Awesome Adventures in Alaska: The Big Build-Up To The 2013 Iditarod

The Iditarod can be considered the climax of winter around here, and like any good story line there is a big lead-up to the race. The start of the Iditarod is at the end of the Fur Rondy celebration, but before the formal race begins there are festivities galore. For instance, Friday before the Iditarod starts there are "meet-n-greets" around Anchorage with several of the mushers. I hosted an out of town Iditarod volunteer again this year, and she happens to have been quite involved with Aliy Zirkle and Allen Moore at SP Kennel in Two Rivers, AK. Those are two of the mushers I've gained a lot of respect for since I really started following the sport, and it was great to learn even more about them! I got to go to their meet-n-greet, and it was fun to meet them for the first of several times that weekend. :)

One of the dog trucks outside the hotel where the meet-n-greet was held.

Aliy and Allen telling us about mushing and sharing stories from the trail.

After they talked for awhile, they went over to a table where we could meet them, greet them, and get things signed by them. :) I think this photo captures both of their personalities pretty well!

They also brought in a few of their dogs so people could see them, pet them, etc. They were all SO hot in the room (the humans were warm too!) but I didn't hear one complaint out of them the whole time. :)

This is Dingle, one of the lead dogs at the kennel. So sweet!

Next up is Saturday morning... all the mushers arrive in Downtown Anchorage to find their designated parking spaces on side roads along 4th Ave. It gets CRAZY by mid to late morning, but we went down there early when it was still pretty quiet and actually got to have a little closer experience. I didn't get to go downtown last year, so it was neat to see everyone setting things up for the ceremonial start.

Why have a fancy sign when you can just write on a piece of painted wood with a Sharpie? This is not about glamour people, this is Alaska! :)

Brent Sass (Wild and Free Mushing) talking to someone he clearly knows well.

This is Allen's sled (the black one) he'll use for the race. The red one is only being used for the ceremonial start... one of the handlers will be following behind (attached to Allen's sled). Allen won the Yukon Quest this year... very exciting!

Doggies getting to stretch their legs. They're anxious to get running!

DeeDee Jonrowe's truck. I've volunteered with her mom a couple times in the "Race Stats" room... she sure does have a lot of amazing stories to share!

Something's got their attention (well most of them, anyway)!

A view down one of the side streets... mushers preparing to take part in the ceremonial start.

Fast forward to a little later in the day, and I went back to the same spot I watched the ceremonial start last year (Thanks, Browns!!). I tried to pick a "few" of my favorite shots from this. Trust me... it's really a relative few compared to how many I took!

At one point, the team of musher #11 passed the team of musher #10 right in front of where I was sitting in the snow along the trail. I wasn't sure if I should move or just stay where I was, but it all happened very quickly and I decided in the moment to stay where I was. I think that was a good move... they got pretty close to me but worked around me pretty easily. No need to add confusion for the dogs! Side note: any time the dogs stop, they immediately lay down in and eat the snow to cool down. That's what you see some of these dogs here doing.

Team #11 getting back on the trail... so close!!

I think it's neat when they run so close to each other that they're touching. Very sweet.

This is Dallas Seavey, the winner of the 2012 Iditarod. The ceremonial start is not competitive at all... they'll officially start the following day (Sunday). This is more of a party... laid back and quite social!

Such HAPPY dogs! They truly love this. It's what they were born to do!

Here comes Aliy Zirkle and her team! Quito is her leader on the left as you're looking at the photo. She's quite a superstar (and a mom) at their kennel!

Aliy Zirkle. Quite an inspiration to me, doing what she loves and not letting anyone or anything stop her.

The dogs all start with booties on their feet, but this was a pretty warm day so some of the mushers were actually stopping along the trail to take them off. This is Jake Berkowitz doing just that. Notice the dog right in front of him rolling on his/her back! That must feel good. :) Jake reached the finish line with 15 of the 16 dogs he started with this year... that isn't everyone's goal but he wanted to get as many dogs as possible to the finish line so they gain the experience. He earned an award for exceptional dog care during the 2013 Iditarod... quite a coveted award among mushers!

Back on the trail... dogs are pulling hard!

Jim Lanier's team of all white Alaskan Huskies... his trademark.

Now, I know still photos don't really give a great idea of what's going on... so here's a video that will hopefully give you a little better feel for things.

Iditarod 2013 Ceremonial Start from Mary-Beth Schreck on Vimeo.

I believe this is a rookie team... this musher is telling his dogs "Good job!" and giving them a some pets of praise. I just love seeing stuff like this!