John Ross has just completed one of the most grueling endurance races on Earth: Iditarod Trail. The consequences of failure in this event are probably higher than any other. Other competitors were knocked out of this years race by frostbite.
As dr j0n has said “it sounds like it might be the toughest conditions for a long time. Maybe ever.” Oh and he’s done the whole race on a Singlespeed… what a legend.
As background, the race has never before taken the winner more than about 5 days. Anchorage cycling phenom Peter Basinger who I interviewed for the Owners’ Club last year, made it in 3 days, 5 hours and 40 minutes in 2007. By 5th March, competitors had been on the trail for four days and were only about halfway to the finish line with nothing but miles and miles of bad trail or no trail ahead of them.
Jeff Oatley won this years race in a time of 5 days, 19 hours and 34 mins. He was followed by Tracy and Jay Petervary and then Shaggy who arrived shortly after in fourth place. Pete Basinger was the first skier in taking 5th place. Cory Smith took 6th place and Phil Hofstetter 7th. Oatley came in at 10:04 and the others mentioned arrived between 19:28 and 21:48.
R O T H A R . C O M 