The SledIditatrod 38-2010
"The Last Great Race"
This quotation was taken from the Iditarod.com website:
You can’t compare it to any other competitive event in the world! A race over 1150 miles of the roughest, most beautiful terrain Mother Nature has to offer. She throws jagged mountain ranges, frozen river, dense forest, desolate tundra and miles of windswept coast at the mushers and their dog teams. Add to that temperatures far below zero, winds that can cause a complete loss of visibility, the hazards of overflow, long hours of darkness and treacherous climbs and side hills, and you have the Iditarod. A race extraordinaire, a race only possible in Alaska.
From Anchorage, in south central Alaska, to Nome on the western Bering Sea coast, each team of 12 to 16 dogs and their musher cover over 1150 miles in 10 to 17 days.
According to Times online, This year, a Jamaican is vying to become the first black musher to complete the annual contest. Newton Marshall, 27, a former horseback tour guide, is the latest winter-sports hero to emerge from the Caribbean island
Yesterday was clearly one of the most memorable days of my life, I got to be apart of history in the making.Being one of three Jamaicans present there in Willow, Alaska, ( Newton and his manager being the other two) I waved the Jamaican flag high and proud. Newton is a sensation with the media not because he is an anomaly, but because he is strong, determine and confident. He is representing a person, country, region, a race, a world.
The slogans adopted are "Rootin for Newton" and Mush Mon. Say a prayer for him and the dogs as he takes on this race of endurance. Currently he is 43 of 71 mushers. All things considered, he is doing extremely well for a rookie from the tropics. If you want to track his movements the website Iditarod.com will give you the standing. Please enjoy the pictures.
Jamaica Representing
Newton Marshall
Newton and Michelle
Newton and the Iditarider during Ceremonial start in Anchorage
One of the slogans
Supporters
Newton out there with his 16 canine buddies. Hard work taking care of all of them for 1,049 miles!!!
Praying with Newton
There was Usain Bolt, but now there is Newton Marshall.
Lance Mackey, 3 time Iditarod winner and Newton's mentor.
Rachel from Calgary Canada, where the 1988 Bobsled team performed, wanted to be apart of history in the making with the 2010 Dogsled team.
"Rootin for Newton
Michelle great blogg, thanks for sharing this great experience. For the first time I was able to learn alot about this race, My son studied about the race at school and followed Marshall. Congrats to him, job well done.
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