2005 Iditarod

The ceremonial start of the 33rd annual Iditarod dog sled race across the U.S. state of Alaska began in Anchorage on March 5, 2005 at 10 AM AKST (19:00 UTC), and restarted in Willow the next day at 2 PM (23:00 UTC). After covering 1,161 miles (1,868 km)http://www.iditarod.com/trailinfo/racemileage.php?id=3 of wilderness, musher Robert Sørlie, an airport firefighter from Norway, crossed the finish line under the "burled arch" in Nome on March 16 at 8:39 AM AKST (17:39 UTC). After taking care of his dogs, and an inspection to make sure all the mandatory equipment was in his sled, Sørlie was declared the winner by Race Marshal Mark Norman, with a time of 9 days, 18 hours, 39 minutes, and 31 seconds and won USD $72,066.67 and a new truck. When asked how it felt to win a second time, Sørlie said "it feels good, I'm ready for breakfast"http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=sportsNews&storyID=7924830, live on the Alaska superstation. His team of dogs averaged 4.65 mi/h (7.58 km/h). The Red Lantern in last was Phil Morgan, an Alaska Airlines pilot, and when he crossed the finish line on March 21 at 8:02 PM AKST (March 22, 5:02 UTC), the Widow's Lantern hanging on the burled arch was extinguished, which signalled the end of the race.

March 12

Grayling: Jonrowe was the first to arrive at Grayling on March 12 at 0:21 AM, and took her mandatory 8 hour break. Sørlie arrived within 15 minutes, and continued to Eagle Island 5 minutes later, followed by Buser an hour an a half later.http://www.iditarod.com/raceupdates/racecheckpoint.php?id=40 http://www.cabelasiditarod.com/coverage_2005/cov05_mar12_02.html. The top 10 followed within 12 hours, and the top 30 within 24 hours.

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Grayling - March 12

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King reported that the warm fresh snow was sticking the runners of the sleds.http://www.cabelasiditarod.com/coverage_2005/cov05_mar12_02.html Above freezing temperatures hindered the dogs.http://www.adn.com/iditarod/news/story/6265905p-6142708c.html On March 15, Robert Greger scratched because the dogs were not performing to his expectations, and so did Sandy McKee.(pdf)

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Eagle Island:http://www.iditarod.com/raceupdates/racecheckpoint.php?id=41 Sørlie is the first to arrive at the Eagle Island on March 12 at 11:30 AM, after a 14 hour run from Grayling. Buser was the second to arrive on March 13 3:25 PM, after losing two hours backtracking to find a Quebec, who slipped from the gangline during a snowstorm. Quebec had a habit of eating heavily, and then backing up and stepping to the side before relieving himself. According to Buser's wife Kathy Chapotone, "at this point, that's a huge lead".http://www.cabelasiditarod.com/coverage_2005/cov05_mar12_04.html Brooks, Mitch Seavey, and Jonrowe followed. Sørlie was the first to depart at 7:31 PM, followed by Lance Mackey 17 minutes later, then Brooks, Buser, and Jonrowe. The top 10 are within 7 hours, and the top 30 are within 21 hours. At this stage, all the pacesetters have taken their mandatory 24 and 8 hour layovers.

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Eagle Island - March 12 - March 13

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The temperatures are just above freezing, and a freezing rain advisory has been issued for Kaltag.http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/03/12/sports/s140653S89.DTL http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=8280eb50-849a-491d-a7bb-cfbeb7de424a On March 16, Scdoris scratched after several of her dogs came down with a viral diarrhea, saying "it was not an eye thing. It was a my-dogs-are-sick thing". Another concern was weight loss: her dogs were fed canned dog food, with some kibble, salmon and fat, which did not help maintain their weight as well as the heavy meat diet most dogs are fed. (pdf) http://www.ktuu.com/CMS/templates/master.asp?articleid=12480&zoneid=4. Her guide Paul Ellering scratched shortly after, saying "I'm just the kind of guy who leaves with the girl he came to the dance with".

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http://www.adn.com/iditarod/news/story/6289373p-6164873c.html (pdf) Scdoris had navigated the most treacherous portions of the race, including Happy Valley, Dazell Gorge, and the Farewell Burn before she withdrew, and plans to return next year. "All the tough spots were tough, but I now know I can do it". http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/6293154p-6168748c.html

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