Finishers' Banquet - Nome

Last night they held the Finishers' Banquet in Nome at which a number of awards were presented to the finishers. In fact all the awards except the Red lantern Award (given to the last place finisher) were presented. There are five mushers still on the Trail: Trent Herbst, Michael Suprenant, and Eric Rogers are mushing from White Mountain checkpoint toward Safety checkpoint in that order. Heather Siirtola and Timothy Hunt are still on their mandatory 24 hour rest at White Mountain. Heather can leave White Mountain at 11:08 AM, EDT tomorrow, and Timothy can leave at 12:47 PM EDT, tomorrow, so Heather should have an hour and 39 minute lead headed for Safety and Nome, which gives Timothy Hunt the best shot at the Red Lantern.

The IDT Insider had a piece this morning on the awards presented at the Finishers' Banquet last night. Here it is:
2009 WELLS FARGO FINISHERS BANQUET
Date: March 22, 2009 at 11:11 pm
The Nome Recreation Center was full of hundreds of Iditarod race fans as the 2009 Iditarod Finishers were recognized for their achievements during the thirty seventh edition of “The Last Great Race on Earth.” The Finishers Banquet was catered by the Millennium Alaskan Hotel, as dozens of volunteers from Nome and beyond served the many who attended. Below is a listing of the Awards that were awarded earlier this evening;

PenAir Spirit of Alaska Award- The recipient of the 2009 PenAir Spirit of Alaska award is Aaron Burmeister from Nenana Alaska. The award is a beautiful framed mask depicting the spirit of the “team”. Burmeister also received $500 credit for travel or freight.

GCI Dorothy G. Page Halfway Award- Presented to Lance Mackey from Fairbanks Alaska who was the first musher to arrive in Iditarod Alaska. Lance received $2,500 in gold nuggets and a beautiful trophy.

Millennium Alaskan Hotel Anchorage First To the Yukon Award- Presented to Lance Mackey from Fairbanks Alaska; the first Musher to arrive in Anvik Alaska on the banks of the Yukon. While in Anvik, Mackey received a nine course meal. Tonight Mackey received an additional $3,500 in one dollar bills as the “after dinner mint” for his efforts.

Wells Fargo Bank Alaska Gold Coast Award- Presented to Lance Mackey from Fairbanks Alaska. Mackey was the first musher to arrive in the Gold Coast community of Unalakleet. He was awarded a beautiful trophy and $2,500 in gold nuggets.

Nome Kennel Club Fastest Time from Safety to Nome Award- Presented by the Nome Kennel Club. The recipient for the fastest time between Safety and Nome is Ramey Smyth from Willow Alaska. He was able to complete the trek from Safety to Nome in 2 hours and 27 minutes. He received $500 for his efforts.

2008 Horizon Iditarod Most Improved Musher Award- Was awarded to Dallas Seavey from Seward Alaska. Dallas went from 41st position in 2007 to sixth in 2009.

Rookie of the Year- The Rookie of the Year Award has been sponsored by Jerry and Clara Austin of St. Michael Alaska since 1980. The 2009 Rookie of the Year was Chad Lindner from Brookline Massachusetts. He received $1,500 and a trophy for his efforts.

ExxonMobil 37th Iditarod Award- Exxonmobil presented an Iditarod Gold Coin (valued at $2,500) to Harry Alexi, from Bethel Alaska for being the 37th musher to arrive in Nome

Fred Meyer Sportsmanship Award- This award includes $1,000 in Fred Meyer Gift Cards and was awarded to Aaron Burmeister of Nenana Alaska for helping a musher find his team.

Chevron Most Inspirational Musher Award- Presented to Iditarod musher Trent Herbst from Ketchum Idaho. Trent received the award for the work he has done in the classroom teaching his students all about “The Last Great Race on Earth.” The honor included a trophy and $1,000 worth of Chevron gas.

Golden Clipboard Award- The 2008 Golden Clipboard is awarded to the checkpoint along the Iditarod Trail that exemplifies community teamwork The 2009 recipient is the village of Nikolai Alaska.

Golden Stethoscope Award- Awarded to the veterinarian deemed most helpful on the trail by the members of the Iditarod Official Finishers Club was awarded to Dr. Denny Albert from Denali Alaska.

Alaska Airlines Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award- is based on specific criteria to determine who has best demonstrated outstanding dog care through out the Race while remaining competitive. Alaska Airlines presented the award to Iditarod 2009 Champion Lance Mackey. Mackey received a lead crystal cup on an illuminated wooden base and two free round trip tickets to anywhere on the Alaska Airlines system.

The City of Nome Lolly Medley Golden Harness Award Winner- Originally presented by the late Lolly Medley, Wasilla harness maker and one of two women to run the second Iditarod in 1974. The award honors an outstanding lead dog, chosen by the mushers. This year’s recipient was Kuling a 9 year old member of Jessie Royer’s team from Fairbanks Alaska. Kuling has completed seven Iditarods and led her team to an 8th place finish in 2009. She was Jessie’s lead dog for all seven of her Iditarods.

Northern Air Cargo Herbie Nayokpuk Memorial Award- Presented to the musher chosen by staff and officials as the person who most closely mimics “Herbie” in his/her attitude on the trail. This year’s recipient was Sonny Lindner from Fairbanks Alaska. He received a free freight allotment on Northern Air Cargo, $1,049 cash and a trophy.

Wells Fargo Winner’s Purse Award- Was awarded to the 2009 Iditarod Champion, Lance Mackey. This year’s award was $69,000.

Anchorage Chrysler Dodge Official Truck Award- Was awarded to the 2009 Iditarod Champion, Lance Mackey. Mackey received a 2008 Dodge Ram Laramie “HEMI” 4/x/4 quad cab pick up.

During the Banquet each musher had the opportunity to try starting a brand new 4 wheel Bombardier compliments of Northern Air Cargo. The winning key belonged to Robert Nelson from Kotzebue Alaska.
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There was also a very interesting piece on the Iditarod traditions of the Widow's Lamp and the Red Lantern. Here it is:
Iditarod Traditions
The Story of the Widow’s Lamp
During the days of Alaska sled dog freighting and mail carrying, dog drivers relied on a series of roadhouses between their village destinations. Since these mushers ventured out in most all kinds of weather, for safety reasons they found the idea that pilots rely on, known today as the flight plan. Word was relayed ahead that a musher and team were on the trail, and a kerosene lamp was lit and hung outside the roadhouse. It not only helped the dog driver find his destination at night, but more importantly, it signified that a team or teams were somewhere out on the trail. The lamp was not extinguished until the musher safely reached his destination.
In keeping with that tradition, the Iditarod Trail Committee will light a “Widow’s Lamp” at 10:00 a.m., on the first Sunday in March, in Nome at the trail’s end. This lamp, which will be attached to the Burled Arch, our official finish line, will remain lit as long as there are mushers on the trail competing in the race. When the last musher crosses the finish line, officials will extinguish the “Widow’s Lamp” signifying the official end of the Iditarod for that year.
All too often, public and media think of the race as being over when the winner crosses the finish line, yet there are still teams on the trail. We hope you will find this often overlooked part of the race worthy of your attention. There are many very good stories about these other mushers on the trail.

History of the Red Lantern
Often the “Red Lantern” is confused with the “Widow’s Lamp.” They are not the same. An article several years ago in Alaska magazine states that the first red lantern was awarded in the 1953 Fur Rendezvous Race. According to Alaska,
“Awarding a red lantern for the last place finisher in a sled dog race has become an Alaskan tradition. It started as a joke and has become a symbol of stick-to-itiveness in the mushing world.”
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In case you're wondering, Andrea Bocelli was not at the Finishers' Banquet, but it would have been nice. I just thought the song was appropriate as probably every musher in the race was thinking, at one time or another, that the task this year was close to impossible.