Iditarod

The Iditarod!
The race is 1000 miles and runs from Anchorage to Nome (or in reverse every other year) connecting many small villages on the two different north or south routes. Originally the sled teams were used to carry mail, medical and other supplies from Anchorage to smaller villages in Alaska.

The ceremonial start is in Anchorage every year, although the following day the race officially starts in Willow, AK.  The ceremonial route goes through our health care campus and the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium held a catered picnic for employees and beneficiaries to watch the mushers go by.  It was so cool! The majority of teams are from Alaska, the lower 48 or Canada.  This year the international mushers are from Norway, Russia, Jamaica, Brazil, and New Zealand!

As of the last updated race report - the top racers have left the check point at the 598 mile mark with 400 miles to go.

Mandatory gear for every musher/sled:
An Axe
sleeping bag weighing at least 5 pounds
stove, fuel and pot that can boil 3 gallons of water at a time (aka- dog food cooker)
Arctic Parka
snowshoes
thermometer
8 pairs of booties per dog
dog food and snacks
vet notebook
promotional material to commemorate the carrying of mail from anchorage to Nome and villages along the way (sold to race fans after postmarking in Nome as a fundraiser!)

These are just the MANDATORY items- and doesn't even include "people" supplies/food!

Not many people (even in Alaska) know that bikers, runners, and skiers compete in the Iditarod every year.  Some only go to McGrath (350 miles) and others go the entire 1000 miles to Nome! They start a week earlier than the sled teams.  It was fun to watch the race website and track the racers as they made it to each check point.  I can't even imagine the mental and physical endurance needed to complete a race like this.  If you want to read more about it, click here (or here and here to get one runners report and gear list!).

After watching the mushers, we participated in the "Running of the Reindeer" downtown.  It's just a 3 block "run" where they release reindeer behind the pack of runners. Most people dress up for the event, a lot not wearing much at all.  So, we joined the crowd and found some random costumes to wear.  I know they are harmless animals... but when you see them "chasing" you down the street - it does produce involuntary screams! Between screaming and laughing and stumbling through piles of mushy snow in the street - - we made it unscathed and with big smiles on our faces.  It was well worth it!  Unfortunately I wasn't coordinated enough to get a picture of the reindeer while we were running... but here is us goofing off before the run started.