The starting line is quiet while early preparations get underway. The City crews have prepared the roads with snow for team crossings. They wait until the race is over to clean up the streets. The volunteer crews help the musher trucks find parking spaces.
Mushers drop their dogs, visit with the crowds, and begin last minute preparations for the race.
Val Brady, BARC president, checks in with Net Control to see that everything is set. Howard Peterson, assistant race coordinator, gives a thumbs up. Snowmobiles provide trail grooming and trail marking. Spectators talk with mushers and check out all the mushing gear. The parking lot is alive with dogs, mushers, handlers, volunteers and spectators.