Safety concerns over snowmachiners, mushers on trails debated
Published Tuesday, April 1, 2008
ANCHORAGE -- One dog died this year after being hit by a snowmachine on the Iditarod Trail. Another was critically injured in the All Alaska Sweepstakes when Lance Mackey's team was rear-ended by a snowmachine.
The incidents have raised questions about the safety of mushers and dogs and snowmachines.
At least one veteran musher, four-time Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race champion Martin Buser, has spent almost 30 years training dog teams on the Iditarod Trail and trails in the Susitna Valley. Buser said he feels safer there now than he did 10 years ago.
The reason is simple, he added: There's less traffic.
Buser said he doesn't think the Mackey accident is representative of a new or growing problem. If anything, he said, the problem has been declining for years as gas costs have discouraged snowmachiners.
"There are simply fewer travelers out there," Buser said.
Bill Merchant of Chickaloon, who organizes the human-powered Iditarod Invitational Race, in March rode the Iditarod Trail to Nome on a mountain bike with his wife and said he was struck by how few people were out moving around the country.
"What we noticed was there was a lot less traffic this year," he said. "We didn't have anything I'd even call a close call (with a snowmachine) at all."
That has not always been the case. A mountain biker in the 1999 Iditasport race was run down by a snowmachine, and that same year, a man walking on a trail near Glennallen lost his leg after being hit by a snowmachine. Twice that winter, Iditarod musher Steve Adkins had teams hit by snowmachines while training in the Susitna Valley.
The section of the Iditarod Trail between Safety and Nome was busy over the weekend because of the All Alaska Sweepstakes race. Many people snowmachined out to the Safety Roadhouse, about 20 miles from Nome, to see the racers come through, then sped back to town to catch the finish of the race.
Last month during the Iditarod, Finland, Minn., musher Jennifer Freking's team was hit by a snowmachine on the Yukon River, killing one dog and leaving another permanently injured. A bunch of people on snowmachines were at the time coming and going from a potlatch in the village of Nulato.
While appeals to snowmachiners to slow down won't hurt, it is the price of gas that is making the real difference, Buser said. In some villages, gas is priced at $7 a gallon.
The change is hard to miss.
"There is quite a lot less traffic than there was in the old days," Buser said.
Comments
This really boils down to personal responsibility. No government or race officials needs to mandate or regulate it further.
Snowmachiners should slow it down- Dog mushers should put reflective collars on there dogs, reflective strips on there sleds and on there outer layer of clothing.
It is nearly impossible to see a head lamp as they are dim and they look like a distant approaching snowmachiner. Half the time the dog musher is looking to the side or whatever and the light is not even shining in the direction traffic would be approaching. If the dog mushers would use some common sense this wouldnt happen.
You obviously don't know any mushers. All the mushers in the races have reflective tape and clothing on all their dogs, their sleds and themselves. But other than that you are right about it boiling down to personal responsibility. Snowmachiners are welcome to go as fast as they want but when you know there's a race in the area use some common sense and expect mushers and dog teams. And being so drunk you can't even tell that your about to run into something probably isn't a good idea either.
Utilizing reflective materials is a great idea, but, as was seen with the accident with Jen Freking's team during the Iditarod, that is often not sufficient. According to her post on the Sled Dog Central Discussion Forum, she and her husband used reflective ganglines, tuglines, had reflective tape on harnesses, their sled bags, and on their snowsuits. That should have made them highly visible to approaching snow machines. Yet, they were hit and one dog died. Speed (and alcohol)can greatly impair judgment and one's ability to react quickly enough to avoid collisions.
OK, It's probably just me, but living in Alaska, I've learned to ALWAYS use caution. Around every corner, every blind spot, or dark,unlit spot in my path, is going to be a messy, life ending collision with a moose. If I am driving too fast to stop when he steps out, I won't be seeing my family anymore.
Whether it's driving a car and speeding around blind corners, or off road, speeding in the dark or over hills, if your visibility is limited, ALWAYS expect the unexpected! SLOW DOWN! Have an escape plan to avoid collisions in mind. Watch for the ignorant, the weary, the half frozen or intoxicated pedestrian, who may be wandering in your path.
I don't feel driving an off road vehicle, is a reason to be wreckless. It's always a shame when someones lack of forsight causes their early demise, but it's truely tragic and frustrating, when the price is the life of an innocent bystander.
Remember this young jedi. Do not take the the path in front of you for granted, for it is often filled with surprises.
This isn't an issue just with mushing races. A few years ago, I had a close call with two snow machines on the Tanana River just outside of Fairbanks. I was skijoring (during the day) and 2 snow machines passed within 20 feet of me at breakneck speed, even though I was waving my hands and ski poles, and even though they had the entire river to get around me. Luckily my dogs did not panic and bolt in front of one of the snow machines. As it turns out, the snow machiners were racing in the Iron Dog and were on their way to the finish line. After they passed me, they had to pass through a section of the Tanana River that gets a lot of day use by skiers and people walking their dogs--and it was pretty busy that day. I don't have any opposition to the Iron Dog race, but the racers should have shown a bit more discretion while passing through an area with other trail users.
Interesting how this article ignores the fact, that in both the Freking and Mackey incidents, the snowmachine operators were intoxicated. Wouldn't surprise me if this wasn't intentional on the part of the Associated Press to further a certain political agenda.
Be that as it may it seems like one good way to prevent such incidents from happening in the future is to simply enforce current state law and start punishing drunks on sleds. Maybe next year, state troopers, city police departments, and village public safety officers can start watching bars, lodges, and taverns along the route a little more closely.
>>at breakneck speed<<
That is what defines racing!! What in the world were you thinking to be in the middle of a race course, skijoring? Do you also ride a bicycle on the Dalton and bitch about the truck traffic?
Foxalaska,
There is one big difference between my riding a bike on the Dalton (which I would not do by the way) and skijoring on the Tanana River--I would be aware of the truck traffic on the Dalton. I do not pay attention to the Iron Dog race so I did not know racers were scheduled to be coming up the river, and there were no notices at the river access or along the river notifying people of the event. Unlabeled stakes placed out in the river ice, with no one nearby to make sure people understood why those stakes were there, hardly constitutes adequate warning. You can be sure that if I knew the racers were coming through, I would not have been on the river. This is my whole point. There is the potential for serious accidents to occur outside of dog mushing races. And there is the potential for another dog mushing/snow machine accident in Fairbanks when the Yukon Quest mushers finish here. I am only suggesting a little more thought go into planning any of these events so unfortunate accidents don't occur.
So akhusky, I sugggest you do just what you say, do some research to see what races are going on then STAY OUT OF THE WAY! Your comment could be one of the villagers saying, " Hey, I was coming home from the Potlach and I don't pay no attention to those dog races'. I bet you would ride your bike down the Dalton and expect everyone to get outta your way. This article about the impared snowmobiler and your post (with your expecting everyone to cut a wide berth around you) are perfect examples of irresponsible travellers
Come on aksnowmo, the Tanana River was not created for the Iron Dog. It is public, and skiers are allowed to use it, even when the Iron Dog is being run. If the race, and the behavior of the racers, takes precident over public safety, and if people take the attitude of "It's the pedestrian's responsibility to stay out of the snow-machiners way", then we should end all snow machine races on public lands right now. The same is true for any people operating motorized vehicles in any venue. (I am a skiier and a snow machiner. These two recreational activities CAN co-exist, with a little courtesy)
Aksnowmo,
That's your opinion. I am not a follower of sports of any kind, so I do not automatically think of checking into races before I go out for the day. I am sure I am not the only one who falls into this category. If after my experience, I went back out and did the same thing all over, then I would agree with you. But to run high speed races into or out of a city, and not very explicitly mark and label the race track is irresponsible. Your attitude is that anyone who doesn't pay attention to races deserves to get run over. If the sport is dangerous enough to seriously harm people, and the race track is running right through the middle of a multiple use area that on any other day is safe, then the responsibility lies in the hands of the race organizers to make the area safe. My experience as an example of the potential for someone to get seriously hurt the way things are currently conducted, like it or not.
It works both ways. Were the trails marked warning snow machiners of mushers and were these trails originally made for mushers or snow machines. Snowmachines mark and use your trails and mushers do the same but break your trails the old fashion way not with machines.
"It works both ways. Were the trails marked warning snow machiners of mushers"
I agree. Trails should be well-marked and labeled near any settlements, regardless of the event. The only caveat I would add is that trail etiquette should still apply. In other words, dogs (mushers) have the right of way. A dog team traveling 10-12 mph will do a lot less damage than a snow machine going at just about any speed, and machines are more easily controlled than a dog team.
Lately the theme around here seems to be
"Personal Responsibility and Public Safety: Woe is me and why isn't anyone doing anything about it?"
AKhusky, I find it interesting that you obviously use the DNM and take the time to repeatedly post comments to online articles involving some aspect of a sporting, but don't recognize the entire week of the irondog that there is at least one article per day posted in the paper about the race and that the race finishes every saturday afternoon, typically within an 4-8 hour window, at Pikes...
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