hand fight as much. He was very active at ACCs and it paid huge dividends. Really opened up his attacks with better angles and made it much more difficult for opponents to get a clean shot to score. Not sure if Desiante works with Haught but he's wrestling his best in a Hokies singlet right now too.
I'll also note that while nobody is mistaking them for JYD, I think Sergio and Jaden have certainly improved their gas tanks over the season.
Dammit. Tremaine Edmunds is dead to me now.
I have followed your TOP NOTCH updates and analysis long enough to know not to get excited about this, but it would be nice for Paige to score some of the first to checkpoint awards this year.
If we can't sponsor a dog this year, do you know how we can buy Paige a pizza?
got a bigger contract than the Bears gave Devin Bush, who was considered a top LB free agent
23.7 million guaranteed is nothing to sneeze at either.
Big BLUE! #LetsGoHokies
1. Paige Drobny
Tuesday morning, March 10 at about 6 AM east coast/2 AM Alaska.
The first 16 teams are all on the long, 75-80 mile, stretch from Rohn to the native village of Nikoli. Mille Porsild pulled out in first with 16 dogs at 8:45 PM Alaska/12:45 AM east coast and was followed shortly by Paige at 8:52 PM Alaska/12:52 AM east coast. Mille looks like her team went straight through from Rainy Pass to Rohn, while Paige rested her team along the route. Mille is now resting her team, which allowed Paige to take over the lead. Standings are:
1. Paige Drobny running 15 dogs 225 miles in/750 to Nome
2. Jessie Holmes running 16 dogs 219 miles in/756 to Nome
3. Matt Hall running 16 dogs 219 miles in/756 to Nome
4. Riley Dyche running 16 dogs, 215 miles in/760 to Nome
5. Travis Beals resting on the trail with 15 dogs, 210 miles in/765 to Nome
6. Ron Buser resting on the trail with 16 dogs, 210 miles in/765 to Nome
7. Ryan Redington resting on the trail with 16 dogs, 209 miles in/766 to Nome
8. Michelle Phillips resting on the trail with 14 dogs, 209 miles in/766 to Nome
9. Jessie Royer running 16 dogs 208 miles in/767 to Nome
10. Mille Porsild resting on the trail with 16 dogs, 208 miles in/767 to Nome
All of the teams will need to take a significant break along the trail to Nikoli given the length. Typical breaks are ~4 hours, but some do shorter on the trail. Over the next day or 2, teams will start declaring their mandatory 24-hour layover, though the leaders will normally push on further than the back-of-the-pack teams. There is also a mandatory 8-hour layover that must occur at one of the Yukon River checkpoints and a second 8-hour layover at White Mountain before the final push to Nome.
The Red Lantern position is rookie Jaye Foucher resting with 15 dogs at Rainy Pass checkpoint, 153 miles in/822 to Nome
Was a write up on the Iditarod site for Insiders discussing some of the early strong teams.
Past winner Ryan Redington feels he has a dream team of dogs from his kennel as well as kennels of some relatives, but did not want to say too much.
Defending champion Jessie Holmes says he absolutely wants to repeat this year. Actually said he wanted to repeat both his wins in the Copper Basin 300 and Iditarod. Did win the Copper Basin this season, so halfway there.
Past winner Pete Kaiser is coming off a win in the Kusko 300. Says he is planning to lay back and not make an aggressive push until well into the race. Noted that there are several people with a chance to win, but feels Jessie Holmes is the favorite.
Paige Drobny is 100% being herself. Says she has a plan and intends to follow it: running the race her dogs are capable of and what happens happens. Not going to push it, just be her/the team's best.
2 time runner-up and a former Yukon Quest winner Matt Hall is hungry for the top and feels he can challenge Jessie. Has a very experienced team that is used to the bitter cold this winter has provide in the Alaska interior and should be well adapted.
Monday night, March 9 just before 11 PM east coast/7 PM Alaska.
Jessie Holmes has just pulled into Rohn checkpoint a little bit before 5 PM local time/9 PM east coast and has been resting the team there since. 11 other teams have crested Rainy Pass and are on the trail down to Rohn. Top 10 looks like this:
1. Jessie Holmes resting with 16 dogs in Rohn, 188 miles in/787 to Nome
2. Bailey Vitello running with 16 dogs 179 miles in/796 to Nome
3. Riley Dyche resting on the trail with 16 dogs, 170 miles in/805 to Nome
4. Millie Porsild running with 16 dogs 170 miles in/805 to Nome
5. Paige Drobny running 15 dogs 170 miles in/805 to Nome
6. Ryan Redington running 16 dogs 167 miles in/808 to Nome
7. Matt Hall resting on the trail with 16 dogs 166 miles in/809 to Nome
8. Lauro Eklund resting on the trail with 16 dogs 166 miles in/809 to Nome
9. Michelle Phillips running 15 dogs 164 miles in/811 to Nome
10. Travis Beals running 16 dogs 163 miles in/812 to Nome
The Red Lantern position is Grayson Bruton resting with 16 dogs at Finger Lake checkpoint, 123 miles in/852 to Nome
I thought this was tomorrow.