The death of a sled dog racing in the Iditarod has kicked off an investigation into exactly what happened as race organizers begin to search for better ways to protect the animals in the future. The dog, who was named Dorado, was dropped off at the Unalakleet checkpoint by rookie musher Paige Drobny and later died while in the care of veterinarians there.

Drobny says she first noticed that Dorado wasn't running well at Ophir, where she had a vet check him over but the dog was given a clean bill of health. She continued on Unalakleet but by the time she arrived there, she knew she was going to have to drop Dorado for his own safety. She handed him over to the vets in charge of that CP where he was put with a group of about 130 other dogs that were also dropped there and were waiting for a flight back to Anchorage. High winds and blowing snow grounded all flights out of small town Dorado and the rest of the dogs were forced to stay there for three days. During that time, most of the dogs were moved into indoor facilities but about 30 of them, including Dorado, remained outside. On the morning of March 15, it was discovered that Drobny's dog had died sometime in the overnight hours. An autopsy indicated that he died of asphyxiation.

It is very common for mushers to drop dogs as they travel along the 1000-mile long Iditarod trail. They may start with as many as 16 dogs but over the course of the race, some will grow tired or sick and be forced to pull out of the competition. The vast majority of the time, dropped dogs are left in the care of vets and end up back in Anchorage where they can be retrieved at a later date. The system has worked well in the past and it is actually unusual for a dog to die while racing. But this incident has Iditarod organizers thinking about ways they can improve the process.

One suggestion is to use a system similar to something FedEx or other package delivery systems use. When vets at a checkpoint take possession of a dog, they would immediately put a tag on the animal that indicated who it belonged to, where it was dropped, what meds it needs and how often it is being fed. Those taking care of the dogs could then do quick scans of the tags to determine all kinds of important information. Whether or not a revised system can be in place before next year's Iditarod remains to be seen.


It should be noted that the vets at each of the checkpoints are volunteers although they do go through a vetting process before they can join the team. That includes proving that they are licensed to practice and attending mandatory workshops prior to the start of the race. All told, there are roughly 40 vets each year, most of whom are shuttled between CP's as needed.

The mushers also do a great job of taking care of their dogs. For most of them, these dogs are like family. The race also requires that a musher arrive at a checkpoint with the same number of dogs he left the last CP with. In this year's Iditarod a musher was disqualified because one of his dogs escaped the harness while out on the trail and couldn't be found. When he arrived at the next CP, he was immediately removed from competition. The dog was later found and returned to his owner in good health.

The Iditarod Race Marshall has called the death of Dorado one of the worst tragedies in the race's 41 year history. Hopefully steps are being taken to ensure that something similar doesn't happen again in the future. The Iditarod is a fantastic annual event, but I think everyone involved wants to see the safety of these amazing dogs put front and center.

The winner of the 2013 Iditarod sled dog race was crowned over night with Mitch Seavey earning the honor of being first into Nome. Seavey crossed the finish line at 10:39 PM local time last evening, finishing the race with a total time of 9 days, 7 hours and 39 minutes. This is his second Iditarod win. He previously won the race back in 2004.

Aliy Zirkle arrived just 22 minutes behind Mitch and Jeff King claimed third, an hour and 48 minutes back. That isn't a lot of time separating the top three competitors considering a race of this length. Seavey's son Dallas was fourth into Nome while Ray Redington Jr. rounds out the top five.

As of this writing, there are eight mushers into Nome in what has to be one of the closest and most competitive races in recent memory. Often times the winner reaches the finish line with maybe one other musher in close pursuit, while a large gap separates them from the pack. Other teams are out on the course and we should see quite a few of them reach the finish line today.

With this win, 53-year old Mitch is now the oldest person to claim victory in the Iditarod, while his son Dallas holds the record for the youngest to accomplish that feat. Dallas was just 25 when he won the race last year. I guess family gatherings at the Seavey household are a competitive affair.

Congratulations to Mitch Seavey on an impressive win. This has been another fun Iditarod to follow. It isn't over just yet as there are still plenty of teams out on the course. A good number of them will complete the 1000-mile race today but for those at the back of the pack, it'll be a couple of days before they find their way into Nome.

Aliy Zirkle finds herself in an oddly familiar place as we head into the stretch run of the 2013 Iditarod sled dog race. In the final days of last year's competition she found herself in second place and chasing a man with the last name of Seavey. This year she's in the same position but instead of trying to run down 25-year old Dallas Seavey, she's chasing his dad Mitch. With just one more checkpoint to go before the lead mushers turn for Nome, it now seems clear that we're in for one heck of a finish. The race is far from over and there are plenty of contenders for the win.

Right now, the leaders are into the White Mountain checkpoint, which falls at the 921 mile point. That means there are just 77  miles to go until the end of the race. At the moment, Mitch Seavey is indeed the lead musher and Zirkle is behind him. The two racers were separated by just 13 minutes when they arrived at the CP and both are there now resting their pups for the last dash to the finish line. Jeff King is currently in third, about an hour and a half off the pace, while Dallas Seavey is now climbed into fourth place and has looked very good over the past two days. In fact, his dogs may be running as fast as anyone at the moment, although he only has eight on his team right now. That could come back to hurt him on the final push to Nome. Ray Redington Jr is in fifth place and still within striking distance as well. 

The top contenders now have each other in their sights, which hasn't always been the case at this point in the race. Obviously Mitch and Aliy are the two racers to watch as they'll be the most rested coming out of White Mountain. but there are still a lot of miles to cross before they're done and tactical moves can still play a role. The question is, when the two leaders depart, will King and the younger Seavey follow suit? Or will they choose to rest and wait for an opportune time to try to catch their competitors out on the trail. 

There are plenty of other intriguing story lines to consider as well. Can Mitch get another Iditarod win? Will Dallas be able to catch them all and earn a repeat? Maybe Jeff King will become the first person to earn five Iditarod championships or perhaps Zirkle will be the first female winner in 23 years. We'll just have to wait until tomorrow to see how everything plays out. For now, only the checkpoint in Safey sits between these racers and glory. The Last Great Race comes down to this. 

It was a busy weekend in Alaska where the mushers in the 2013 Iditarod sled dog race battled one another and the elements in their quest to reach the finish line in Nome. The lead changed on several occasions as the front runners jockeyed for position and let their strategies play out. Now, with less than 170 miles to go until the end, this year's race is shaping up to have one very exciting finish.

The two men who are currently battling it out for the lead in the race will certainly need no introduction to fans of the Iditarod. At the moment, 4-time champ Jeff King has rocketed into the lead and is setting a fast pace out of the Koyuk checkpoint. He is the only musher to leave that CP although Mitch Seavey, a former champ himself, has reached that town as well. King actually arrived in Koyuk behind Seavey, but only stopped long enough to check-in and back out again. His dogs are reportedly looking very strong and were not in the least bit tired upon arrival. That doesn't bode well for those chasing them. Aaron Burmeister is currently running in third place with with Aliy Zirkle in fourth. Neither of the those two mushers have been far from the top of the leaderboard this entire race. Ray Redington Jr. rounds out the top five.

Other notables who are still in the hunt but are watching the miles slip away at a rapid pace include Dallas Seavey, last year's champ, who is eighth, DeeDee Jonrowe in tenth, and Martin Buser and Lance Mackey in the thirteenth and fourteenth spots respectively.

Last week the weather was particularly good for the early days of the race, but there has been a definite shift over the weekend. Colder temperatures and more difficult winds have settled in on the Iditarod trail, which of course makes things more difficult, particularly for the mushers. There weather hasn't turned severe, but the change is noticeable none the less.

With the way things are going, we could see the first arrivals in Nome as early as tomorrow. There is still plenty of mileage to cover and the teams will need to rest along the way, but if trail conditions stay good and the front runners continue to push each other, a Tuesday arrival is not out of the question by any stretch of the imagination. It will certainly be an interesting stretch run and we'll need to see who has the most gas in the tank as the mushers head to Nome. But with all of the mandatory rest periods behind us, now it is just time for the dogs to run. I can't wait to see how it plays out.

The 2013 Iditarod sled dog race is moving along at a near-record pace following a full rest day for nearly the entire field. Over the past 24 hours we've seen a lot of the teams jockey for position and now we're starting to see the contenders show their cards as they move into the Yukon. The frontrunners are now more than halfway to Nome and while there is plenty of racing yet to come, the miles are dropping off very quickly.

The only musher who has reached the Grayling checkpoint thus far is Aliy Zirkle who is looking to become the first woman to win the Iditarod in 23 years. She's been moving fast today but seems to have great command of her team at the 530-mile mark. Chasing her in second place is Aaron Burmeister, who has hovered around the top of leaderboard regularly this year. Jake Berkowitz is currently holding down fourth place, with Martin Buser and Nicolas Petit rounding out the top five.

Buser was in command earlier today, arriving in Anvik ahead of anyone else. That earned him the "First to the Yukon" award that is given out each year by the Millennium Alaskan Hotel. The Millennium sends their top chef Bobby Sidro out to the trail to greet the first musher in and then cook him or her a gourmet meal. This year Buser was treated to Red King crab stuffed Portobello mushrooms and smoked sockeye salmon cucumbers with gourmet cheeses, Alaskan Clam Chowder, Roast duck salad with mixed greens, 14 oz. ribeye steak topped with a Cognac and Alaskan Amber sauce accompanied by jumbo prawns and bacon wrapped sea scallops served with grilled asparagus and four cheese risotto cakes. Each course is accompanied by four wine pairings and dessert was an assortment of fresh fruit tarts.

After eating all of that, its no wonder that Buser elected to take his mandatory eight our rest right there in Anvik, which allowed the three teams in front of him to gain a lead. But with that rest period out of the way, Buser is now free to race all the way to Nome and I suspect we'll see him back at the top of the leaderboard sometime tomorrow. His strategy has been paying off so far and his dogs are running well. It's just a matter of whether or not they can maintain the pace on the final 450 miles to the finish line.

We'll find out soon enough.

The 2013 Iditarod sled dog race has already been an interesting one to watch and we're not even to the halfway point just yet. The teams started off at a fast pace but now have settled into the rhythm of the trail. Over the past day, most of the racers have elected to take their 24-hour mandatory rest period as they prepare for the stretch run to Nome, while at the front of the pack some of the biggest names in the sport are now leading the way.

As I write this, the frontrunners are into the checkpoint in the village of Iditarod, which falls at the 432  mile point. The leader is 4-time champ Lance Mackey, followed by Sonny Lindner and another 4-time champ in Jeff King. The only other racer who has reached the CP at this point is Martin Buser, who is a former champ himself. You may recall that yesterday I recommended keeping an eye on Buser as he had been racing well but elected to take his 24-hour break early on. Now his dogs are well rested and he has surged back to the top of the leaderboard once again. Jason Mackey is out of Ophir and headed towards Iditarod. He rounds out the current top five.

Other notable placements include Aaron Burmeister in 7th place, Mitch Seavey in 8th and Aliy Zirkle in 9th. Defending champ Dallas Seavey is currently running 15th overall and will need to make a move if he wants to get into contention. All of these mushers have finished up their 24-hour rest and are now out of Ophir and on their way to Iditarod as well.

Yesterday seemed to be the day for taking that mandatory break as most of the mushers took the opportunity to rest up. They'll all have to take another mandatory 8 hour rest at some point, but that isn't likely to come until they are much closer to the end. With more than 500 miles left to be run, there is still a lot of ground to cover, so we should see some fast paces take over once again.

In a sense, the real race is about to begin. The dogs and mushers are rested and ready to go and the trail is wide open into Nome. The next few days should be very interesting indeed.

It has been another hectic day in the 2013 Idiatrod sled dog race where there have been lead changes, tactical moves and some fast paced teams on the move. With the front runners now more than 350 miles into the race, things are really shaping up now. There are a number of great mushers at the top of the leaderboard with some very familiar names for long time fans of "the Last Great Race."

When I posted my update yesterday, Aaron Burmeister was in the lead and setting a hectic pace out on the course. He continued in that position all the way to McGrath, where he earned the PenAir Spirit of Adventure award for being the first to arrive at that checkpoint. The award comes in the form of a specially designed spirit mask that Burmeister can take home for his mantle and he also received a $500 credit for travel or freight on regional airline PenAir. The lead musher didn't spend much time in McGrath however as he quickly moved on to Takotna, where he has apparently decided to take a rest. Whether or not this will be his 24-hour break remains to be seen, but it is beginning to look that way.

While Burmeister and hid dogs take some down-time, others decided to plow ahead and continue on to the next CP. The current leaderboard now has Lance Mackey leading the way and as of this writing he is the only musher in and out of Ophir. Behind him are Jake Berkowitz, Nicolas Petit and Sonny Lindner, who are holding down positions 2-4 respectively. Each of them are into Ophir but haven't left just yet, while Jeff King is running in fifth place on his way to that checkpoint.

Joining Burmeister in Takotna are a group of other mushers that includes the likes of Aliy Zirkle, Mitch Seavey, Paul Gebhardt and DeeDee Jonrowe. Defending champ Dallas Seavey is also into that checkpoint and is currently holding down 10th place over all, having moved up nicely in the past day.

One musher that is way back in the pack that we should all keep our eyes on is Martin Buser. He is currently running in 39th place and has reached McGrath. Buser was running very well at the start of the race and led for a time and now he is one of just two mushers who has already taken his mandatory 24-hour rest period. By getting it out of the way early, he can now move quickly back up the ranks while the other teams rest. He'll also have the benefit of running on well trodden trails while he is in pursuit, allowing the front runners to continue to break trail for him for a time. Expect to see him back near the top of the leaderboard sometime in the next few days.

With more than 600 miles to go until Nome and plenty of strategic and tactical moves to yet be revealed, this race is shaping up to be one of the best in recent memory. There are some big names lurking just off the lead and with Lance Mackey and Jeff King near the top, we could end up with another epic duel between those two men, both 4-time champions, before it is all said and done. It should definitely be fun to watch how it all plays out.

The Nikolai checkpoint of the Iditarod sled dog race is a busy place today as a number of teams have arrived in the bustling interior town with a population of about 100. It seems to be a popular place for many of the mushers to take their first rest stop as they let their dogs recover from a long and arduous first couple of days on the trail. The section following Rainy Pass proved to be as challenging as predicted, but most made it out none the worse for wear. Now they look at the long miles ahead and start plotting their strategy.

Since yesterday's update the leaderboard has started to give us a few hints as to who the contenders will be this year. At the 263-mile mar, Aaron Burmeister holds a 41 minute lead over Iditarod legend Lance Mackey who is just ten minutes in front of Aliy Zirkle. After struggling in last month's Yukon Quest, Mackey's team is looking good so far, blitzing his way into Nikolai from Rohn at a blistering pace.

Two familiar names round out the top five in the form of Paul Gebhardt and Mitch Seavey. Other notable racers include Jeff King lurking in seventh place, fan favorite DeeDee Jonrowe running in the 12th position and defending champ Dallas Seavey in 17. Yesterday's leader, Martin Buser, is all the way back in 50th place as he obviously has taken some time to rest along the way.

Now that the initial rush of the start of the race is out of the way, the top mushers are thinking about their strategy. Before they make it to Nome, each of them will have to take a mandatory eight our rest and a mandatory 24 hour rest. Where they choose to spend that downtime is totally up to them and plays a role in saving the strength of their dogs for the stretch run. Each has their preference of where they like to stop, but the Takotna CP has long been a favorite for taking a pitstop thanks to the popular home cooking there. I suspect we'll see more than a few mushers elect to make that village, which falls at the 329 mile mark, their temporary home in the next few days.

There is still lots of racing to be done. We're only about a quarter of the way through the race and already it is shaping up to be a classic. Stay tuned for more updates in the next few days.

It was a fast start to the 2013 Iditarod sled dog race this weekend. After the ceremonial start in downtown Anchorage on Saturday, things really got moving following the restart in Willow yesterday. In fact, the lead teams are running so well that they are already more than 150 miles (241 km) into the 1000 mile (1609 km) course. Thats a blistering pace for this early on and we'll have to wait to see if they can maintain that kind of pace over the long haul yet to come.

Right now there are some very familiar names at the top of the leaderboard, with the three front-runners already in and out of Rainy Lake. Four-time champ Martin Buser is currently breaking trail out in front with about a 2.5 hour lead on second place Matt Failor. Last year's runner-up Aliy Zirkle is running in third place at the moment another hour back, while Lance Mackey – another four-time winner – and brother Jason are running in fourth and fifth place respectively. Defending champ Dallas Seavey is currently running in 26th place through the Finger Lake checkpoint. His dogs are running well so far, so you have to believe he's biding his time to make a move later on.

The front runners have now moved into the trickiest section of the route as they move from Rainy Pass to Rohn. Pre-race reports indicated a number of downed trees through this section which will likely have an impact on how quickly they can navigate and make their way through to the next checkpoint. According to the GPS trackers that the teams are wearing, Zirkle is actually moving the fastest of the three and will likely overtake Failor later in the day. It's good to see Aliy back near the top of the leaderboard as she attempts to become the first woman to win the race in 23-years.

Believe it or not, there has already been one scratch from the race. Mushter Ed Stielstra from Michigan withdrew following the 11-mile run from Anchorage to the Campbell Airstrip on Saturday. Stielstra suffered injuries while training back in early-February and hasn't full healed yet. After the start he realized he wasn't going to be up for a long and difficult run to Nome, so he made the wise move to pull out, head home and start planning for next year.

Obviously there is a lot of race left to be run, but we're already seeing some bold moves from the lead teams. If things stay like this, we're in for a very fast race this year with someone possibly flirting with the course record set back in 2011 by John Baker. On that historic run, which was also along the southern route, the same they're following this year, Baker managed to arrive in Nome in just 8 days, 19 hours, 46 minutes and 39 seconds. It's premature to say that record could be broken, but it sure has been a furious start so far.

Tomorrow one of my favorite annual events will get underway when the 2013 Iditarod holds its ceremonial start in Anchorage, Alaska. Tomorrow's leg will run just 11-miles out to the Campbell Airstrip ahead of the official start of the race on Sunday in Willow, from there the real race will be underway with the top sled dog teams in the world competing with one another to see who will be the first to complete the 1000-mile route to Nome.

At the start of the race, there will be 66 mushers in the field, many of whom are extremely experienced. Amongst the racers who will no doubt contend for the title are defending champ Dallas Seavey and his dad Mitch, who won the 2004 Iditarod. Other names to keep an eye on include Jeff King, Paul Gebhardt, Aaron Burmeister, Brent Sass and Martin Buser. And don't count out former four-time champ Lance Mackey either. He hasn't has a lot of luck in the past few years, but he is still one of the best in the field.

Since 2013 is an odd numbered year, this year's route will take the teams on the southern route when they come out of the Ophir checkpoint. This will have them running through the villages of Iditarod, Shageluk, Anvik, Grayling and Eagle Island before returning to the standard route in Kaltag. From there it is just a straight shot along the trial to the finish line in Nome.

A few weeks back there were some concerns about the trail and whether or not there would be enough snow to run the race this year. But regular winter storms have made that a moot point now and it looks like the trail is in great condition all the way from Anchorage to Nome. The one exception to that is the always tricky section that follows the CP in Rainy Pass. This area is well known to the mushers who must use all of their skill to weave their way along the route on a good year. But this year storms have downed a number of trees, making the route even more challenging than normal. Expect more than a few mushers to have problems navigating through this infamous part of the Iditarod Trail.

Good luck to everyone as they embark on this 1000-mile odyssey across the Alaskan frontier. It should be fun to follow along as always.