March Lilies

This has been a week of crazy weather--everything from rain to snow to sunshine.  Finally we had a pretty day and I was getting ready for Easter at the farm.   About then, Hubby calls and wants to know if I had a couple of hours and would like to take a ride to the country with him.  "Sure", I lied, since I surely didn't have a couple of hours to waste, but it was beautiful out.

Soon he was pulling up into the driveway and we were off to the country.  One of the best and worst parts of his job is that he has to take pictures of all the farm structures that he insures.  On pretty days it is a delight, but in busy times it is a real time killer since it involves riding all over the county searching out barns.  Today, he warned me, we would be going about as far in the county as we could go. 

He wasn't kidding.  We started off on a three lane road, turned onto a two lane, then a one-lane and finally a gravel path.  The gravel path ended at a gate.  We had now reached the farm with the barn we were to photograph.  Through the gate a mud lane continued up a hill and on.  It seems the barn is on the very back of the farm.  We bounced and slid on, literally over hill and dale, until we reached the final gate.  Eyeing the mud on the other side, Hubby elected to continue on foot.  I elected to stay with the truck.

As we wandered on our odyssey, I had been enjoying the bright blooms of the buttercups in the fields we drove by.  These are the most fascinating flowers to me.  They bloom in the early spring, unfazed by the cold temperatures, in fields and road sides. They are not a native flower and when you see them you know that someone had brought them.  They were originally planted around homesteads by the sturdy families that settled in to farm the area.  As time passed the homesteads often disappeared and the spot would revert to a field.  The daffodils (or jonquils, buttercups, March Lilies, or Easter flowers, as they are variously called) would just keep on growing and spreading.  I had already spotted one hillside that had these yellow flowers flowing down the slope, having been spread by the natural upheaval of the land through freezing and thawing.  They evidently aren't tasty because I had noticed the cows just nibbling around them.  I couldn't help but wonder whose hands had planted the original bulbs and what joy they had brought those hard working farm wives.

Looking out the truck window I spotted a few of these bright blooms on the bank.  I decided to walk up to check them out.  As I wandered up to see them, I could see that they were around an old fallen down farm house.  When I got closer I could see that it was an old log cabin that had been covered with clapboard siding at some later date.  Where the siding had rotted or fallen off the massive old logs were visible.  Wondering about the farm family that had lived so far back in the farm all those years ago, I circled the house, keeping an eye out for holes or rocks.  As I rounded the corner I was greeted by the sight of a sea of yellow blooms nodding in the breeze.  With total delight I waded into the masses of flowers and began to pick.  Soon I had two handfuls of sunny, spring beauty.  They would be the perfect finish to the Easter table. 

As I carried my bounty back to the truck I thought again of the farm wife who had planted those little bulbs to brighten up the back stoop.  How amazed she would be to see that those little flowers had outlasted the family and the house by so many years.

Thank you, whoever you were, for adding a little beauty to the world.

The Nanny

There is something about living on a farm that makes you always able to welcome another animal or two.  My son-in-law has also discovered that there is also something about my daughter that tends attract animals.  His barn full of cats attest to some of her collections.  Lately they have been talking about getting the girls more involved in showing cattle by starting them with the miniature Herefords.  So with this conversation in mind it really didn't come as any surprise when she announced in a recent phone call that they had found a goat.  I just assumed they were looking for something for the girls to show.

Actually, they had "found" a goat--literally.  While feeding the cattle the other day, her husband caught sight of something white moving out of the corner of his eye.  When he turned to look there was nothing there.  He continued on and soon saw another movement.  This time he moved over to a pile of brush to see if he could spot anything.  After a careful approach, he eased up to the pile and began to peer into the brush.  After several minutes he spotted a white patch, which upon closer inspection it proved to be a small, white goat!  Since the goat didn't seem inclined to leave her protective bower he moved off to continue his chores.

It was some time later that he noticed that the goat had come out of her hiding place and was moving across the field.  The cows noticed too, and immediately began to chase the little goat.  With a leap the goat removed herself to the brush pile again.  It was obvious that the cows did not approve of sharing their feed or field with the goat.  Shaking his head, my son-in-law decided that the goat would have to solve this for herself. 

The next morning he arrived to discover the goat had, indeed,  solved her problem.  She had removed herself from the field and was now residing in the "catch-all" shed.  He peeked into the depths of the shed, past the lawn mower, old garden tiller and assorted machinery parts to see two steady brown eyes staring back at him.  A scoop of feed aroused interest in his guest, but movement toward her caused a cautious retreat deeper into the shed.  He left the feed with a grin...he knew in time my daughter and granddaughters would have her eating out of their hands.

The granddaughters, delighted with the new pet, immediately named her Lily.  I wonder how long it will be before Lily arrives at the house.  I also wonder how long it will be before it is Lily and company
---she looks very "plump" to me!

Family Bonding

The view from my kitchen window for the past several days has been captivating.  I have twins!

Several days ago hubby was checking his mama cows and discovered a set of twins. They were small but healthy and still very new so he didn't disturb mama or babies.  Returning to check on them again the next day he discovered the mama cow and one baby in one place and the second baby lying some distance away.  Not a good thing.  While a cow will often place a calf in a spot with instructions to be still and wait for her (and he will be so still that you can almost step on them before they will move) she usually won't leave one of a set of twins by itself.

After some careful watching hubby decided that while she had bonded with one of the calves she didn't seem to realize that the other one was hers too.  Cows and calves instinctively know the scent and sound of each other within minutes of birth.  This allows the calves to unerringly find their mother and follow her immediately.  However, cows usually have one calf at a time, and she had evidently decided that one was all she was allotted.  The other calf would follow behind and attempt to nurse but she would look at him like he was a unwelcome surprise guest at dinner and move off.

Our son was of the opinion that the only thing to do was put the orphan calf in the barn and raise it on a bottle.  Sometimes if this happens we are able to graft the little one onto a cow that has lost a calf and everyone is happy.  Unfortunately we didn't have a foster mama handy.  That means I get to be the foster mama feeding the little one morning and night--been there, done that.  Hubby recognized the mutinous look on my face and suggested we might try another approach. 

He reasoned that she was a good mama cow and gentle, so maybe she just needed some time to reacquaint herself with her baby.  He patiently herded the little family up to the barn and placed them in an end stall.  There he bedded them down and gave  mama a flake of hay and some feed.  She looked around and decided this was all right.  Room service!  We kept a close watch on her for the first day.  She was a little confused by the second guest for lunch and dinner but wasn't mean about it.  Mostly just stepping out of reach or easing away.  She couldn't go far, so the baby was able to grab a nibble now and then.  That was good.  The calf remained in good health so we felt he was getting enough snacks to get along. 

After a day or two hubby rigged the barn where mama and babies could come and go into the barn lot.  I was excited to look out one morning at breakfast and see both babies come bouncing out of the stall.  Baby anythings are cute, but nothing is as cute to me as a little black calf just finding his world--unless it is two of them.  They are the most awesome combination of grace and clumsiness.  They leap with a lurch and land with a wobble  but with a wholehearted enthusiasm.  Everything is exciting to them.

As I watched, a barn cat wandered across the barn lot calling them to investigate.  On gangly, delicate legs they bound over to see this marvel.  The cat has been around a while so he ignores the babies and doesn't let his attention waver from the mouse at the corner of the barn.  Step by step they move closer to the cat.  They are almost nose to tail with the cat when the cat explodes in pursuit of the mouse.  With comic expressions on their faces they leap back, startled, and stumble frantically to mama for protection. 

Mama lowers her head and calls softly to her offspring.  With an anxious glance at the cat she nuzzles both her babies to be sure they are alright and reassures them that they are safe with her. Soon both are getting breakfast while mama watches out for marauding cats.

Mission accomplished.  Family complete.

The Finish

Tuesday night, March 12, 2013 at 22:39 Alaska Time, Mitch Seavey crossed the finish line in Nome to become the winner of the 41st Iditarod. It was his second time to win the race.  Aliy Zirkle finished about 30 minutes behind him.  She had run an inspiring race, leaving the White Mountain checkpoint only 12 minutes behind Seavey with a team that looked strong.  However, she just couldn't seem to make the time to overtake the leader.  This is the second year she has come in second behind a Seavey.  Last year she followed Mitch's son Dallas over the finish line.

The Seavey's are a racing dynasty and nice guys.  Mitch commented at the White Mountain checkpoint, that although he was Aliy's friend and would never be unfair, she would have to beat him because he was going in to Nome.  It is a small world of mushers and most of them are close friends as well as rivals.  For example, DeeDee Jonrowe, who finished 10th, was seen giving Aliy a big hug and a warm send off from the last checkpoint.

The Seaveys have been competing in Iditarods as long as there have been Iditarods.  Mitch's father, Dan Seavey was one of the original organizers and first mushers of the race.  He has run the race several times and his son, Mitch, was raised on the racing tradition.  Last year Dan ran the race to commemorate the fortieth running of the Iditarod and the 100 years of the Iditarod National Historic Trail at the age of 74.  He had a wonderful time, handing out publicity information on the Iditarod and visiting with everyone along the way.  Remember this wasn't just a victory lap, but 1000 miles of grueling territory with blizzards and extreme cold.

Last year he also arrived at the finish line to learn that his grandson, Dallas, had become the youngest to win the Iditarod, at 24. This year Dallas followed his father into Nome finishing fourth.  Dallas, who is the father of a 2 year old daughter, is married to a former Iditarod musher, Jen.  One day we may see his daughter cross the finish line in the Seavey tradition. 

Mitch, by the way, is the oldest, at 53 to win the race.  What a family of firsts!

Why do I get so excited about this race.  Not only is it a fascinating bit of history but it is an athletic competition that knows no boundaries.  In a world where we watch 19 year olds make millions of dollars in sports only to have their career considered "over" at 35 it's encouraging to see a competition where age and sex aren't a disadvantage.  Where, in fact, having a little age and experience is a help.  We're not talking dominoes here either--this is an event that requires the utmost in endurance, fitness, and courage.  This is an extreme sport in every sense of the word.  It's a sport where it is man (or woman) and the team pitted against the worst that nature can throw at them.  An elemental competition. 

What a victory, Mitch.  Congratulations from all of us armchair mushers and thanks for the wonderful experience. 

It's a Dog Race

The Iditarod leaders have crossed the ice of the Norton Sound of the Bering Sea, and are now on the last leg of the race.  Some things are happening that are keeping the race followers guessing right up to the end.  Mitch Seavy is back in the lead and Jeff King is following close behind.  However, Aliy Zirkle has moved back into second place.  She has managed to hold on to a leader position throughout the whole race.  That's phenomenal considering that the front runner she was second to during the first of the race has fallen back to16th position along with most of the others that were in that group.  Somehow she has managed to stay at the front of the pack, no matter which pack. You go girl!!!

The weather which was rainy and too warm earlier is now back to winter.  The temperatures are about -20 degrees with a strong wind.  The trail is covered with about a foot of new snow that hasn't packed down, which means slow and hard going for the dogs.  Trail conditions and unusual strategies keep the race followers guessing.  Who knows, one follower even predicts it could be a photo finish with several making Nome at the same time.

However, it is a DOG race.  The true athletes and stars are the dogs.  They are running with incredible heart and enthusiasm.  They charge into checkpoints with their heads up and their tails wagging because they are having fun.  Each team has a lead dog which is indisputably the leader.  These dogs are natural leaders and take their position very seriously.  They are in charge of keeping the whole team under control and running together which occasionally means a nip or sharp command to keep a fractious pup in line or a sharp bark to keep a dog on pace and pulling.  The lead dog also is  the one who sets the pace and keeps to the trail.  These dogs develop an unbelievable connection to the musher.  They learn to anticipate his commands and follow them with trust.  Since these teams are driven entirely by voice commands that's pretty important.

That trust works both ways.  Several years ago, on a crossing over the frozen ice of Norton Sound, the mushers experienced extreme conditions.  The wind was howling and the snow blowing .  The mushers report that the effect of the blowing snow and constantly blowing wind create conditions that are an extreme white out.  It's like flying a plane when you just have to hope that up is really up but have no visual clues to base that on.  The musher in question noticed that he was constantly having to correct his lead dog.  He started watching closer for the trail markers (poles with fluorescent markings).  To his dismay he didn't see any.  Somehow he had drifted off the trail in the white out conditions.  He literally didn't know what direction he was going or where the trail lay.  He decided to trust his lead dog.  Giving her the signal she trotted off confidently in a different direction than he was heading.  Time passed and he was beginning to worry if he had made the correct decision, when a flash in the wall of snow caught his attention.  It was a trail marker.  She had led him safely back to the trail. 

It's still any dog's race. 

Iditarod-Mother Nature Joins the Race

Mother Nature has decided to take a hand in the running of the Iditarod.  Martin Buser was coasting along on a comfortable lead until she stepped in.  The unusually warm weather created lots of overflow (water) along the Yukon River which made for slow going for everyone.  However, the big problem came when Martin, in the lead, ran into a rain storm as they progressed toward the coast of the Bering Sea.  The rain melted the trail underneath him causing his team to work at making a new trail through the heavy melting snow.  The mushers following were able to benefit from his team's hard work.  The result is that he lost time and is now having to rest his team more to recuperate from their exertions.

Now that the teams are approaching the coast they will face more of Mother Nature's fun.  The locals in the area, who are wise in the Bering Sea coast weather, are predicting even higher than normal winds. This could create gusts of blowing, drifting snow that not only blows over the trail but can even obscure the markers, causing some unintentional detours.

Meanwhile the race lead is changing from minute to minute.  Ally Zirkle, Aaron Burmeister, Jake Berkowitz, Mitch Seavy, Martin Buser, and Joar Ulsom are still in the front group.  However, Mitch's son Dallas, who was last year's winner, has started to make his move from the middle.  He has been easing his team along but has now started to shake them up and move along.  Last year he used the same tactic and won the race, so he is a musher to watch.  Jeff King, another four time winner, is also showing signs of making a run for the front.

Lance Macky, four time winner and one of the front runners has had a bit of bad luck.  He broke a tooth at the last checkpoint and has an exposed nerve.  I don't even want to think about the pain in the cold wind.  He is coming into Unalakleet on the coast where a Dental Therapist is waiting to give him some relief.  Lance deals with several medical issues from radical radiation and chemotherapy for a bout with cancer.  Not only does he have dental problems but also damage to the saliva glands that keep him sipping on water to keep his mouth moist.  He also has damage to the nerves in his hands that make the cold a challenge.  He refuses to let any of this slow him down and stays in an upbeat humor all the time.  These mushers are amazing.

If you are interested in following the race in more detail go to www.Iditarod.com and you will find all kinds of fascinating information.  Also, check out a map of Alaska to get a feel for the distance and topography that these teams are crossing. 

Iditarod - Half Way

Things are changing on the Iditarod Trail. 

Martin Buser, a four time winner, has turned the traditional thinking of race strategy on its ear.

On day one of the race Martin defied the usual race wisdom and ran his dogs for 160 miles without a major rest.  He then took his required 24 with a comfortable 7 hour lead.  Most analysts and mushers felt this would ensure his downfall with a tired team that couldn't keep the lead.  Much like a race horse that charges to the front only to run out of steam and end up last across the finish line.  The conventional wisdom is to ease your team into the race building their confidence and conditioning as you go along.  After all it is nearly two weeks of hard running.  Most plan on making their move sometime after the half-way point, which was reached by the leaders today and yesterday.

Martin Buser has trashed this thinking.

Contrary to expectations his team is healthy, eager and running well.  He has finished his required 24 hour and 8 hour layover (I was wrong in the earlier post.  There is only one required 8 hour layover.), while many of the field still have an 8 hour to complete.  This is 8 hours that Martin will be running ahead of the pack keeping his lead well in place.  According to most analysts, if nothing catastrophic happens, it is his race to lose.  Remember this is Alaskan wilderness--anything can and has happened.

At this point, Ally Zirkle, last years second place finisher is in second place but about 3 hours behind Buser.  A surprise is the fourth place with Joar Ulsom a rookie from Norway.  Joar is a rookie (first Iditarod) but hardly a novice having won several top races in Russia and Scandinavia.  While the race may sound close remember that most of those following are from 3 to 9 hours behind Buser with almost half of the distance left.  The race will now be figured in the speed of the dogs and the amount of rest breaks.  Each will attempt to get the most distance with the least rest, keeping in mind that the optimum health and ability of the dogs is the most important thing.

The weather is not cooperating.  It is unseasonably warm at 45 degrees and raining.  The trail which had been frozen to a skating rink is now becoming slushy.  Not fun for mushers or dogs.  They are inland right now following the Yukon River but will soon turn for the coast and begin the arduous trek around the coast of the Bering Sea which is notorious for ferocious winds and cold temperatures.  Some think the rain will turn to snow at that point.

Will Buser rewrite race strategy?  We'll know in about five more days.

Iditarod 41

I am completely and totally immersed in a race taking place thousands of miles away.  I wake up each morning and eagerly go to my ipad and read about the happenings of the night (day for them) before.  It's Iditarod time again.

The Iditarod is an approximately 1100 mile dog sled race over the snow covered and frozen landscape of Alaska.  The race itself was the dream child of a group of mushers (dog sledders) who wanted to keep the art of running dog teams alive.  They dreamed up the idea of a race commemorating the heroic 1925 dog sled run from Nenana to Nome to deliver diphtheria serum, which saved hundreds of lives.  This year is the 41st running of the Iditarod.

Why is it so fascinating?  Well, maybe because these mushers are braving nature on its own terms, no quarter given.  No one knows when they start the race, which usually takes about 11-12 days or two weeks, what Mother Nature will throw against them.  They may prepare for cold and face melting temperatures (like this year). They may endure blizzards and 40 below temperatures (like last year).  Or it may be a combination of both.  Also, it is truly a non-discriminatory test.  Those who run it may be men or women, old, middle or young.  They will most certainly be fit athletes but age, sex, and size won't matter as much as determination and strategy.  The race will go to the one who has the best dog team,  planned the best, developed the best plan of action, and is luckiest. 

At approximately the half way point in the race, the top runners are a prime example.  The leader at this moment, and it can change in a flash, is Lance Mackey, a four time winner at the age of 42.  In second place, is  Sonny Linder at 63, third is Jeff King at 57.  Jeff has also won the Iditarod four times.  Fourth place is Martin Buser, 55, who has won four times and finished 29 times.  Fifth is Jason Mackey, 41, Lance's brother.  Sixth, is Jim Lanier, 73.  Seventh is Aaron Burmeister, 36.  Mitch Seavy is eighth and is 53.  A point to note is that Dallas Seavy, Mitch's son won last year at age 24, and is currently in fifteenth position. 

Ally Zirkle, 43, was second in last years race and is currently in ninth position.  DeeDee Jonrowe, 59,  currently 14th, has placed in the top 10 finishers 15 times.  There are about 14 other women also competing.

It's nice to know sometimes being older is an advantage.  It's also good to know that the men and women can compete equally.

The race itself is well organized with checkpoints where the mushers and dogs can get rest and some food.  There are two mandatory 8 hour rests and one 24 hour.  Each musher has to carry: a sleeping bag, ax, snowshoes, ITC (Iditarod Trail Committee) promotional material, 8 booties per dog, a cooker to boil at least 3 gallons of water (for the dogs and dog food), a vet notebook that is checked at each checkpoint, fuel to heat the cooker, a cable to tie out the dogs, harness, and extra emergency dog food in addition to the regular food.  You may have noticed most of it is for the care and safety of the dogs.  The musher is supposed to take care of himself, however, with every ounce affecting speed and time, they pack light.

The dogs are the focus of extreme care.  Each musher must start with a maximum of 16 dogs and he has to finish with at least 6.  Along the trail if a dog becomes tired, ill, injured or just doesn't seem to be enjoying the run, he may be "dropped off" at one of the checkpoints to be returned to headquarters.  Veterinarians are at each checkpoint to monitor the dogs health and also to handle any problems that may develop.  They have also been called on to treat a few mushers over the years.

One of the most interesting rules concerns the problem of 'edible big game', (moose, caribou and buffalo), killed on the trail in defense of life or property (yours or the dogs). The musher must stop immediately and gut the animal.  He then has to report it at the next checkpoint so the meat can be claimed and processed.  To keep it fair, the following teams must help gut the animal when possible and no team may pass until the gutting is finished and the original musher has proceeded down the trail.  Waste not want not.

This is not an idle rule.  One Alaskan said that a moose is probably one of the most dangerous animals in Alaska.  They are irritable and unpredictable and BIG.  They will often use the trail made by the mushers since the walking is easier on the packed surface.  When a musher sees a moose in the trail he will stop and wait for the moose to decide to move on.  Most of the time they will leave the trail and wander off, but they have been known to decide to fight.  Several years ago, a musher had a moose wade into her dog team and begin to attack and kick her dogs.  She was able to shoot the moose but not before several of her dogs were injured. 

More to come as the Iditarod progresses.