[Dean's World] Dave Schuler: The Last Great Race

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Posted by Dave Schuler:
The Last Great Race
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1142439595.shtml


   There are only a handful of really great sporting events in the world
   today. The Olympics, the Tour de France, the World Series, the
   SuperBowl, a few others. One of those that's received a lot of press
   attention in the last few days is the NCAA basketball tournament which
   begins March 18.

   But in the early hours of this morning the winner of one of these
   great events crossed the finish line without much fanfare or media
   attention. No major network provided live coverage. At 4:11am CST Jeff
   King crossed the finish line on Front Street in Nome, Alaska as the
   winner of the 2006 Iditarod. His winning time was 9 days, 11 hours, 11
   minutes, 36 seconds.

   The Iditarod, called "The Last Great Race on Earth", is a
   commemoration of the [1]1925 dogsled relay that carried life-saving
   diphtheria serum from Anchorage to Nome. There's a statue of Balto,
   the lead dog of Gunner Kaasen, the man whose team entered the streets
   of Nome with the serum, in [2]New York's Central Park. Of Balto Kaasen
   said:

     "I couldn't see the trail. Many times I couldn't even see my dogs,
     so blinding was the gale. I gave Balto, my lead dog, his head and
     trusted to him. He never once faltered. It was Balto who led the
     way. The credit is his."

   In the Iditarod, alone of the great sporting events, men and women
   compete against one another. There are a number of women among the top
   placers this year including DeeDee Jonrowe and Aliy Zirkle.

   Jeff King, this year's winner, is 50 (the press is making much of
   this). Competitors this year range from 20 years of age to 64. Many
   are in their 50's.

   Entrants in this year's race are from the the U. S. (Alaska and many
   states in the lower 48), Canada, Norway, Germany, France, Italy,
   Switzerland, and the Netherlands. They're united by their love of
   adventure, the race, nature at its rawest, and their dogs.

   You can watch the finishers come in over the next several days via
   your Internet connection. Go to the [3]Iditarod Web Site. On the right
   hand side of the page click on the link labelled "2006 Finish Line Web
   Camera"

References

   1. http://www.cabelasiditarod.com/cabelas_history.html
   2. http://www.centralparknyc.org/virtualpark/southend/balto
   3. http://www.iditarod.com/1-1.html