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alaska: general info
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Name: The Iditarod
City: Wasilla Alaska
Phone: +1 907-376-5155
Website: www.iditarod.com
What's it like?
For the ultimate experience of the Last Frontier, show up for the Iditarod, a
grueling sled-dog race across the Alaskan
wilderness from Anchorage to Nome on the coast of the Bering Sea.
Dog sledding as transport was all but eclipsed by airplanes and snowmobiles when, in 1973, the first Iditarod was organized to resuscitate the
tradition and commemorate such events as when, during the 1925 diphtheria epidemic in Nome, twenty
mushers and a sled team led by the legendary
dog, Balto, crossed the frozen landscape to bring serum to the town. Today, an average of 65 mushers and
their teams come from all over the world to compete for a share of the US$600,000 purse, traversing 1149 miles in eight to fifteen days.
Nicknamed the "Mardi Gras of the Arctic", the Iditarod has become the largest spectator event in
Alaska, with crowds showing up for the pre-start party
and camping out along the first few days' worth of trail. Along the way, entire towns turn out to cheer on the mushers and
their teams.
To get into the race yourself as an Iditarider, place a bid for a spot on one of the mushers sleds for the first 11 miles; the auction begins in November with a minimum starting bid of US$500.
Sound like a place you'd like to visit?
Check out the Iditarod and other tours in Anchorage.
Just click here...
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