Although the 52nd annual Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race just got underway on Sunday, there’s already been a conflict on the trail.
And while the mushers like to plan ahead of the game, they also have to be ready for the unpredictable.
In this case, a moose.
Wally Robinson, (Bib #39) was traveling last night on a trail with a lot of hills and trees when he felt a giant bump. Much to his surprise, Wally and his dogs ran over a moose at the bottom of the hill!
Earlier, Jesse Homes, (Bib #9), reported that while he was riding, the moose was causing some trouble and kicking at his dogs. In response, Homes punched the moose right in the nose!
Afterwards, Dallas Seavey, (Bib #7) and his team were making their way on the trail when the moose attacked. Dallas did the only thing he could do and shot the moose to defend himself and his dogs. He said it dropped on his sled so it wasn’t a long shot!
However, according to Rule #34 of the Iditarod, in the event that an edible big game animal, i.e., moose, caribou, buffalo, is killed in defense of life or property, the musher must gut the animal and report the incident to a race official at the next checkpoint. Following teams must help gut the animal when possible.
With no time to lose, Dallas completed the task of gutting the moose during his run, and then continued on his way.
According to a post, this incident is just ‘a reminder of how wild and remote the country they are traveling is and how quickly a musher has to respond to danger!’
Here are the top five mushers as of noon Monday.
- Jessie Holmes
- Ryan Redington
- Mille Porsild
- Dallas Seavey
- Hunter Keefe