Now, I don't want to minimize the challenges she has faced and overcome in her life, and I certainly do not think she should be denied any opportunities that would be provided a fully sighted person. However, there is something about this that bothers me.

To help her get through the race, Scdoris is accompanied by a prompter, riding ahead of her on a snowmobile, calling out directions. That's not fair. One of the big obstacles in the Iditarod is the terrible loneliness caused by the complete isolation one feels when surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of miles of absolutely nothing but snow. Most of the mushers experience hallucinations during the race, some of them severe enough to cause breakdowns. Scdoris will not have to face that. She knows there is companionship available -- another human being within a few feet who can help out in any emergency situation.

I don't care if she never talks to the prompter. I don't care if she doesn't even see the prompter for miles at a time. She knows the guy is there. That is an incredibly important advantage that the other mushers will not have.

I understand that the current results have her well down in the pack (something like 70th out of 75), so there is little chance that this advantange will affect the outcome, but the fact remains that she isn't really experiencing this race in the same way as the other mushers.