Should take about 10 or 12 days.
Iditarod live blog: Teams hit the trail in ceremonial start of 50th running (alaskasnewssource.com)
Iditarod live blog: Teams hit the trail in ceremonial start of 50th running (alaskasnewssource.com)
The GREAT ALASKAN Sled dog RACE to Nome. Some might ENJOY.
- Thread starter Sourdough
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I remember back in the day ABC Wide World of Sports which was a Saturday afternoon show, would show highlights of the Iditarod for 2 or 3 weeks. I always thought that was the coolest thing. After finding out how it started figured out it really was a historical event of epic proportions.
I still enjoy it today. Thanks for the link and reminder
I still enjoy it today. Thanks for the link and reminder
The wonderful cancer center in Alaska... brought about by a dog sledder's family?????
We bought our house from a guy that used to volunteer for the race and would rescue retired Iditarod dogs. In order to be allowed to enter the Iditarod you have to finish 3 qualifying races. One of those is a 300 mile race that started on a river right in front of my office window.
I knew a guy from the Houston area years ago who went to Nome for the finish of the race one year around 1990 or so. According to him, everyone would be in a bar drinking and when a dog sled neared town, someone would ring a bell and they'd all go outside, cheer, and then go back in and continue drinking.
I don't know how accurate it is, but there was a story years ago about a kid in one village along the trail being sent out with a sign to put along the trail that said "(name of village) 2 miles ahead". Kids being kids on a snowmobile, he just kept going and put it something like 20 miles out. According to the story, after the racers went several miles past the sign, they thought they had missed the village and started circling around looking for it.
I don't know how accurate it is, but there was a story years ago about a kid in one village along the trail being sent out with a sign to put along the trail that said "(name of village) 2 miles ahead". Kids being kids on a snowmobile, he just kept going and put it something like 20 miles out. According to the story, after the racers went several miles past the sign, they thought they had missed the village and started circling around looking for it.
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I liked the movie about Togo, and the trip to get Diptheria antitoxin serum to Nome. Balto got the fame, but didn't put in the work and heart that Togo did.
Sourdough, sorry I missed this when you posted this! This was another great year for the race with mostly great conditions except for a few locations. This is perhaps one of the greatest tests of endurance existing today, both for the dog teams and the musher. You will never see greater expressions of pure joy from an animal as a dog team on the trail or at the race starts or finish. I live near the copper basin race location and I typically catch that annually.
I love the Iditarod race and have many friends who have dog teams, several who participate annually in this race, as well as having friends who are involved with the Iditarod organization. While I have seen the race starts for this event, I have yet to see the Iditarod finish. The closest I got was about 4 years ago. I used to have a business I ran that had offices all over the state, including Nome. I was up there to watch the finish having secured a rare hotel room for the week. The year I was up there for the finish, the race was taking longer than usual due to adverse weather conditions. My dad passed on day 12 of the race and I had to fly out about 4 hours before the first place finisher crossed the finish line on the early morning of day 13. I retired from that business I ran about 3 years ago, so it will take some planning to get back up there for a finish, but it is a bucket list item for me.
I love the Iditarod race and have many friends who have dog teams, several who participate annually in this race, as well as having friends who are involved with the Iditarod organization. While I have seen the race starts for this event, I have yet to see the Iditarod finish. The closest I got was about 4 years ago. I used to have a business I ran that had offices all over the state, including Nome. I was up there to watch the finish having secured a rare hotel room for the week. The year I was up there for the finish, the race was taking longer than usual due to adverse weather conditions. My dad passed on day 12 of the race and I had to fly out about 4 hours before the first place finisher crossed the finish line on the early morning of day 13. I retired from that business I ran about 3 years ago, so it will take some planning to get back up there for a finish, but it is a bucket list item for me.
