WOO-HOO, I'VE FINISHED THE IDITAROD PICTURES!!

Sorry, I didn't mean to shout but I've been working on these since March 25, and I'm so glad to be done.

The photos from the start of the race -- mushers' drawing banquet, ceremonial start in Anchorage and the actual start in Willow -- are here: http://northernvisions.smugmug.com/Sports/Iditarod-XXXIX-The-Start/16525031_jXyVr#1244052743_LYpey

Photos from the finish in Nome are here: http://northernvisions.smugmug.com/Sports/Iditarod-XXXIX-The-Finish/16524216_wHkwU#1243963418_Gzg27


I've captioned the pictures, so you'll know who's who and what's going on.

I have wondered about the outcome of your annual Iditarod chronicle, but did not want to ask and quietly waited. I will go and look and study when I take a break this morning, and look forward to it a lot.

your Iditerod photos. I took a quick peak . . . #24 with the thumbs up! Look at that big grin! And actually, lots of happy people.

I'll look more closely later.

Thanks for posting.

And a great spot for the ceremonial start again. I look forward to your shots every year.

I can tell it is a work of love though.

There is so much misinformation out there about sled dog racing in general and the Iditarod in particular that I feel compelled to dispel some of the myths. This is not a cruel sport, the dogs love what they do, and the mushers, who come from all walks of life, are fascinating people,

Of course, I got slammed in the Lounge, as I do every year, when I posted the links over there. I guess they're just so convinced that they're right, they refuse to look at the facts.

and to see this special event with your eyes. The amount of work obviously is too huge to imagine, thank you for it.
I sat down with a nice long drink and just clicked and clicked and was in awe of something as I've said before I would have never known exists.
There is a woman I know here who likes to travel to AK once a year. I directed her to your photos!

You really capture the essence of this. I hope you sell a ton of photos.

I almost missed this. Will be off to look and then share. Oh and your daughter with *1 of the most gorgeous little boys in the world suddenly got wordy on the blog then went back to normal and normal now doesn't seem like enough at all.










* As in not the one with 3 of the most handsome boys in the world.



Edit- change word from gorgeous to handsome because the 2 older boys might not like being called gorgeous.

I'm pretty proud of the boys, too. The oldest, Sage, has been taking violin at school this year and was in a HUGE orchestra concert two nights ago that included all the sixth-grade orchestra students from the west-side elementary schools, three middle schools and two high schools. They were awesome -- I almost cried. :)

As for Kristina, I think she's been a bit subdued of late. Riaz's favorite cousin lost her 10-month-old baby, who had been having troubles since birth, and the family is quite sad. The cousin is 40, had IVF and is not likely to have another chance. Plus, there are only a few weeks until K's due date and they're preparing for the temporary move to San Jose where the doctor and hospital are.

about the loss of the baby. Her brief post on it was poignant with out saying too much.

You two grandsons still in AK are growing up too fast. I am assuming the adventurers are doing well in CO and staying busy.


Back to the photos, really liking the facebook and twitter buttons, makes it so much easier to spread the word. The photos themselves are great and some of us can see even more growth in your abilities. Your style still shines through too.