Why are mushing teams much larger at the midway point?

Lots of dogs resting in Galena, where many mushers are taking their 24 hour rests this year (Photo: Zachariah Hughes, Alaska Public Media)The first three mushers to arrive in Huslia all had 16 dogs on the line—the same number they started the race with nearly 500 miles ago. Up and down the leader-board mushers are arriving with big teams, and dropping far fewer dogs than in recent years.
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Kristy Berington said that might have something to do with this year’s race route over