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Over the years, thousands of excited sled dogs have lined up in downtown Anchorage, eager to begin a marathon journey to Nome, some 1,100 miles away. The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, an Alaskan tradition built over the past 25 years, remains one of the most unique and arduous athletic tests of our time.
Dubbed "The Last Great Race On Earth," the Iditarod pits men and dogs against raging blizzards, bitter arctic cold and rugged mountain terrain as they wind their way north along frozen rivers and historic trails. Their reward? Spectacular wilderness scenery; vast stillness punctuated only by the panting of dogs and the swish of sled runners on the snow; a special camaraderie with fellow racers and, maybe, a finish in the money. But, most importantly, mushers develop a special bond with their traveling companions - the dogs. These are the real athletes. Lean and fast, they love to run. Anyone who has ever witnessed the start of the Iditarod has seen these well-trained dogs, anxious and eager to begin their northern quest.
The Iditarod was inspired by a monumental and historic event - a dog-sled relay of life-saving serum from Anchorage to Nome in 1925. That January, in the middle of a frigid winter, deadly diphtheria broke out in Nome, remotely located along the Bering Sea. Between the stricken town and the nearest serum in Anchorage was nearly 1,000 miles of Alaskan wilderness.
The Alaska Railroad ferried the medicine 250 miles north to Nenana. From there, 20 volunteer dog-sled drivers relayed the serum non-stop the remaining 674 miles. When the first musher left Nenana, the temperature hovered at 50 below zero. According to legend, the serum was nearly lost when a huge gust of wind toppled the sled of the final musher. The musher frantically dug the serum out of the snow with his bare hands, righted his sled and continued on.
Through the efforts of those heroic mushers, the serum arrived in Nome five days and seven hours after leaving Nenana. The town was saved.
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