You may know how the Iditarod sled dog race started: Joe Redington Sr. and a few others wanted to revive long-distance sled dog mushing, which was starting to disappear after snowmachines (snowmobiles to some of you) were becoming popular in rural Alaska. After a lot of work, the inaugural race was held in 1973 with 36 teams, mostly hardy Alaskans— sometimes old sourdoughs with lots of bush experience, but newbies tried their hand, too. Mushers were often on their own when it came to finding the trail and taking care of themselves and their dogs. Checkpoints were few and far between, and food drops didn’t always happen as planned. Most of the mushing was done in the daytime. Dick Wilmarth won in 20 days 49 minutes, and 41 seconds, a far cry from Dallas Seavey’s 2021 record of 7 days 14 hours 8 minutes and 57 seconds. Learn more about the first Iditarod in this great Anchorage Daily News article by Zacharia Hughes:
Advances in logistics, gear, and dog nutrition and health have made the race faster and safer in many ways. Several awards have been added, for example the Sportsmanship Award chosen by the racers and the Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award for outstanding dog care. But the bond between dogs and mushers—and the fans—have changed little since the first year. It’s still the Last Great Race. But there’s a lot that is different about this year’s race.
We’ve had so little snow that the race organizers have made two changes to the route. First, Anchorage barely had any snow, so they altered the ceremonial start to make it shorter. Then the normal beginning from Willow through Rainy Pass and the Dalzell Gorge had so little snow, they started from Fairbanks and re-routed the first section so much they actually added about a hundred miles to the total.
This year’s changes will make a difference to the mushers and dogs. But they are still eager to run the race and challenge themselves during long days on the trail and moments of community at the checkpoints. They will still have to battle the environment and work hard to cross under the burled arch in Nome. I am rooting for them, as I do every year.
Want to learn more about the race or get the latest news? See the official website at
Also, author Gary Paulsen ran the race three times, in 1983, 1985, and 2006. His book Winterdance is an interesting and at times hilarious story about the race, and some of his other books also touch on his experience.
Mush on!
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