And Some More…
Jan 31st 2008
wolfmoonsleddog
Southeast
Location: Northwest GA
Time - 5:21pm
Temperature: 45 degrees F
Conditions: Cloudy, light rain
Forecast: Thunderstorms and wind tonight, partly cloudy tomorrow. Lows in the 40s
I know it seems like I have done nothing but post articles lately but there are a lot of them out there that I want to post and I am swamped (my favorite word right now) with other things regarding my trips to Wyoming and Alaska.
Oh, I did (finally) get the Winterfest pictures up on Flickr. Check out http://www.flickr.com/photos/gamusher/2220785025/Â The other photos can be viewed by scrolling to the right on my photostream.
I had a minor wreck with my scooter this morning. Calypso was running along and suddenly (I have no earthly clue why this was, there wasn’t a KFC bag in sight) she dodged to the other side of the trail. The tugline went slack for just a moment but in that moment the front wheel of the scooter rolled over it. Calypso continued towards the other side of the trail - pulling on the tire that was on the gangline. And that pulled the scooter over and the skateboard deck whacked the back of my leg. OUCH! Fortunately I don’t think it’s very bad but I’m going to have a glorious bruise.
 But here is the news piece I mentioned. This one is on Tennessee musher, Rodney Whaley. The article below is from our good friends at the Bristol Herald Courier, who have run some really great sled dog articles in the past few weeks.
From: http://www.tricities.com/tristate/tri/search.apx.-content-articles-TRI-2008-01-30-0018.html
Tennessee Guardsman will compete in Alaska Iditarod
Wednesday, Jan 30, 2008 - 11:29 AM
Rodney Whaley, first Tennessean every to compete in the Iditarod, makes a practice run with his team of sled dogs
BY Special to TriCities.com Staff Reports - Tennessee Army and Air National Guard
Tennessee Army and Air National Guard
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NASHVILLE — A Master Sergeant in the Tennessee Army National Guard will become the first Tennessean in history to compete in Alaska’s 2008 Iditarod, billed as “The World’s Last Great Race.”
Rodney Whaley, a veteran of 24 years in the Guard, is one of only 102 people in the world to qualify for the 1,159-mile race. Of that number, 52 are from Alaska, 14 from other states and 16 from foreign countries.
The 56-year-old National Guardsman from Franklin, Tennessee, will run 16 sled dogs in the event which starts Saturday, March 1, in Anchorage, Alaska. The mushers will be on the trail from 10-17 days, accompanied only by their dogs as they battle the fierce elements along the dangerous route.
The Iditarod is considered by many to be the most grueling and demanding individual sporting event in the world today.
The two-week race will take the Tennessean over frozen rivers, jagged mountain ranges, dense forests, desolate tundra and miles of windswept coast. Added to that are temperatures far below zero, winds that can cause a complete loss of visibility, long hours of darkness and treacherous climbs on side hills.
Master Sgt. Whaley, who lived his childhood in Alaska, is being sponsored by the Army National Guard. As a boy, he raced in junior sled dog competitions but has always remained passionate about the sport. In recent years, he has raced in British Columbia, Canada, Washington state and northern Michigan.
“The Iditarod is the ultimate experience and my life-long dream,” Whaley said. “Now, utilizing what I’ve learned in the Guard and with their sponsorship, it’s a reality.”
To qualify for the Iditarod, Whaley was required to successfully complete two sanctioned races, one of 300 miles and the other of 200 miles. He began full-time training in October of last year in Michigan and Minnesota, but he’s been a familiar site in his Franklin neighborhood during the cold months as he ran his team using a “dogsled-on-wheels.”
The rules of the race lay out certain regulations by which each musher must abide. There are also certain pieces of required equipment: an arctic parka, an ax, a heavy sleeping bag, snowshoes, musher food, dog food and boots for each dog’s feet to protect against cutting ice and hard-packed snow injuries.
On the trail every musher has a different tactic. Each one has a special diet for feeding and snacking the dogs. Each one also has a different strategy. Some run in the daylight; some run at night. Each has a different training schedule geared to the dogs’ stamina and the musher’s own personal stamina.
The Iditarod Trail had its beginnings as a mail and supply route from coastal towns to the interior mining camps. Men and supplies went in; gold came out, all via dog sled. Heroes were made and legends were born.
In 1925, part of the Trail became a life-saving highway for epidemic-stricken Nome. Diphtheria threatened the populace and serum had to be rushed in, again by intrepid mushers and their faithful, hard-driving dogs. The Iditarod is a commemoration of those early years, a not-so-distant past of which the Alaskans are particularly proud.
Note: Continually updated information on Master Sgt. Whaley and the Iditarod may be found at:
http://tndogmusher.com
The article is in several other places also so keep on the lookout!
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