Fairbanks

As I'm seriously thinking about moving back to the Lower-48 at the end of this year, I thought I'd make a list of things I'll miss about Alaska if I do leave:

Alaska moose news: A Fairbanks, Alaska woman was injured a few days ago in Anchorage, Alaska while attempting to pet a moose, a wild moose. As expected, the moose kicked her.

The moose was reported to be in the Town Square Park area in Anchorage, and had been seen there all day feeding on the trees. The woman, reported to be in her 20s, was kicked in the chest and shoulder by the moose after attempting to pet it. After she was checked by medics, she amazingly didn't have to go to the hospital.

Sigh, I woke up this morning to read that the Northern Lights -- the Aurora Borealis -- were very clearly visible from Fairbanks in the north to Juneau in the south, including all points in between, including Palmer, Alaska, where I was sleeping.

I've signed up twice to receive Northern Lights alerts (using two different email addresses), but for some reason I'm not receiving them. But this one is also my fault, as I left the earphones in my phone last night, and while a friend and former neighbor tried to call me from Wasilla, I never heard it ring.

Sorry I haven't written about the Alaska Iron Dog 2011 race much lately, but I've come down to Seward, Alaska for a vacation, and I've been trying to avoid computers. But I just got online and saw that the race has ended after days of horrible weather, so I thought I'd write a quick note here.

The winner of the 2011 Alaska Iron Dog race is ... drum roll here ... the winner is the Huntington/Olds team, the same team which won the race last year. They came from behind to defeat the Palin/Quam team by about six minutes, and claim the winning prize of $50,000.

Iron Dog race update #2: Lost in the earlier story is that eight out of the original thrity teams that started Alaska's 2011 Iron Dog race have scratched from the contest due to injuries or mechanical problems. I'm finding it hard to find news on the official Iron Dog website, but if you dig hard enough you can find information like this.

Iron Dog race update: The lead Iron Dog "snowmachine" racers have reached Nome, Alaska. The lead team of McKenna and VanMeter won $10,000 for being the first team to pull into Nome, and the second place team of Todd Palin and Quam pulled in a few minutes later to claim a $3,000 prize.

Just reading the story on the Fairbanks News-Miner website, this opening line was pretty funny:

"The lead pack of racers in the Iron Dog snowmachine are sticking together like the duct tape they put on their faces to fend off frostbite."

Wow, there's a lot going on in Alaska in February. Dallas Seavey won the Yukon Quest about a week ago, the Iron Dog snowmachine race just started yesterday, Fur Rondy begins next weekend, and then the Iditarod begins the following weekend.

I remain fascinated by ravens in Alaska, and today a friend passed me a story about ravens in Fairbanks, Alaska. It turns out that the ravens in Fairbanks used to live a more rural life, leaving Fairbanks every night and traveling 30-40 miles to their homes in the woods, and then flying back to Fairbanks the next morning for easy food from the people of Fairbanks.

If you're interested in my favorite Alaska websites, I'm starting a list on my new Mat-Su Valley Programming website. Appropriately enough, the list is named My favorite Alaska websites. You might be surprised to see NASA and the Challenger shuttle referenced on that list; I know I was surprised when I first discovered them.

Dallas Seavey wins the Yukon Quest: Dallas Seavey, age 23, has won the 2011 Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race, making him the youngest winner ever of that race, which ended in Fairbanks, Alaska yesterday after ten days and 1,000 miles.

Dallas won a prize of $28,395 for winning the 2011 Yukon Quest. The race started in Dawson City in the Yukon Territory way back on February 5th. (What were you doing on February 5th? I can't remember.) Twenty-five mushers started the race way back then, and eleven mushers scratched or withdrew from the race.