Target Iditarod Teacher on the Trail^™ Trail Tidbits 23

by Kim Slade

Food for Thought:

Bryan Mills sends about 4 pounds of food per dog out to every checkpoint. For him that breaks down to:

32 – 40 pounds of kibble
8 pounds of fat
8 – 16 pounds of hamburger
8 pounds of lamb
8 pounds of fish
8 pounds of liver

He sends enough for 16 dogs to every checkpoint. It costs about 50Ë per pound to mail his food bags with Alaska’s By-Pass Mail (this is a special rate that is given to citizens since most things have to be shipped to the interior of Alaska - it only applies to shipments within rural Alaska).

Think about the math here – How much does it cost to ship dog food out on the trail?

Sponsors:

Sponsors play an important role in the success of the Iditarod. Why are sponsorships crucial? What would happen if there were no sponsors?

Answers:

Tidbits 9 – Images from the Trail

Picture #

1 - Doug Swingley’s water bottle
2 - Musher’s battery pack for headlamp
3 - Cooker
4 - View from outhouse in Rainy Pass
5 - Broken gear sled that was towed behind the Trail Breaker’s snow machines after traveling across the Farewell Burn
6 - Jeff king’s handlebar heater
7 - Ultra Sport check point sign in Nikolai
8 - Aliy Zirkle’s sled seat
9 - Tread from a snow machine

One Small Square:

Answers:

Tidbits #

8 – Checkpoint building in Nikolai
10 – Heet bottle – used by mushers to start cooker fire
11 – booties
12 – Hand Warmers used by all to keep hands warm on trail
13 – Vet’s stethoscope with decorative cover
14 – Wind blown snow on Yukon River
15 – fish net in Unalakleet
16 – on frozen pond north of Unalakleet
17 – walrus vertebrae
18 – my boot print
19 – mussel shell found on Bering Sea shore in Unalakleet
20 – branch from Christmas tree – Nome National Forest where everyone puts old Christmas trees on Bering Sea
21 – Race Statistics sheet
22 – Lance Mackey’s winning check

Where is Jack?

Tidbits #

4 – Musher’s Banquet with check
6 – on the sled with Matt Rossi
7 - at Restart in Willow
8 – Nikolai on boat
11 – on snow machine
12 – school in Takotna
13 – Checkpoint in Takotna with yummy pies
14 – Community Hall in Grayling
15 – on Bering Sea at sunset in Unalakleet
16 – with dog handler in Unalakleet
17 – with Iditarod Insider crew in Anvik
18 – on trail north of Unalakleet
19 – under Burled Arch in Nome
20 – Nome Natural Forest – people stick their old Christmas trees in ice on Bering Sea
21 – with Zack Steer
22 – at Finsher’s banquet table

Check Back Soon:

Although the race is almost over, and I am heading back to Vero Beach, Florida, keep checking back to see more Images From the Trail. I will also be posting new lessons.

Click on images for a larger picture: