The Amazing Ceremonial Start

The ceremonial start to the Iditarod 2000 Dog Race, went off without a hitch on March 7, 2009. As each dog team entered the starting chute, multi groups of handlers poised the over yearning to run teams of dogs, hoping the dogs looked pretty and were stumble free on their jaunt through downtown Anchorage. The weather added joy to each of the musher’s facial expressions, while statements were made in reference to the 2008 start and the horrible melting temperatures. The weather predictions include some tumultuous looking lows coming though, but no real melting temperatures.

Part of the colorful parade included many of the mushers using old time freight sleds which were hand made of birch trees with naturally curved trunks that grow on the side of steep hills along the rivers. The variety of sleds included a Gee Pole sled driven by Jeff King out of the chute. This funny looking sled places the musher between the dogs and the freight sled on a pair of skies and a six foot pole. The pole is anchored much like an oar of a boat and is used to dig into the snow on the side of the musher enabling the musher to steer. These types of contraptions were still used in Alaska when King first moved here. He used this unique sled to haul freight across glaciers in Denali for climbers. In the case of King we can not call it a Gee Pole sled, since Jeff is left handed he has naturally a Haw Pole sled.

Jim Lanier looked a youthful 68 years old as the oldest musher this year to be signed up to compete. He is a veteran musher best known for his all white dog teams. The observant spectator could see that this was not a camping trip for Jim but he eyed, and ruffled his ivory flock of mutts with a very competitive edge. Sebastian Schnuelle was met with chuckles as he approached his sled with a play stuffed wolf hat sitting about eight inches higher than your typical hat on his head. One would never know by looking at his relaxed and mellow attitude that he had just 10 days previously won the other 1000 mile race in Alaska, the Yukon Quest.

Many mushing dynasties are involved with the race this year. The Linders, Reddingtons, Symths, Mackeys and the Seaveys were representing this year. The Seavey trio of father Mitch, son Dallas, and daughter-in-law Jen are hoping for at least two of the three make it into the top twenty. Dallas is no longer running the “puppy” team but running his own dogs out of his own kennel. Cim Symth has won two mid-distance races this year, the Copper Basin 300 and the Tunistnena 200 however, his brother Ramey has out performed him consistently in the Iditarod.

Finally the crowd, which was already on their feet, stood on the toes and cheered loudly for the pink furry Lady and the back to back champion of the last two Iditarods. DeeDee was busy doing a cheerful Queen wave to both sides of the snow burned lined avenue. Her fans roared so loudly that the announcer needed to pause his fact filled monolog until the bright pink bootied dogs progressed a nice distance away from his lofty perch. Lance who is no longer that poor musher who struggles to get enough dog booties (little alone matching ones) passed by with his bright blue sponsored-filled parka sporting the largest wolf ruff of the day. There appeared to be an eagerness in the crowd to get a long lasting peek at this mythical ironman. The energy of the crowd could be explained in that everyone had a feeling that they were witnessing and being part of an historical event. The buzzing of the crowd’s electricity and Lance’s apparent nervousness was the highlight of this unique and crowd pleasing event.

While listening to the interviews with each musher before the race is an important part of the ceremonial start; so much of what a musher states pre-race, is about psyching out the other mushers and trying to psych themselves up. It isn't until the race truly starts and the talking ends that we will know how the race unfolds. This year the Iditarod is packed with a list of experienced potentially victorious mushers. t will be fascinating to see if any of the pre-race predictions will come to fruition.