text by David Dodman; photo by Ben Matheson
Rookie musher Bob Storey has scratched from Iditarod 2011.
The Auckland, New Zealand musher exited the race this morning at the Rainy Pass checkpoint, according to the Anchorage Daily News’ Iditarod Live: The Sled Blog. (As of 11:07am, Iditarod’s official Eye on the Trail blog has yet to offer details on Storey’s scratch, although Storey has been listed as a scratch on Iditarod’s current standings.)
ADN’s Sled Blog says that, although Storey still had all 16 dogs on his team, “he didn’t believe his team was up for making the entire 1,000-mile journey to Nome.”
Bob Storey is the fifth musher to depart Iditarod 2011, and he’s the first rookie to do so (after the scratches of veterans Melissa Owens, Zoya DeNure, Paul Gebhardt, and Jessica Hendricks).
Storey’s departure leaves 57 mushers on the trail, with a new Red Lantern: rookie musher James Bardoner of Signal Mountain, Tennessee, who departed Rainy Pass at 5:15pm Tuesday night and has not, as of Wednesday morning, been reported into Rohn.
