[WIND BLOWING]
TIM: When I'm out there, I think
this trail hasn't changed in thousands of years, you know.
I'm sharing that trail with ancestors,
and with people that went out there to find gold,
you know, in the 1890s.
There's nothing that I know of that's like it.
And when you're on the trail, it's you and that trail alone.
FRANK: The Iditarod trail Invitational, it's a race
of 350 miles to McGrath starting from Anchorage.
For the people who want to keep going,
you can go for 1000 miles to represent the entire Iditarod sled dog race
up to Nome, the Bering Sea.
The race can be done either on foot,
on a bike, or on cross-country ski.
TROY: Nothing will challenge you, I think,
quite like the Iditarod trail Invitational would.
RJ: It's one of those races where really anything can happen.
MAN 1: This is the epitome of Winter Ultras.
MAN 2: This is the big one. Certainly, going to Nome,
I imagine, has got to be the toughest bicycle race on Earth.
And going to McGrath isn't probably all that far behind.
BILL: My history of the Iditarod trail began in 1998.
I heard about a race from Knik to McGrath.
And I was a musher at the time.
So I took the front end of my dog team
and went and did the race to McGrath skijoring.
One year on the trail to McGrath,
and I was addicted.
And I've been back every year since, either as a competitor,
or as race marshal slash trail breaker.
I met Frank when I was planning
to do the 2014 race.
I couldn't have asked for a better partner in this experience.
FRANK: How far will we be able to go this year?
What kind of decision will I have to take
to bring me to the finish line.
You need to be prepared for
whatever Mother Nature decides to throw at us.
You don't have to take a decision according to someone else,
or following the rules of something. Here there's no rules.
The rules is try to stay alive,
and if something is wrong, you are the only one
responsible for the decision you took.
And that's really exciting.
MAN: All right, here we go.
KATHI: I know Tim Hewitt has walked on a stress fracture for 500 miles.
So he can do it.
He's back for his tenth go
to go to Nome.
TIM: What's bringing me back this time is I want to do the bicycle.
The last few times I've had a purpose each time that I've come.
This year I just want to get to Nome on my terms,
and we'll see what happens.
Until I came to Alaska, I didn't really know what wilderness was.
[CHUCKLES] But I was very attracted to it.
When you're in it, there's just no sign that humans have touched it.
WOMAN: Thanks, everyone, for coming.
This is our 16th annual event.
Cut off times is four days to Winter Lake,
five days to Rainy Pass Lodge,
six days to Rohn,
ten days to McGrath, and 30 to Nome.
Evacs are your responsibility.
I'm not going to give you all the pricing
but don't scratch and run.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
WOMAN: I'm afraid of a lot of things out there
and that's one of the reasons I do stuff.
I'm actually kind of a fearful person by nature.
I don't like that about myself, so...
my solution it to confront my fears.
You got to go out there and push yourselves and that's my inner calling.
You can't grow by sitting idle.
FRANK: We don't challenge ourselves anymore.
And I think that's one of the opportunities that this kind of race offers.
KATHI: There's one saying that Bill has that we all have cracks in ourselves.
And then we come back the next year
to see if we've done something about those cracks.
TIM: It's not something to take lightly.
I know that's a concern of Bill's,
is that people don't appreciate
how bad it can be out there.
TROY: There are always risks around every corner.
Thin ice across rivers, that's something that you assess,
I guess, minute by minute.
GUY: More than having respect for it,
you better be prepared to know what you're going to do when you get into trouble.
JAY: As much as those conditions make me nervous,
I kind of like those decisions.
I think it keeps you aware,
keeps you alert, and you better be.
It's all about the risk you want to take.
How willing are you to spend the rest of your life
without your fingers, or your feet?
Or how those that you love
spend the rest of their lives without you?
Because that's the consequences of not being prepared out here.
Feels great.
Feels like how I left it.
TIM: I'm anxious because I'm on a bike
and I don't have the same level of confidence
in my abilities on the bike.
Always love these last minute adjustments.
WOMAN: Okay, less than two minutes.
[SHOT FIRES]
[PEOPLE CHEERING]
BILL: I have never told anybody what they need to survive.
I have let people make their own decisions out here.
And then my responsibility
is to sit here and sweat blood
and hope that I made the right decision
when I told them, "Yes, you can come do this."
So when I make that decision, and I don't have a board.
When I make that decision, it's on me.
And what I'm saying to that person
is, "Okay, you've convinced me
"that you're not going to hurt yourself or die on me out here."
TROY: First couple of minutes are always intense.
Everyone's burning off some sugars.
Everyone's pretty excited about the Trail.
In the end, you know, you just got to ride your own line.
Do your best
to stay upright and frosty.
FRANK: On the Iditarod trail it's going to be my fourth edition.
In 2012 I've done it on foot
and I've done the 350 miles.
I said if we go to Nome then I'm going to go with a fat bike.
So that was in 2014.
And I had a huge meltdown.
And I poorly managed that situation.
Last year I tried to get back to 1000 miles
and I had to stop because I'd been stuck in a blizzard for three days.
So I thought, "Okay, 2017, let's go for it."
So here I am
hoping to be able to go to Nome this time.
-MAN 1: You're good. -MAN 2: We're good.
Gotta get me looking fast one time.
That'll be much better than this struggling.
TROY: Well, it's just become a push-fest on Flathorn Lake.
There's a lot of overflow,
and it's very punchy, the snow is very soft.
TIM: Overflow is caused on lakes and rivers.
If we have a lot of heavy snow,
it causes the ice to settle.
The ice has little cracks in it.
And when the ice settles, it puts more pressure on the water below,
and the water comes up through the cracks in the ice
and fills all the low spots.
And I've always told racers,
"If there's water in the trail, cross the water.
"If you step off the trail, you may step into crotch-deep slushy."
-MAN 1: Everything okay? -MAN 2: Yeah.
-MAN 1: Done? -MAN 2: Yeah.
MAN 1: It's not pretty. Beginner.
Keep working.
WOMAN: Hi.
-MAN: Good stuff, guys. -WOMAN: Thanks.
INTERVIEWER: How are you feeling?
MAN 1: Hopefully, get some drying going
and probably take off, I don't know...
in half hour or 45 minutes. Maybe an hour.
-INTERVIEWER: Mm-hmm. -Something like that.
Hey!
-MAN 2: Oh, yeah. Looking good. -MAN 1: Old Man Winter.
Yeah. I just saw myself.
[ALL LAUGHING]
-We'll hopefully make it to Finger Lake... -MAN: Mm-hmm.
...before I fall apart.
I thought with the snow
it was going to be slower but we're still moving pretty good.
So that's awesome.
Not too far back, him and Phil look like they're riding together.
-Where are we? -Right there.
Feels good to be dry.
See you down the trail, eh?
KEVIN: I've lived in Alaska for 15 years.
But there's never a comfort level here.
I can leave my house for a bike ride at night, and I get nervous.
I think that's kind of the draw of Alaska
is there is that challenge
of trying to feel like you've got some sort of control, and you don't.
KEVIN: Man, you guys are out here! Ah.
-What's that? -MAN: How you doing, buddy?
KEVIN: Oh, hanging in there.
-It's not too bad. -MAN: How's the trail?
KEVIN: It's been good. Especially since Yentna it's been good.
There's big chunk of overflow for a while.
-That kind of woke me up. -MAN: Yeah.
Did you go through it all?
KEVIN: Yeah, yeah, I had to put on waders
and went through it and then I went back and found the way around it.
So...
It's good, it wakes you up. You need something a little different out there.
Otherwise nod off.
-Enjoy the evening, man. -MAN: Yeah, I'll see you later.
MAN: Looking forward to some sleep.
We should be there.
-I don't know. I'm not... -[CHATTING INDISTINCTLY]
RJ: We stopped at Cindy's cabin, slept there for four, five hours.
Had food, night and in the morning.
So we'll just probably pop here for a quick snack
and warm beverage and then carry on for the day.
It was a bit tough yesterday.
Actually today I'm feeling really good.
FRANK: If the conditions are fine you don't want to stop.
Because let's say I stop here, I enjoy the moment,
but the storm is may be coming.
Tomorrow it may be totally different.
So what I haven't today in a good condition,
may be much harder tomorrow if it's snowing.
Or when the trail is not in such a good condition.
So it's more the unknown.
It's just not knowing what's going to happen next hour.
And that's one of the reasons I'm coming here.
For the most part, I really, really enjoy being out there.
People say, "Why do you keep going back?"
I like it out there, you know.
And I like the solitude.
-TIM: Going good, right? -MAN: Yeah.
It was okay.
I mean, it's... The bike's a little different than pulling the sled.
I'm not that good with tire pressures and such.
So I was really squirrelly.
Yeah, I tried it in 2015, but it was unsuccessful.
MAN: Okay.
TIM: I got to get this stupid thing done.
[BOTH LAUGHING]
-FRANK: No more. -TIM: Yeah, no more.
That's my bucket list item.
-MAN: And back to foot. -No more.
[ALL LAUGHING]
RJ: I think people always ask, "Why do you come back?"
I had a lot of people ask me that question, you know,
"You went the first time, you were able to finish the race,
"why would you go back?"
I think a lot of people give similar answers.
I think there's something about the trail that is very,
you know, that lures you back in.
And it's an incredibly magical place, and a magical feeling.
And I think, yeah, it's easy once you've been away from it for a while
to want to go back and feel that again.
It's pretty windy out there.
Oh gosh, the wind.
Mostly I just couldn't really see upright on the bike,
so I had to push it.
[MAN COUGHING]
All right. Nice.
-Hey, hey, awesome job! -[WHOOPING]
WOMAN: Oh, yeah.
-Welcome! -Thank you.
BILL: Right now we've got a rookie
with two of our top veterans, you know.
I'm pretty impressed with Neil Beltchenko.
And that big smile he came through this blizzard with into Rob.
That is way impressive.
That's a badass young man.
KEVIN: Well, it'll be sweet if no one else came.
'Cause it just gets crowded quick.
We left the Rainy Lodge at two o'clock yesterday.
We bivvy'd for four hours and it's been nonstop.
Probably what, 30 miles of pushing, or more.
It's bad wind.
It's like filling the trail in pretty quick.
So I think it's going to be the same for everyone.
It's a long 80 miles.
And with this wind
it's gonna be kinda rough out there, I think.
Tough to be blown into.
JAY: Well, we say, traveling on the Iditarod trail,
I don't need to answer the phone.
I don't need to answer to anybody.
I just need to take care of myself and keep moving.
There's also a mentality of enjoying what you're doing.
I don't like the word "suffering." Hate it.
I don't like being called crazy.
I volunteered to do this myself.
I sign up for it, I pay money for it,
I work at it, I've turned it into a living.
I enjoy it.
TIM: It's a really special place.
You go inside of yourself and it's a whole different world of hyper focus.
And your aching legs and the screaming blizzard
becomes part of the background.
If someone was watching you do this,
they would think the conditions were horrible.
But right now you're in your little place,
and it's not really that bad.
[WIND BLOWING]
TIM: You do think about the trail
and when it's good and you're happy
and, you know, you're pinching yourself
because you can't believe you have this opportunity.
You also know that it's going to get bad.
When the trail is good,
you want to take what the trail will give you
and really make time.
Because I know it's going to get bad.
And some people, I think, get into negative places
when that trail gets bad, when that storm comes in,
when that headwind starts blowing.
But I know it's coming.
So I'm kind of prepared for it.
I'm happy when it isn't like that
but I know it's coming.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
TIM: My bike went through the ice.
My shifter was frozen and I just forced it
and it wouldn't do anything.
I kept mistakenly clicking the up gear.
You know, and I was fussing with it.
So I was okay when I was stuck in third,
but when it got up to 11, I was in trouble.
-MAN: Gotcha. -I screwed around for about three hours with that.
How far is Rohn?
Twenty miles? Oh, I thought we were almost around.
All right. I better walk to keep warm.
KEVIN: Rohn is about 130 miles
from the finish in McGrath.
In a way we're on the easy part of the race
for the 350.
You've made it across the Alaska Range.
If you've made it this far,
and you're physically in good shape,
you've probably got McGrath.
And that feels good.
-MAN 1: I'll get you something warm to drink, okay? -RJ: Please.
-MAN 1: Hot coco? -Hot coco would be great.
RJ: Done.
MAN 2: Where did you bivvy last night?
Uh, at the pass did you see that little cabin?
It was a little cabin on the right. You can't get in it.
So we just bivvy'd there.
It was so windy.
It was unbelievable, we could barely move.
So we just pulled over. We actually made a fire.
Frank is not doing great.
He's coughing, hacking up a lung.
-Oh, really? -I think he might be done here, too.
His chest is bad.
So he told me go on 'cause he's going to probably walk most of it.
-I broke through the ice on the river. -Oh, did you?
-I broke through, it went up to my thighs. -Oh, no.
So that pretty much ended my race right there.
I'm glad you guys were safe.
We were wondering about the folks that were bivvying out last night.
'Cause it was just heinous.
Maybe, like, it's a safety cone
and there's like a hole in the water there. [LAUGHING]
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
My lungs are not doing that well.
I can hear my GP say, "You shouldn't go, you shouldn't go."
He gave me the inhaler.
And he said, "No more than five times a day."
And I've done five times in three hours.
MAN: How's your throat feeling?
It's burning everywhere all my ribcage.
It started here then it went down here, now it's everywhere.
[MAN HUMMING]
Hello, gentlemen. What are you guys doing here?
Now although we broke it up. We went half way,
and then bivvy'd on the trail.
Had a good sleep. We've been taking it really conservatively,
so we feel really strong right now.
MAN: How's it going?
I feel dry, but you see the blisters?
MAN: Oh, fuck, Guy.
Oh, shit.
GUY: That's a problem, apparently.
Sorry to be such a jovial prick.
That's searing stuff.
Can you feel that?
-GUY: No. -No problem.
-How about here? -Yeah, I can feel over there.
We're going to watch you, keep your hands warm.
RJ: You're doing your own thing, moving along the trail.
Then all of a sudden you end up in a transition area,
and you see what other people are going through.
And all of a sudden I realized that a lot of people were in trouble.
Frost bite on fingers on noses, on feet.
People were going through the river.
These are all the problems that you could, you know, run into
but you were able to get through.
-FRANK: You put a tarp on top of you? -RJ: I'm going to.
Just to keep some of the snow off.
-FRANK: You're going to look like a Burger King. -What?
FRANK: You're going to look like a Burger King burger.
RJ: That's right.
FRANK: Ah, I'm short of breath.
[COUGHING]
My kit's really small compared to that one.
GUY: You know, it was quite painful last night.
Didn't get much sleep.
I must have made a mistake somewhere.
MAN: Hey, Guy, it could happen to anyone of us.
Anyone of us.
MAN: It was really cold.
Yeah.
-I got numb. -It could happen to anyone of us.
KEVIN: Right now what I could tell you is
we'll have a flight for you somewhere
between two hours and two and half days from now on.
[ALL LAUGHING]
-But I hope... -You sound like American Airlines.
And about as useful.
Okay. Cool.
KEVIN: I would try to keep those wrapped up as much as you can.
-GUY: Okay. -You know, things will... It's just
you got a deep penetration into your body there at that point now.
So, one person out in the previous seven years on the airplane,
and so far we've got eight
that have been flown out here now.
And maybe some more, maybe not, we'll see.
The plane is supposed to come in about 30 minutes or so.
Um, back to Anchorage.
So, lucky the weather is helping us to have a plane to take us.
Could be stuck here for a while otherwise.
RJ: I know he was fighting through and trying to persevere,
but it wasn't getting better.
And so him having to drop out was definitely, you know, devastating.
But I had to really quickly get out of there.
Because I think that all of that can suddenly affect,
you know, your own sense of mortality in the race.
And right now there's no wind.
It's blue sky, it's still... Which is it right now?
Minus 15 Celsius,
I mean, it's ridiculous.
So, the choice has been made.
I may regret it.
It won't be the first time I make a choice that I regret after.
I know how it's going to work.
We come here to challenge ourselves,
but also to challenge the wilderness,
which is pretty arrogant.
Yeah, it's part of the race.
GUY: I'm completely and utterly gutted.
It is a mistake.
There's a few other people with frostbite and they would've also made mistakes.
'Cause there's a lot of people out there who haven't got frostbite.
TIM: When it's the weather that causes people to not finish,
then it was the fact
that they weren't prepared either equipment wise,
or in inexperience to use it properly.
And that's what being comfortable and taking care of yourself
out here is all about.
It's having the fore thought,
you know, to take care of problems before they come up.
And then you just have obstacles.
Obstacles to overcome,
not problems to solve.
GUY: Flying back today I was just looking at it
and felt very empty.
I'm not so sure what I'll be doing with the hands.
It's quite a mission having both hands in bandages.
It's a very selfish sport, endurance racing.
You know, you go through a six or seven-hour training ride
in the morning and maybe something in the afternoon.
You're not great company in between.
And then, you lose out on the weekends.
So it's time to give back, I think.
TROY: We're out here on the trail between Bear Creek and Nikolai.
The day has certainly turned, we've had a bit of snow overnight.
Trail's got a little bit of dusting on it this morning.
But, yeah, another 800 miles.
You know, it is what it is. I guess when it starts to feel like it's getting tough,
then you start to think everyone else is hurting just as much.
So, you're nothing special.
-Good to see you. -Same to you, girl.
-How you doing? -Pretty good.
Nice job.
I know, it got really cold.
Get in here.
God, it's good to see you.
KEVIN: Yesterday I was just dead tired and I felt every rib in, like,
hundred feet of trees, I'd stop.
'Cause I'm going on to Nome so I wasn't pushing like these guys.
I wasn't, you know, trying to kill myself.
I was riding today, and I was thinking,
"This is still a lot easier than taking care of a two-year-old."
Like, this is... I'd still much rather do this.
I haven't had anyone hitting me, or yelling at me, you know.
I kind of feel bad being gone for so long.
-Yeah, this is my fourth time. -MAN: Fourth time to Nome?
Ah, no. I haven't gone to Nome yet.
This is my fourth time getting here at least.
TIM: Once you get to McGrath,
it changes from a race to an adventure for whatever reason.
TIM: Well, Nome is three times the distance to McGrath,
but it's exponentially bigger commitment.
It's not only three times as long, it's ten times as hard.
RJ: Going to Nome, you have to work under the assumption
that you're going to get every possible condition.
KEVIN: I'm extremely nervous about just leaving here.
I've never been anywhere past here ever.
From here Ruby is about just under 200 miles.
There's no communities, no one uses the trail.
I don't know if I'm going to be walking a 100 miles.
I don't know if I'll be riding at all.
And now I'm going to take off tomorrow.
Maybe a day ahead of anyone else who's going to be following along with me.
I don't have a way to bail out. If I leave here, I just, I go.
See, I'm really nervous right now.
Probably more nervous than the start of the race.
The trail does that to you, Alaska does that to you.
TIM: It could be a real challenge this year.
I mean, without trail breakers
any snow that's falling out there is going to be a problem for us.
That's 200 miles of pretty much nothing.
KEVIN: If it snows a foot you're sort of... I don't think...
There are very few people who are going to push their bikes
from Ophir to Ruby with a foot of snow out there.
When a very dear friend of mine
who had finished the race eight times I think
at that time on foot,
Tim Hewitt was stuck between Poorman and Ruby for days.
50 below zero and knee-deep snow.
And I had to make the decision how long to wait
to check on Tim,
knowing that if I
sent someone too soon, I was going to lose a friend.
And if I waited too long, I was going to lose a friend.
I asked a man to take his machine,
make four peanut butter-jelly sandwiches.
'Cause there were three more racers that had passed him out there.
And go out and tell those racers
Bill thought they might want a coke and a sandwich.
Well, first two racers took the coke and the sandwich.
The next was Loreen, Tim's wife and she had a pretty badly frozen thumb.
And he went on to check on Tim to take his sandwich.
And it was time to bring Tim back.
But I have to make that decision, you know,
how long to give them to be self-sufficient.
You know, they were the little kids
that wore the right shoe on the left foot, you know.
Because their parents figured it was a fight they didn't want to take there.
Those are the little kids that grow up to be the people that come out here
to do it their self.
And in Alaska we're given that opportunity.
[ALL WHOOPING]
-MAN 1: Yeah! -MAN 2: You made it.
-I did. -Let's go inside.
It was much harder than anticipated.
-It was a much harder day than anticipated. -[MAN LAUGHS]
-It's 11. -Good job!
-Good to see you, buddy. -Good to be here.
So, kinda rough out there this year.
Yeah, it was real.
Good to know. Have a seat.
I have to fix my bike.
Still in fifth gear since 20 miles on the other side around.
-Well... -Hi, Tim.
I'm an impostor as a cyclist.
[ALL LAUGHING]
I think you graduated to cyclist, Tim.
Oh, my, I'm glad I'm here.
-[ALL LAUGHING] -We're glad you're here.
I think it was 29 below when I left.
So, everybody's quitting? Is that what door it is?
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
MAN: 30 scratches so far.
-Wow, 30 scratches? -Yeah.
Gee.
JAY: And so where Kevin currently is is Passover.
That's the are that traditionally doesn't get any traffic outside
some snow machine races and a dog sled race.
Certainly, before I leave, I'll check the tracker,
make sure Kevin isn't stuck.
[LAUGHS] That would be... put a damper on this whole thing.
It seems like the field has shrunk a lot
and the next people are several days behind me.
I'm trying to take the ice off,
but it's hard to change the tube.
Well, it's been hard but also worthwhile.
It's nice.
I'm grateful that I found Martjin, he's a great guy to ride with for a bit.
We'll see how we do, and we've enjoyed the last two days riding together.
And yeah, I think, psychologically, it definitely helps to share
a part of the trail with someone, you know, and look out for each other.
Kind of just two heads are better than one.
BILL: That section has historically been tough.
No tougher even than 2015
for what the back of the pack went through.
Tim.
But the other bikers flew through there.
Because it can change in a flash.
You can be flying like the leaders did in 2015,
and then next day it's a five-day walk.
All it takes is one little wind storm.
[PANTING]
[GASPING]
KEVIN: It's been one of the most interesting four days of my life.
Intensely personal. It's very bizarre.
I felt like I was in minor trouble the entire time.
Now, here you guys are.
This is magic. This is like insane.
Trail Angels. You guys are all trail angels.
This is crazy.
MAN: How long were you by yourself?
Three days.
I totally felt like I walked across a chunk of the Earth.
Which is a weird feeling.
And I feel good. My hands are numb but nothing else hurts.
I didn't have any problems.
I took care of stuff before it was a problem,
and in all honesty, the slower and slower you go,
the easier it is to be happy with anything. Like,
you think you're going slow at two miles an hour one and a half
and then you're doing a thousand feet an hour
and you just can't believe it can get lower than that.
God, anything over... moving over a thousand feet in an hour
is just unreal! It feels so good.
If I didn't have to lift my bike up and carry it,
anything felt, everything that's not the worst feels good.
I don't know, I thought a lot. Freedom is the choice
to struggle with what you want.
A lot of us have to struggle and we don't get to choose
what struggle we take on.
And I'm lucky enough that this is just a choice of mine.
I've been kind of overcome with that, that,
that feeling of like, "this is just a choice"
is really freeing and odd.
End of ramble, like I said
it was a really profound few days.
WOMAN: Glad you were able to crash... crash parties this one time.
-Oh, I just get one pass? -Yes.
Okay. I think this is it.
This is a good one. I'll take it.
I'll take this as my pass.
Kinda like your soup, the vegetables... also, I wonder if I should
-cover these? -I will eat them right now.
Okay. [CHUCKLES]
I was...
not excited the last couple of days.
But I was excited about getting here.
I wasn't sure what I was gonna do, but
I'm gonna keep on going.
JAY: I passed him, Hewitt, just outside of Ophir.
I think he's a probably a very fast walker but he's not very good at riding his bike.
It's much slower, and it's a lot more lonely. I was really hoping...
I was very excited because Nome feels about...
20 plus people signed up.
So, I was like Yay! I'll get a ride with someone.
Instead, not at all! [LAUGHING]
Well, I like the solitude, but I would prefer to actually have people around me at some level.
This has been a little bit longer than I like to have no one around.
It's okay, it's still fun.
[HUMMING]
[COUGHING]
TIM: It's been rough. It's been really rough.
There's been no trail, so
it's exactly what happened to me in
2015.
Yeah, it's a lot different riding a bike than walking. A lot different.
Horrible.[CHUCKLES]
I'd rather be on foot. I mean, I wanted to ride the bike,
you know, I mean...
I imagine soon. I would have thought maybe by now there'd be a track outta here,
and it would be all right.
But I was wrong, I guess.
I guess, I get too sleepy and then I'll over sleep.
It's been cold out, I think.
I mean, really cold, hasn't it?
Do you know what the temps are at night?
MAN: I would have guessed, I was camping out here last night.
I would have guessed -35.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking, somewhere in the 30-40 range.
It's been like that every night for a while.
I've wasted hours trying to ride this stupid bike.
You know, just hours and hours.
My crank hurts so many times that I've...
I haven't made it 10 meters yet on this bike.
This bike and my fussing.
Who's left in the race? Anybody behind me?
MAN: Yeah. RJ and Martjin are maybe a day back.
Oh, I'm happy to have company.
Buddy a day today.
-Could you walk with me? I could use some company. -Sure.
A lot of tracks out here, animal tracks.
Between the two safety cabins, the wolves. Had one that was messing with me.
I mean, it was along the side really, really howling, loudly.
And I was thinking
well, I've got a snow shoe, I'm gonna wack 'em in the head if I have to. But,
there were thousands of wolf tracks...
RJ: Oh, that sucked.
I mean, it was beautiful, and it was sunny out, so
to be honest, I was in a pretty good headspace for most of it.
But, boy, that's long when you're walking with your bike. [COUGHING]
I didn't see a soul, not one person the whole way,
basically from McGrath.
The last five days...
maybe four days, I don't know.
MARTJIN: Yesterday I took off my hat because it was
pretty warm, and then I felt this sort of
wet stuff pouring down my neck.
So, I realized it's a little piece of my ear came off.
So, that was just a little bit of a shock there.
I'm not feeling so great.
KEVIN: Sure, we're halfway mileage, but in some ways I'm hoping
we're more than halfway through the time.
It's never been more relative in my life
of halfway means nothing.
Maybe the coast is awful, and maybe in days.
Now, maybe I'm only a third of the way, so who knows?
I just know that the next bit of trail is on the river,
and that's where I gotta go.
I don't have to go back, just keep going forward.
Can't sit around. You don't make it anywhere that way.
TIM: What's going on? I got both mechanicals.
I got my first two gears fixed
but the teacher helped me with me.
A guy in Ruby gave me a tube of
some kind of cream, which
is helping.[LAUGHING]
And a new arse would be nice.
I kinda suspected Ruby might see a couple of reconsiderations.
WOMAN: So, the doctor also doesn't recommend continuing the race.
If it's just clear fluid behind the blisters, then you leave it intact
'cause once you break the skin, an infection could get in.
So, it's just better to leave it intact.
MARTJIN: I really tried to look after myself,
but it's just these tiny mistakes that have huge consequences.
She said it was frostbite.
I sort of knew that.[CHUCKLES]
There's no doctor I think in the world who's going to advise me to continue to race.
RJ: Doing this event is about experiencing this trail, and
things going on, and so if the Iditarod is in full fledge,
then you're getting the full meal deal.
All that's very rejuvenating.
You need those boosts of people 'cause you spend a lot of time alone.
[DOGS HOWLING]
I got into Ruby
and it was the first time I could actually see trackers and then like, "Oh!
"Tim's here too."
and then at night, "Oh, Tim's leaving." I'm like...
crazy.
I mean, not crazy, but it's just sort of, like, after that section,
you know, stop for a bit, refuel.
I don't wanna get distracted by what anybody else is doing, like...
again, you're racing yourself and you're racing the trail.
I'd love to see Martjin get back on the trail and finish.
It'll be devastating if he had to stop there.
I'm not sure if Tim's thinking "I'm gonna win."
I think Tim's just thinking, "Gotta go. Gotta go. Gotta go."
But, that's kinda his...
approach, I think that he's really used to as well.
It's just go. He just doesn't stop.
[TIM SINGING]
TIM: I love night. By far my favorite time is night.
I look forward to going out now.
To go and have a nice time out there,
and I wanna enjoy it.
It's hard for me to judge where I'm gonna get to on a bike,
'cause everything I'm used to is in flick time,
and I'm really not very good at converting.
RJ: So, after that long, horrible section we did way back,
into Ruby,
I think that would have been the worst nights... one of my worst nights' last night.
You get this wave of weird loneliness,
and you just go through such huge emotional swing, and you're like
going all over the place and feeling all down, and
just had a bit of an emotional moment.
I think when you kinda, maybe miss people or something.
So, I don't know, it was just a wave, a flash.
It was funny, 'cause I'm going along and all of a sudden,
I'm feeling like that and I'm like, oh my God,
I'm not gonna make it to Nulato, that's impossible. I should have been there, and
I see this figure on the side of the tail, and
I'm like, "The hell's that?" Then I'm like, "Oh, yeah, it's Tim Hewitt.
So, I found Tim
and he was just starting to setup his bivvy for the night
'cause he was totally in the same mode, except
maybe not as emotional as I was for whatever reason.
And I'm like, "Get up, let's go. Let's,
"force each other." All things considered, it was only another couple of hours
and it meant being somewhere dry and warm.
I got him here quickly yesterday, and
we napped, we ate, and
chilled. Had another good sleep, so I feel now I'm...
got decent amount of rest...
to take on this long 92 mile section to Unalakleet.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
BILL: I can tell. [LAUGHTER]
I've seen two non-morning people this morning.
I have an eye for those people.
BILL: I was at the dinner table, and
Ruby and Martjin was there and
I couldn't help but
offer an opinion and
with the qualification that huge amount of my
frost damage education is come from
seeing it other people and having it myself.
And that I thought he had done superficial damage
to his fingers.
And that the only thing that would make 'em worse,
would be to re-freeze 'em.
And that if he didn't have any doubt that he can keep 'em warm,
there wasn't any reason he shouldn't just go on.
I don't wanna spend too much time.
-BILL: Yeah? -Yeah. Yeah.
Okay, I'll see you later I guess.
-Yeah, take care of them fingers. -Yeah, I will.
-I'll see you in Nome. -Okay.
BILL: Most folks should have took their blistered fingers and went home,
but I just gave him the options.
Let him make his own choice, which shoe to put on which foot.
JAY: Haven't decided to pull the plug. He wasn't having any issues.
He wasn't throwing up, but he just wasn't able to eat or keep food in his system.
It's sad to see him scratch,
but that was probably the best decision for Kevin.
He didn't anything wrong. It's just bad luck.
TIM: I feel better today.
I feel a lot better today.
Finally starting to come around to this biking thing, I think.
It was probably the most fun I've had
but I got scared after...
after crashing a couple of times.
MAN: When was the first time you did this?
2001.
I reflect on all of 'em.
I mean, they run together a little bit, but
I do, yeah.
I think of the...
the anxiety that I had the first time that I don't have anymore. I mean,
I'm comfortable out here, you know?
And part of that, I think I miss the unknown. So, it's just the
question what the trail is gonna bring,
and the weather's gonna bring more than anything else.
But before, I had no idea where I was going.
We weren't allowed to use GPSs that first year,
and I never talked to anybody
who had done the trail, so...
so, it was a total unknown.
RJ: There's a little cabin right there You can see, with the orange roof.
I'm gonna stop in and maybe just have a bite,
and pray to the gods.
Maybe some Nordic god will turn this down a little bit,
this wind down.
My only issue is that my peddle broke.
So, riding with one peddle, tried to fix it in
Shaktoolik but they only had BMX peddles around
on the broke bikes in the snow.
Let the games begin. It should be cool,
there's a lot of mushers that are gonna be coming through, so
that also inspired me quite a bit.
To be honest, I don't wanna miss it.
So you're most anxious to get out there and be with them
and under a full moon, then coming by,
it'll be pretty cool.
[DOGS WHINING]
[FIRE CRACKLING]
RJ: There's moment like these that it gets really hard.
It tends to get harder, I think, too, when we're like 15 days in,
just trying to keep boosting your
energy level to kinda take on another day.
Like, the starting part is always the hardest, once you're going it's fine.
Kinda rekindling that motivation every time is...
It's cool hanging out here with the dog team, so
at least want do that.
So maybe I'll just take advantage of this shelter, and
eat something,
get like fours sleep and just leave really early.
[EXHALES]
TROY: Just really struggling to
make this last 1.7 miles...
into Kaltag.
It's been a long night.
It's 30 below on the river.
I got an hour's sleep at Nulato.
Then a big push from Galena.
[EXHALES]
It's...
You will get there...
if you keep going.
Just don't stop.
JAY: It's fun. I'm really looking forward to being in White Mountain,
which I assume it's about seven miles out.
Yeah, it's really windy out there.
Like, I could barely bike.
WOMAN: Jay!
JAY: I was really trying to ride for at least an hour.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
I'm very glad to be here.
WOMAN: That's awesome.
Yeah, we were looking at the weather,
I was wondering how it was gonna be.
BILL: We're all welcomed in off the trail,
not having had a bath for days,
and yet, they bring you in with a big hug, and
sit you down and get you warm and dry your clothes
in their personal homes along the trail,
these people that live out here year round.
It's just something you would have a hard time finding
anywhere that I know of.
And it goes back to a time
when everybody out here was a traveler at one time of year or another.
You depended on this person's hospitality this time,
and someone else depends on yours another,
an I think it's what brings a lot of people out here, year after year.
It's to part of that culture that comes alive out here.
It's alive out here all the time
and we're lucky enough to experience it once a year.
-I'm Jay. -Hi.
Heard you came by last year.
And this our grandson Gable.
-Hi. -This is Sweetie Pie, the doggie.
[ALL LAUGHING]
Anyway I'll get you set up with food here.
JAY: I definitely miss my kids.
I miss my wife.
So, it'll be nice to see the kids and Nancy again.
Along the coast, there are a lot of areas with cell phone coverage.
So, I've been able to call them and talk to them.
Remind my family that I exist. [LAUGHING]
That's good.
Yeah, hopefully the final day. You never really know if it's gonna be the final day.
That's the plan, yes. Final day.
TROY: A lot of these experiences are very hard to get
in the white noise society that we live in at the moment.
Even though it seems like a little bit of a flea circus,
you still drag along a lot of technology, and it requires
quite an expensive tool to make it all happen.
But the same note too, it is an escape
and it is an indulgence in quite a few pleasures that you like.
It's over-kill.
It's probably...
probably 15 kilos more junk than
Tim Hewitt's got.
That's why he's so far up the trail.
I don't think he's human.
I think he's a cyborg from another planet.
Think he just runs on
sunshine and oxygen.
[SNORING]
TIM: I probably sleep on the trail
maybe more than anybody else.
I'm just not comfortable
sleeping in people's houses or in the lodges very much. So,
I'll sleep in a school every now and again, but
I probably only average about four hours of sleep a night
and I can get that on the trail usually.
TROY: So, as soon as we left Unalakleet,
the wind smacked us.
[WIND BLOWING FEROCIOUSLY]
This does the trick.
It's not just about fashion.
[CHUCKLES]
[PEOPLE CHEERING, BELLS RINGING]
WOMAN: You can smile now.
This is for your family.
I'm looking forward to getting off the bike, and changing into other clothes.
It would be awesome...
and eating real food.
I really look forward to like real food,
and a full night's sleep.
Yeah, that would be awesome.
It's been an interesting experience.
[WIND BLOWING]
MARTJIN: Well, they're getting better, I think.
I mean, they still don't look great.
The blisters start disappearing and
my hands get cold easily.
So, that's something that always happens, I guess.
Just need to be very careful
not to increase it.
It's supposed to warm up, but...
[MUMBLING]
You see, also, it's not about being
an extremely good bike rider like Tim Hewitt for instance.
If I would ride with him in the forest in summer,
I'm pretty sure I'd beat him, but mentally,
he's extremely strong, and he knows
really well how to deal with this cold weather.
That's why he's doing so well.
So, it's a lot more to it than just riding a bike.
WOMAN: Hopefully this much, the man has never slept
-more than three hours on the course. -[KID YELLING]
RJ: Yeah, considering how many times he's come through too.
WOMAN: Yes. As tired as he has been,
he has never slept more than three hours.
[KID GRUNTS]
You must be wired the same way as Tim.
-[KID FUSSING] -John.
No, I mean, some of it is kinda playful, 'cause it's like...
'cause it's generally funny.
Just his approach. Like, we all know he's just nonstop, nonstop.
Which I totally admire.
Kudos to Jay for taking off and getting it done.
I didn't get a change. That was smart.
I think I feel really... content.
Like, completely content and at peace which is a great feeling going in to the end here.
Except for that little nagging thing which is Tim,
who's chasing behind.
I decided to stay here and I'm cool with that. I'll live with that decision.
You mind giving me a knock on the door?
I've set two alarms, but...
-Okay, so by 11? -Yeah.
He's going like 3 miles and hours, so
he maybe a little longer.
Plus maybe it'll give Tim a little taste of his own medicine.[CHUCKLES]
Maybe then he can enjoy, chill out here, and
regal you guys with his stories of wolves following him...
-which is totally made up. -[ALL CHUCKLES]
Thank you so much.
No big deal, I just...
One last stretch, so
I might just go for it,
and get 'er done.
TIM: So, he gotta...
MAN: He left maybe an hour ago.
-I should chase him down. -[MAN LAUGHS]
I'm able to do that right now, I'm feeling a lot better.
Starting to learn how to ride this stupid thing.
MAN: Are you planning to make this your last trip to Nome?
-I do every year. -Oh.
No, I think it probably will be.
WOMAN: You said that the last three times you've come through.
-Um-hmm? Well... -Yes.
-I wanted to do the bike thing. -Yeah.
And that didn't work. And then last year,
the trail looked so good I thought I could go fast
on foot, so that's what I did.
[BREAKS CREAKING]
BILL: You cannot explain why people do this
to anyone that's not done it.
When you go home, you won't be able to explain it to your friends
what you have experienced here on the Iditarod trail.
And that's why those comraderies and are so important
because those are the only people you can really share it with.
TROY: I wanted to catch up with another racer and ride with him if possible.
The happiness isn't real unless it's shared kinda thing. So,
when you can share experiences with other people, then
I think it deepens the experience for both parties.
BILL: Life's about stories...
but what good is a story if you can't speak the other person's language.
RJ: Yeah, it's actually emotional coming down the street. I think it's gonna...
Probably 'cause I'm tired. Haven't slept in a long time, but
you keep playing those mind games, like, "Oh, you just gotta get there.
"And you just gotta get there. And you just gotta get there." And all of a sudden,
"Holy crap, I'm finally riding down Front Street."
[PEOPLE LAUGHING]
I'm super proud. It means a lot to me
to get here again. So,
I'm very, very happy.
-I want breakfast. -MAN: How do you feel?
My butt is so sore. So sore.
They don't tell you about that. [CHUCKLES] Let's go in.
Well, no sense chasing RJ anymore 'cause he's done, huh?
WOMAN: It sure is.
[LAUGHTER, PEOPLE CHATTING]
[TIM SPEAKING]
TIM: I guess I'm just reflecting on the journeys over the years,
getting here.
Thinking about the year I did it with Lorraine.
It was really nice to come into Nome together.
Yes, I think anybody can do it.
Anybody that really puts their mind to it.
I mean, how hard is it? You're just peddling a bike, or walking.
You'll get there one day. Yep, it'll come to you.
[BELLS RINGING]
I'm okay, yeah!
MAN: You still got all your pieces and parts?
Yeah.
Yeah, I got everything.
Everything I need.
-Good job, man. -Thanks.
Oh, my.
MAN: Don't you love the bike?
I hate the bike. [LAUGHING]
Comes out here and finishes well
to Nome on a bike for his 10th finish.
A feat that is just beyond belief.
More people summit Everest in an afternoon,
than have made it Nome on a bike.
TIM: Ten times to Nome...
[SIGHS]
means...
I've done everything I can do on this venture, I think.
Yep, there's really nothing left.
For the past several years, I've had an objective or a goal
and I really don't have any more.
The bike was the last one.
BOY: Your tires are very hard.
You did this for Wasilla?
-[LAUGHING] -Shoot!
Kyle! Kyle! He biked here from Wasilla!
-[PEOPLE LAUGHING] -Aren't you cold?
MAN: How are the pedals treating ya?
[CHUCKLES] Great. I'm gonna swap my plan
and left a lot earlier than expected.
MAN: Cool. Did you have much winds coming across the last area?
No, it was really good.
I stopped in safety for like a bit,
just 'cause my face was plastered with ice.
So, I thawed off a little, and
waited for the sun to come up.
I was like, I wouldn't mind riding in with a little light...
-to enjoy it. So... -I'm the Mayor.
-Welcome. Good to have you here. -Hello. Hello.
-I'm Martjin. -Nice to see you, Martjin.
Good job. Excellent. Welcome to Nome. Welcome to Nome.
How are your fingers?
-Yeah, okay. They're healing. -You okay?
They look better actually, which is weird. -Oh, yeah.
They were like hard and big before, eh?
Okay, well, that's good.
You're here. That's all that matters, it doesn't matter how
-we all got here. We got here. -Yeah.
Now, it's easy to say that
it wasn't so hard or anything, but in fact it was really hard.
It wasn't easy at all.
[BELL RINGING]
Good job, Petr.
Well, I'll tell you what, it was fun to be out there with you.
[LAUGHING]
Well, you pushed me. But, you know, you need to.
-See, that's what makes it real when we have an Alaskan man. -Yeah.
This was normal.
In March sometimes too, there is a race... otherwise you're just touring.
And not just to race on that section,
-[giggles] it's out there. -Yeah.
-And we gotta get across that.
All of a sudden, you was hauling ass.
[BOTH LAUGHING]
Yeah, Mike, thanks again.
It was just absolutely awesome.
This is a great year.
The long journey... I read a book,
few years ago, maybe six years ago about this race,
and I would never... think that I
I'll be part of it one day. So, it's kind of amazing.
It's a dream that came true.
We're all living proof that anybody can do it.
RJ: You got a little bit of experience.
TIM: Experience is a name we give our mistakes.