Congratulations to Eric Johnson of Centerville, Utah for taking second place in the ITI 1000 foot division in 29 days, 18 hours and 25 minutes!
Congratulations to Steve Cannon of Des Moines, Iowa for finishing the ITI 1000 in 26 days, 2 hours and 33 minutes!
Photo: Dave Mable
Peter Felten of Bad Honnef, Germany completed his journey to Nome in 26 days, 6 hours and 43 minutes. Way to go!
Photo: Jill Homer
Congratulations to Beat Jegerlehner for winning the ITI 1000 foot division in 25 days, 5 hours and 11 minutes!
Beat has been on the trail in the ITI every year since 2012. This is his 5th finish in Nome and his first win. Beat finished over 150 miles ahead of the next foot athlete, covering much of the 1000 miles at night to take advantage of cooler temperatures and firmer trails. His relentless progress towards Nome was amazing to watch as he overcame temperatures as low as -30F and as high as 40F that turned the trail into wet, mushy mess.
Beat’s win was a master lesson in preparation, strategy and tenacity by a true champion.
Photo: Jill Homer
Congratulations to Kim Riggs and Missy Schwarz for finishing the ITI 1000 in 21 days, 23 hours and 39 minutes as the 2019 Women's Bike Champions! They are only the 8th and 9th women to complete the journey to Nome since the ITI began in 2002.
Congratulations to Jose Bermudez for finishing the ITI 1000 in 20 days, 5 hours and 38 minutes and for raising over $14,000 for charity as part of his journey to Nome.
Well done, Jose!
Congratulations to Troy Szczurkowski of Brisbane, Australia for placing 3rd in the 2019 ITI 1000 in 19 days, 16 hours and 14 minutes!
Troy is the only Australian to have completed the ITI 1000, and this is his fourth finish in Nome out of four attempts. Troy also completed the ITI 350 in 2015.
Troy led the 1000 mile race for the first 400 miles and battled injuries to his feet for most of his journey to Nome. The determination he showed by pushing through very tough weather and trail conditions while overcoming physical setbacks was inspiring and a testament to his resilience and grit.
Congratulations to John Logar and Petr Ineman for winning the ITI 1000 Men’s Bike Division in 19 days, 3 hours and 56 minutes!
John and Petr persevered together for over 700 of the 1000 miles, conquering overwhelming challenges during every day of their journey, and, in the end, they crossed under the burled arch in Nome at the same time as champions of the 2019 ITI 1000.
After 17 days, ITI athletes are spread over more than 300 miles.
A frosty Petr Ineman
Petr Ineman and John Logar were the first to make it across Norton Bay between Shaktoolik and Koyuk, spending around 19 hours on the ice working against strong headwinds, snowfall and a blown-in trail. After leaving the bay, they will cover 12 more miles on a revised overland route before arriving in Koyuk.
About 20 miles behind them, Troy Szczurkowski arrived at the Little Mountain shelter cabin, perched on a peninsula jutting into Norton Bay. Troy rested, recovered and attended to his injured feet for about 13 hours in Shaktoolik before making the six hour push to the cabin and is not expected to stay long before embarking on his crossing of the sea ice.
Jose Bermudez stopped in Shaktoolik after crossing the tough Blueberry Hills just outside of Unalakleet and pushing his bike for most of the last 11 miles across the soft trail into Shaktoolik. He plans on resting for a few hours before pressing on towards and across the sea ice.
The Little Mountain shelter cabin
📷 Craig Bullen
A contemplative Jose Bermudez
📷 Jose Bermudez
Missy Schwarz and Kim Riggs arrived in Unalakleet and caught their first glimpse of the coast at 3:30pm while Steve Cannon made good time about 25 miles behind them, riding the packed trails of the portage from Kaltag.
Missy and Kim prepare firewood at the Old Woman shelter cabin between Kaltag and Unalakleet
📷 Nicholas Carmen
Steve Cannon arrives in Kaltag at 1am
📷 Nicholas Carmen
Grant Maughan works his way along a soft trail in snowshoes
Leading the foot race, Beat Jegerlehner arrived in Kaltag around 2pm after spending 3-1/2 days working against a sloppy, soft and wet trail. Peter Felten is 36 miles back, doing his best to navigate the overflow and slush while pushing his bike.
Eric Johnson, the second-place foot racer, left Grayling at 1:02pm after spending a day resting and recovering before embarking on the long, arduous and remote 121 mile trek to Kaltag. Although the Eagle Island checkpoint is approximately mid-way between Grayling and Kaltag, there are no services and is only composed of a few tents used as a rugged dog sled race checkpoint.
Klaus Schweinberger is 493 miles into the race and is just about to drop onto the Yukon River, 6 miles from Anvik, while Grant Maughan is 20 miles behind him after having just left Shageluk. Both men trudged through the day in light snowfall and soft trails with temperatures in the high 20’s to low 30’s.