Iditarod

Listening to barking dogs, working outdoors all night in frigid temperatures, sleeping on the floor and experiencing outhouses and unusual native cuisine constituted the dream vacation of a lifetime for Westminster veterinarian Nicholas Herrick.Dr. Herrick returned at the end of March from Alaska, where he was one of 20 trail veterinarians for the 21st Iditarod Sled Dog Race."This was something Nick always wanted to do," said his wife, Becky, 37, at their Bond Street home."Last winter we heard Dr. Al Townsend, a Chestertown, Md., veterinarian, speak about his experiences being a trail vet and it planted a seed," she said.

More than 1,000 barking huskies; 55-below-zero temperatures; an old gold-mining town filled with Eskimos.For Severna Park veterinarian Carl Rogge, the last few weeks in Alaska had all the drama of a Jack London novel.Rogge traveled to Nome as one of about 30 veterinarians chosen totend 76 teams in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.The dogs racedalmost 1,200 miles from Anchorage to Nome, the winning team in a record 10 days and 19 hours.When the survivors reached Nome on the shores of the Bering Sea, Rogge was there to examine the dogs, checking gums and paws and dehydration levels.

Chesnokov ousts Stich in semifinal upsetUnseeded Andrei Chesnokov of Russia stunned No. 3 seed Michael Stich, 1-6, 7-6, (7-4), 6-3, yesterday in the semifinals of the Champions Cup tournament at Indian Wells, Calif.Chesnokov's victory over Stich, the reigning Wimbledon champion, moved him into today's final against 12th-seeded Michael Chang, who defeated Francisco Clavet, 6-0, 6-1, in the other semifinal.* Fourth-seeded Conchita Martinez rallied to defeat Amanda Coetzer, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0, in the semifinal of the Virginia Slims of Florida at Boca Raton.

For a hot time in a cold town, there's no place like Nome, Alaska. During Iditarod week in March, the gold camp community on the Bering Sea packs in more activities per capita than most cities. It's a safe bet that Nome is the best place in the United States for folks from 21 to 85 to be for fun.Several action scenes go on simultaneously: the glitz and sweat that end the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race (this year's race started Feb. 29 and will end sometime this weekend); around-the-clock partying in the bars by workers from Prudhoe Bay to Dutch Harbor and all frontier settlements in between; and the excitement, rivalry and clan-gathering at the Iditarod Basketball Tournament, which runs today through Saturday.

The TV Repairman:Regarding college hoops this weekend and all of next weekTurn on the telly. If teams aren't racing up and down the floor, driving, dunking and dishing off no matter what the hour, call the repairman. Your set is not working. ESPN alone is sending along 33 games, 23 of them conference championship games. Best of these figures to be the Mid-Continent showdown from Green Bay next Tuesday.* Bulletin (three bells)! Channel 2 finally is recognizing the NBA this weekend, accepting the NBC feed of the Trail Blazers-Celtics game Sunday at 12:30.

Edgewater resident John McCary is looking forward to a three-day bicycle ride in sub-zero temperatures, toting a stove and other gear.On Feb. 16, McCary will join about 200 hardy souls in the fifth annual Iditabike Race, a spin-off of the Iditarod dog-sled races.McCary, the president of the Annapolis Bicycle Club, will attemptto conquer Alaskan landmarks such as Knik Lake, Big Susitna, Rabbit Lake and Big Su during the 200-mile race.Athletes from Europe, the Soviet Union, Canada and the United States will test their mettle in three separate categories -- the triathlon (biking, skiing, and running)