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John Baker moves to the Iditarod frontKotzebue's John Baker and Tok's Hugh Neff led the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race pack out of Grayling Friday evening onto the perpetually windblown Yukon River and once again fans were shaking their heads, wondering: "Where did these guys come from? Where are the leaders from yesterday?" In the mix, Ray Redington Jr. continues to maintain a presence in the top five. He is an established veteran, but we haven’t seen him to the front making bold moves before. Sonny Lindner from Two Rivers and a pair of Fairbanks mushers -- Jesse Royer and Sven Haltman -- have been always in contact with the lead pack, but now we see them making an assertive move into the front 10. Ahead of them all is the Yukon River, a different kind of test that favors teams with the power and mental toughness for hard pulling on granular, windblown snow. Yukon River two hop a favored strategyMost lead mushers like to extend their runs to about 10 hours on the river, so they can do the Yukon in two big hops. Neff and Baker, for example, rested in Anvik and will probably stop again in Eagle Island on their way to Kaltag and the turn overland to the west. Four-time and defending champ Lance Mackey from Fairbanks essentially won the 2010 Iditarod by traveling from Nulato on the Yukon on the race's northern route all the way to Unalakleet. It was a huge effort. But by the time his competitors realized what he had done, it was impossible to catch him before he got to Nome. Conservative racing won't win IditarodThese sorts of possibilities are now being weighed by the front runners. Rarely does a musher win the Iditarod by being predictable and conservative. At some point, a team and musher must display strength and courage. For the moment, Baker and Neff are our race leaders, but Neff and Schnuelle could skew the results by morning. Mackey -- despite the limitation of his small, nine-dog team -- continues to shadow the leaders and remains a wild card. All the top contenders are now also considering the consequences of taking the lead, knowing that surging to the front takes energy, so the move better be well spent. One of the big considerations is the condition of the trail. If the trail is windblown, is the lead worth it, or are you just a sucker breaking trail for the rest of the pack? This year the trail reports on the Yukon indicate that the gamble to the front is worth it. It should be just about the same effort for the leader as the followers. Joe Runyan, champion of the 1985 Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race and 1989 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, worked with former Iditarod champion Jeff King on his book, "Cold Hands, Warm Heart" as well as with defending Iditarod champion Lance Mackey on his autobiography, "The Lance Mackey Story", and will be providing commentary and analysis of Iditarod 39 for Alaska Dispatch. This is so exciting - I love John Baker! Joe, your strategy commentary is really fun, it draws you right into the thick of things. Thanks so much. You go, John Baker! |
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