Ophir

by Channel 2 News staff Friday, March 12, 2010 Editor's note: This story has been changed to correct that Tom Thurston is not a rookie. ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Tom Thurston has scratched from the 2010 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race , officials said Friday. Thurston, of Oak Creek, Colo., cited the performance of his team as the main reason. He was down to nine dogs when he scratched at 8:38 a.m. Friday in Ophir . He completed the 2009 Iditarod as a rookie.

by Kevin Wells Wednesday, March 5, 2008 MCGRATH, Alaska -- The Last Great Race is nearly halfway complete. Before too long, the first musher should reach Cripple. It's a pretty good bet that musher will be Paul Gebhardt. He was the first out of Ophir, pulling out at 12:52 p.m. Cripple is 59 miles from Ophir. He was followed out of the checkpoint by Hugh Neff at 4:18 p.m., Zack Steer at 6:13 p.m., Silvia Wills at 6:38 p.m. and DeeDee Jonrowe at 6:45 p.m. The rest of the top teams seem settled in for their 24 hour layovers.

by The Associated Press Wednesday, March 11, 2009 TAKOTNA, Alaska -- Four-time Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race champion Martin Buser breezed through the tiny town of Takotna , spending less than a minute Wednesday before jumping on his sled runners and snatching the lead. He checked into Ophir a little before 5 p.m. Buser chose to push on but other mushers -- many of them the superstars of the sport -- were pausing in Takotna, giving their teams a long rest at the checkpoint about 700 miles from the finish line in Nome . There was a method to their madness, they said.

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race's standings received new leaders as teams approach Cripple on Thursday morning. 71-year-old Jim Lanier of Chugiak had the jump start on the leaderboard when he took off at 11:25 p.m. Wednesday out of Ophir, but he has yet to take his 24-hour mandatory layover. Trent Herbst, of Anchorage, left over an hour later at 12:35 a.m. Thursday out of Ophir. GPS tracking, as of 8:30 a.m. Thursday, showed Lanier still in the lead with Herbst trailing in second.

A new lead pack has emerged on the Iditarod trail, with four mushers pressing on past Wednesday's lead pack, which remained in Takotna Wednesday afternoon. The four top mushers are now in Ophir. Now leading the Last Great Race is Robert Nelson of Kotzebue, who just briefly stopped in Takotna and has now checked into Ophir. Behind him in a tight pack -- three mushers in four minutes -- are Trent Herbst and Cim Smyth. Kelley Griffin came into Ophir just nine minutes behind the pack.

A hand injury early Thursday morning has caused Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race officials to withdraw 2004 champion Mitch Seavey from the race at Ophir. According to the Iditarod Trail Committee, Seavey was cutting open a bale of straw at the Ophir checkpoint when he injured his fingers. Race Marshal Mark Nordman examined Seavey’s wounds and determined at 4:11 a.m. that they were severe enough to warrant his withdrawal. ”I literally flinched. I felt like I cut my own hand again.

by Channel 2 News staff Thursday, March 12, 2009 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Two-time defending champion Lance Mackey has taken the lead in Iditarod 37 , leaving the ghost town of Iditarod with at least a 2 1/2-hour lead early Friday morning. Mackey overtook Aaron Burmeister and Hugh Neff in between Ophir and Iditarod to seize the lead Thursday afternoon and into the evening. According to Iditarod.com, Mackey pulled into Iditarod at 5:20 p.m. Thursday.

by The Associated Press Thursday, March 12, 2009 TAKOTNA, Alaska --  Aaron Burmeister  took the lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on Thursday heading from Ophir to the ghost town of Iditarod . And a Norwegian musher had to abandon the race after a sled accident that organizers say probably left him with internal injuries. Burmeister is running his 12th Iditarod. He was first out of Ophir, a trail checkpoint 687 miles from the finish in Nome.

Lance Mackey narrowly retained his lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Wednesday afternoon, pressured by other mushers on his heels and Martin Buser's rise through the ranks after an unconventional fast run to Rohn. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, GPS tracking and race standings showed Mackey leading the race about 20 miles out from the town of Iditarod, with Sonny Lindner's team in second place about five miles behind him. Jeff King, the only other musher to leave the previous checkpoint of Ophir, was about in third 15 miles behind Lindner.

Most of the first 30 mushers into the Takotna checkpoint on the Iditarod trail have declared their 24-hour layovers. Just four mushers have gone beyond. Those that stayed had great things to say about the hospitality. "When I got here, they fed me a steak. When I got up, they fed me a breakfast burrito. I said, 'Do you do this for everybody?' (They said) 'We've been doing this for years.' I must have been a fool for the last 20 Iditarods not stopping here for the 24,” said four-time Iditarod champion Martin Buser, who was the first team to the check point.

Lance Mackey narrowly retained his lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Wednesday afternoon, pressured by other mushers on his heels and Martin Buser's rise through the ranks after an unconventional fast run to Rohn. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, GPS tracking and race standings showed Mackey leading the race about 20 miles out from the town of Iditarod, with Sonny Lindner's team in second place about five miles behind him. Jeff King, the only other musher to leave the previous checkpoint of Ophir, was about in third 15 miles behind Lindner.

Iditarod musher Aliy Zirkle has passed Mitch Seavey on the path to Nulato. Zirkle took her mandatory 8-hour stay in Galena, giving Seavey an opportunity to pass her on the trail.  Seavey left Galena at 9:20 p.m. last night, Zirkle hours later at 11:53 p.m. Zirkle made up the time on the trail, regaining the lead from Seavey and checking in to Nulato at 6:13 a.m. this morning.  Seavey arrived 3 hours behind her at 9:23 a.m., followed by...

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race pushed through the halfway point with the top five teams making into Ruby on Friday morning. Mitch Seavey was the first to arrive at 6:00 a.m., but Aliy Zirkle checked in hours later at 8:55 a.m. and then hit the trails at 9:04 a.m. making her the early race leader on Friday morning. Dallas Seavey and John Baker remain in the top five checking into to Ruby before 9:00 a.m. Nome's Aaron Burmeister cracked the top five list by making it into Ruby at 9:05 a.m. Friday, and it's worth noting he still has his full roster of sixteen dogs where as the rest of the leaderboard has dropped one or two dogs.

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Raceis halfway over, with a few mushers delaying their mandatory 24-hour layovers -- and abandoning most hope of catching up with the leaders -- in an all-out drive for the trail's midpoint. Race standings updated at 2:33 p.m. Thursday say musher Jim Lanier was the first to reach Cripple at 1:55 p.m., darting out of Ophir at 11:25 p.m. Wednesday. The run gives Lanier GCI's Dorothy G. Page Halfway Award, as well as a $3,000 prize, for being first to reach the village halfway along the race's 975-mile course.

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race's standings received new leaders as teams approach Cripple on Thursday morning. 71-year-old Jim Lanier of Chugiak had the jump start on the leaderboard when he took off at 11:25 p.m. Wednesday out of Ophir, but he has yet to take his 24-hour mandatory layover. Trent Herbst, of Anchorage, left over an hour later at 12:35 a.m. Thursday out of Ophir. GPS tracking, as of 8:30 a.m. Thursday, showed Lanier still in the lead with Herbst trailing in second.

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race's lead temporarily changed hands Wednesday, as most mushers settled down at Takotna for a required 24-hour layover -- but a trailblazing father and son forged their way on to Ophir. GPS tracking and race standings both showed four-time champion Martin Buser and Rohn Buser at Ophir Wednesday afternoon, arriving at 12:19 p.m. and 1:34 p.m. respectively. A third musher, Jim Lanier, left Takotna headed for Ophir at 3:07 p.m. The Busers' lead is likely to be taken back tomorrow, however, by Tuesday's leader -- Aliy Zirkle, winner of the 2000 Yukon Quest -- who has already had more than 16 hours of downtime after checking into Takotna at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race musher Trent Herbst was first into the ghost town of Iditarod -- the halfway point of the race -- Thursday morning. Herbst arrived at 5:29 a.m. with 14 dogs, making it from Takotna to Iditarod in slightly over 14 hours. He said the trail from Ophir was in good condition, and added that the appearance of the northern lights overnight was a big bonus. As the first musher into Iditarod, Herbst wins this year’s GCI Dorothy Page Halfway Award as well as $3,000 in gold nuggets.

A hand injury early Thursday morning has caused Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race officials to withdraw 2004 champion Mitch Seavey from the race at Ophir. According to the Iditarod Trail Committee, Seavey was cutting open a bale of straw at the Ophir checkpoint when he injured his fingers. Race Marshal Mark Nordman examined Seavey’s wounds and determined at 4:11 a.m. that they were severe enough to warrant his withdrawal. ”I literally flinched. I felt like I cut my own hand again.

A new lead pack has emerged on the Iditarod trail, with four mushers pressing on past Wednesday's lead pack, which remained in Takotna Wednesday afternoon. The four top mushers are now in Ophir. Now leading the Last Great Race is Robert Nelson of Kotzebue, who just briefly stopped in Takotna and has now checked into Ophir. Behind him in a tight pack -- three mushers in four minutes -- are Trent Herbst and Cim Smyth. Kelley Griffin came into Ophir just nine minutes behind the pack.

Most of the first 30 mushers into the Takotna checkpoint on the Iditarod trail have declared their 24-hour layovers. Just four mushers have gone beyond. Those that stayed had great things to say about the hospitality. "When I got here, they fed me a steak. When I got up, they fed me a breakfast burrito. I said, 'Do you do this for everybody?' (They said) 'We've been doing this for years.' I must have been a fool for the last 20 Iditarods not stopping here for the 24,” said four-time Iditarod champion Martin Buser, who was the first team to the check point.