March 20
Trent pulled in to Koyuk at 919AM this afternoon after a 8
hr, 6.26 mph, 50 mile crossing over sea of the Norton Sound. This leg of the 1925 Serum Run was made
famous by Leonhard Seppala who chose to go over the Sea instead of along the
coast to save time. By the time Seppala
took the serum outside of Shaktoolik there were 28 cases of diphtheria, and
several deaths in Nome and things were getting more desperate by the hour. Seppala’s bold move to even go, and to cross
in blizzard conditions with winds over 60 mph and wind chill temperatures of
-100F saved over a day of time in delivering the serum, and is considered the
greatest feat in the history of dog sledding.
Picture of Leonhard, a slightly better look at the map from Shaktoolik to Koyuk, a team crossing the Sound, and Balto the Serum Run sled dog who lives in memorial in Central Park New York City.
Trent checked in to Koyuk with 12 dogs, and is currently running in 64th place out of the 78 teams that started the race.
Tim