Date: March 8, 2010
Official Sunrise @: 7:37 Photograph Take @: 8:40
Temperature: 25° Wind: From the north @25 m.p.h – Gusts to 45 m.p.h.
Photographer: Ron Day Camera Used: Canon G9
I was so busy working on today’s post that I lost track of the time. When I finally looked outside I found that sunrise had happen quite some time ago and I’d missed it. But I didn’t really miss too much because it is again real nasty out there with, horizontal snow in strong gusty winds. As I stepped out onto my studio porch to snap a picture of some sort Becky was just leaving for work. She stopped the PT Cruiser long enough to roll down the window to say good-bye to me. I snapped a picture of her and that is today’s sunrise picture. I hope she doesn’t mind too much.
I have several hundred pictures to sort though this week, all of them taken yesterday at the re-start of Iditarod XXXVIII in Willow, Alaska. I’ve quickly browsed through them and think I’ve got some pretty good shots. This week, for several days at least, I will be posting them here on Alaska At Sunrise for my readers to enjoy.
I hope they help to give you a sense of what Alaska’s Iditarod Dogsled Race is all about.
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“I wish was in Alaska today to see the start of the Iditarod. That should go on my BUCKET LIST.”
~Facebook comment March 7, 2010~
The 2010 Iditarod Begins
Mushers entered into Iditarod XXXVIII are officially on their way to Nome, Alaska. The race began in Anchorage on Saturday, with a ceremonial start, but the real race started on Sunday with a re-start in Willow. Seventy-one racers are entered into this year’s event, including many rookies.
I was honored to have been asked to participate by photographing Dee Dee Jonrowe as she, her dog handlers, and volunteers prepared for the race. Over the next week I will be posting many of these photos on Alaska At Sunrise. Although they will have a strong slant towards images of Dee Dee and her team, I was still able to capture many other sights during the pre-race hours as other teams prepared for the race, too.
The weather was beautiful for the re-start, with temperatures in the low 20′s and the sky a pretty blue with white fluffy clouds. Several thousand spectators were on hand, lining the starting chute and cheering for their favorite mushers and dog teams.
I photographed many people during the day on Sunday. Many of their faces are unfamiliar to me and I feel bad because I’m unable to identify them, or have identified them incorrectly. For that reason I’m asking my readers to help me, if they can, by e-mailing me with names to match the faces in my pictures, or correcting me if I have made a mistake in a caption.
My e-mail address is; rondayvous2000@yahoo.com
I hope you enjoy, over the next few days, my photographs from the 2010 Iditarod.
Thank You
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Jonrowe Racing Kennel – owned and operated by Dee Dee and Mike Jonrowe.
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The view from Dee Dee Jonrowe’s kitchen window, overlooking her backyard where the dogs who will form her 2010 Iditarod team are tethered.
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Hours before the start of the race, Dee Dee Jonrowe and her mother Peg gather at the kitchen table to visit quietly and read the Sunday newspaper.
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Mike Jonrowe, left, and other volunteers carry Dee Dee’s racing sled to the truck for loading. Dee Dee’s favorite Labrador Retrievers follow along to oversee the activities.
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The sled is hoisted onto the Jonrowe Racing Kennel’s dog truck.
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After the sled is loaded and secured to the top of the truck all of the dogs who are going to Nome with Dee Dee are turned loose and make a wild dash to the truck where handlers load them into individual cubby holes. The dogs are anxious and excited, for they know they are off to another racing adventure.
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Smiling and laughing, this sled dog makes a run towards the truck, hardly able to contain his excitement about racing to Nome, Alaska in the 2010 Iditarod.
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Leaving Mike and Dee Dee’s home I’m able to photograph the dog truck in front of us as we drive down the long driveway towards the Parks Highway, on our way to Willow, Alaska, just a few miles away.
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Handlers for Ryan Redington attatch new runners on his bright sled in preparation for his run to Nome.
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Other mushers begin making preparations for the race.
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Trailers and trucks containing sleds, dogs and required gear begin to arrive at Long Lake, Near Willow, Alaska, where the race will begin.
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Dee Dee, along with her mother and a friend, or fan, pose for pictures before the race.
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Dee Dee Jonrowe and her mother, Peg Stout.
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Dee Dee assists her mother as they walk to a nearby home on the lake’s shore. They will remain in the house for several hours, resting and preparing for the race within the semi-privacy of it’s walls.
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Mitch Seavey chats with a fan. Mitch started nineteenth in the race. He was the Iditarod Champion in 2004. Since then he has finished among the top ten in every race.
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One of many colorful and unique hats worn by fans of the Iditarod.
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Martin Buser made sure he spent a lot of time talking with his many fans. Martin is a four time winner of the Iditarod (1992, 1994, 1997, 2002) and hold the race record of 8 days, 22 hours, 46 minutes.
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Martin Buser, dressed to race, ready for the 2010 Iditarod.
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Jane Faulkner, a rookie, started 22nd. in the race.
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One of Dee Dee Jonrowe’s dog handlers answers questions from fans near her truck.
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Colorfully dressed race officials discuss the upcoming race.
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Mitch Seavey listens to questions and comments from his fans.
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Jane Faulkner receives some valuable encouragement from one of her dogs.
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Colorful, and uniquely Alaskan clothing was in abundance at Iditarod XXXVIII
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Martin Buser, relaxed and confident, talks with a fan before the start of the race on Sunday.
