Post by Pugsley on Mar 17, 2005 4:37:49 GMT
3/15/05 - 11:10 pm Alaskan Standard Time
Well - with Sørlie, Iten, and Seavey all checking out of the White Mountain Checkpoint, I sensed - as I think we all did - that Ramy was probably not going to be the winner of this year's race.
Ramy began dumping all of his non essential gear to prepare for the final push to Nome; I went about my work getting it stowed onto the Beaver silently, each of us lost to our own thoughts. I shook his hand and wished him well on the last leg of the race. In the last few minutes before they departed, I gave each of his dogs a hug and said a few private words of encouragement.
With all his stuff put away - and with the wind chill numbing me solid in spite of my cold weather gear - there was nothing left to do but watch his sled disappear into the darkness. I turned in for the evening and caught some sack time.
3/16/05 - 0900
News had reached us that Sørlie had finished in first place - and that Iten wasn't too far behind him. The weather hadn't improved much overnight - IFR conditions forced me to file a flight plan to Nome Airport directly.
I touched down at Nome about 40 minutes later, secured my plane, and caught a snowmobile lift into town to catch Ramy's finish.
The Final Numbers
Ramy Brooks (#15) Finished 5th Place
Total Time: 9 days, 21 hours, and 30 minutes, with an average speed of 4.594 mph
Hometown: Healy, Alaska
There's nothing more that I can really say - it was an honor to be a part of something like this and to share the air with a great bunch of pilots. Just you wait until next year! Ramy's time will come!
Well - with Sørlie, Iten, and Seavey all checking out of the White Mountain Checkpoint, I sensed - as I think we all did - that Ramy was probably not going to be the winner of this year's race.
Ramy began dumping all of his non essential gear to prepare for the final push to Nome; I went about my work getting it stowed onto the Beaver silently, each of us lost to our own thoughts. I shook his hand and wished him well on the last leg of the race. In the last few minutes before they departed, I gave each of his dogs a hug and said a few private words of encouragement.
With all his stuff put away - and with the wind chill numbing me solid in spite of my cold weather gear - there was nothing left to do but watch his sled disappear into the darkness. I turned in for the evening and caught some sack time.
3/16/05 - 0900
News had reached us that Sørlie had finished in first place - and that Iten wasn't too far behind him. The weather hadn't improved much overnight - IFR conditions forced me to file a flight plan to Nome Airport directly.
I touched down at Nome about 40 minutes later, secured my plane, and caught a snowmobile lift into town to catch Ramy's finish.
The Final Numbers
Ramy Brooks (#15) Finished 5th Place
Total Time: 9 days, 21 hours, and 30 minutes, with an average speed of 4.594 mph
Hometown: Healy, Alaska
There's nothing more that I can really say - it was an honor to be a part of something like this and to share the air with a great bunch of pilots. Just you wait until next year! Ramy's time will come!