Iditarod veteran Aaron Burmeister on Monday scratched from the nearly 1,000-mile race at the Unalakleet checkpoint.
Published: Mar. 11, 2024 at 4:22 PM AKDTANCHORAGE, Alaska - asked Burmeister about his strategy for moving up the Norton Sound coast, the last major stretch of the grueling race.
Burmeister talked about his plan of having “a strong run” along the coast, before sharing this insight into his team. “They’ve been flat pretty much from Skwentna to here, just no speed, no fire, no animation, no barking,” said Burmeister, who pulled into Unalakleet at 10:12 p.m. with 11 dogs in harness.
The odd demeanor seemingly didn’t change and at 11 a.m. Monday Burmeister made his decision to scratch to “help promote the mental wellness and health of my team in the future,” according to a press release.There have been six total scratches since Saturday; Burmeister is by far the most experienced musher of the growing group, with 21 past Iditarods to his name.
He’s placed in the top five on four occasions, with a personal-best second-place finish behind Dallas Seavey in 2021.
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