Iditarod 2014

The 42nd Iditarod dog sled race began this past Sunday in Willow. The ceremonial start was held the day before here in Anchorage. We managed to get out and get a few pictures of some of the mushers.

 The day was very sunny and the temperature was quite tolerable. This year's roster includes teams from 7 different countries, including this musher, Newton Marshall, from Jamaica.

Perhaps taking a page from the Jamaican bobsledding team as far as participating in a sport foreign to their country, you could probably count the number of dog mushers in Jamaica using just one finger. Robert Sorlie, from Norway, has won the Iditarod twice before.

 He is a strong contender again this year at the midway point. This year's trail has proven to be very harsh. As of today, at least 13 teams have scratched or dropped out of the race. This musher suffered a broken ankle and had to drop out.

Lisbet Norris is a rookie in the race this year.

 John Baker won several years ago.

We will let you know how it all turns out for everyone. As far as me, I'm going somewhere warm for a week!