Iditarod Trail

by Lori Tipton Monday, March 16, 2009 NOME, Alaska -- Each year during Iditarod visitors from all over the world come to Alaska to follow the race. Nome is famous for the Iditarod's finish line, but some fans of the race follow it from start to finish, giving checkpoint communities a boost in more ways than one. While mushers check into McGrath , so do visitors at the town's airport. Each year during the Iditarod, many people fly in to follow the race.

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The 2012 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race has officially ended after two weeks with musher Jan Steves taking the Red Lantern award on Monday morning. The 55-year-old rookie musher from Edmonds, WA crossed the Burled Arch on Front Street in Nome at 2:57 a.m. March 19. Steves extinguished the flame in the Widow's Lamp, which signifies that all mushers and their teams were safely off the Iditarod trail. She was the 53 rd musher to complete the nearly 1,000 mile journey from Anchorage, and then restart in Willow, and finishing in Nome in 14 days, 11 hours, 57 minutes and 11 seconds.

Channel 2 will be airing comprehensive coverage of the 2013 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in the coming weeks, with multiple crews providing live and recorded updates along the entirety of the 1,000-mile trail from the Anchorage ceremonial start to the race's finish in Nome.   KTUU's first coverage of The Last Great Race will begin with a special 30-minute broadcast from 9:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday, anchored live from West 4th Avenue in Downtown Anchorage. "Iditarod: Celebrating Tradition" will be hosted by Channel 2 Sports Director Kevin Wells who will be joined by 1985 Iditarod Champion Libby Riddles, the first female champion in Iditarod's 40-year history.

Heavy snowfall in recent weeks is creating some challenges for Iditarod mushers getting ready for the start of the big race. Veteran musher Dee Dee Jonrowe is preparing for her 30th race on the Iditarod trail, and says all the extra snow has her worried about her dogs. At her Willow home, at least 36 inches of snow has fallen in the past two days. Jonrowe says water overflow on some creeks and lakes can injure the dogs if the snow is higher than their shoulders. She says she would really like to get on the trail to Nome right now. “The dogs are ready to go,” Jonrowe said.

by Channel 2 News staff Saturday, March 21, 2009 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Eleven mushers are still out on the Iditarod Trail trying to finish The Last Great Race . Aaron Peck scratched from the race Saturday morning after deciding to not move forward with his six-dog team. David Sawatzky was forced to scratch in between Safety and Nome Saturday afternoon. Ten mushers finished the race Saturday, bringing the total to 42. Thirteen have scratched or withdrawn, and an alarming five dogs have died along the way. Alan Peck is the current Red Lantern.

For the last four years, Lance Mackey has been as good as gold on the Iditarod Trail. Now he's gold off the trail as well. Tuesday at the Alaska Mint Mackey received the honor of stamping a coin in his likeness. The limited-proof 1-ounce medallions feature Mackey with lead dog Maple on one side and his signature on the other. His name and championship years -- 2007 to 2010 - are indicated on the perimeter. For Mackey, the real pleasure is being pictured with the leader who helped make it happen.

Musher Zoya DeNure says her prized Iditarod trail gear, missing for more than a week, has been returned. She said a few thousand dollars' worth of outerwear, including her signature pink parka, went missing from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport after DeNure scratched from the sled dog race about halfway through and flew home early. When she arrived at the baggage claim, she said her bag was not there. It turns out another passenger mistakenly grabbed her belongings.

by Jason Lamb Thursday, March 11, 2010 MCGRATH, Alaska – Being a veterinarian for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is a job not many get paid for, but is nonetheless a very important one. "This is what happens to a stethoscope when it's cold," veterinarian Phil Meyer said, holding up a stiff U-shaped stethoscope. Meyer is used to doing his job in extreme environments. He's a veterinarian lending his time along the Iditarod Trail. "You can tell by the way they act, how they feel, if there's anything going on. So just looking at them is where you start," Meyer said.

During the Iditarod XLI Trail Sled Dog Race, dropped dogs are flown to Anchorage and taken to the Highland Mountain Correctional Center. Close to 40 incarcerated women take shifts to care for the four-legged athletes at all hours of the day.  On Sunday, 65 dogs arrived from checkpoints up and down the Iditarod trail. Volunteer veterinarians check the animals for illness and injures, putting some on medication. “We check the dogs. They come here every day to make sure that they continue to be doing fine.

Mitch Seavey has captured another championship in the Iditarod XLI Trail Sled Dog Race , covering nearly 1,000 miles from Willow to the burled arch in Nome, after an intense showdown with last year's runner-up. The 53-year-old Seavey, of Seward, checked in first around 10:39 p.m. Tuesday, marking his second victory. Seavey and his 10 dogs crossed the finish line on Front Street ahead of contender Aliy Zirkle. The showdown began Tuesday within the last 77 miles at White Mountain where the race boiled down to under 15 minutes between Seavey and Zirkle, however that gap expanded at the last checkpoint in Safety.

During the Iditarod XLI Trail Sled Dog Race, dropped dogs are flown to Anchorage and taken to the Highland Mountain Correctional Center. Close to 40 incarcerated women take shifts to care for the four-legged athletes at all hours of the day.  On Sunday, 65 dogs arrived from checkpoints up and down the Iditarod trail. Volunteer veterinarians check the animals for illness and injures, putting some on medication. “We check the dogs. They come here every day to make sure that they continue to be doing fine.

Channel 2 will be airing comprehensive coverage of the 2013 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in the coming weeks, with multiple crews providing live and recorded updates along the entirety of the 1,000-mile trail from the Anchorage ceremonial start to the race's finish in Nome.   KTUU's first coverage of The Last Great Race will begin with a special 30-minute broadcast from 9:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday, anchored live from West 4th Avenue in Downtown Anchorage. "Iditarod: Celebrating Tradition" will be hosted by Channel 2 Sports Director Kevin Wells who will be joined by 1985 Iditarod Champion Libby Riddles, the first female champion in Iditarod's 40-year history.

Musher Zoya DeNure says her prized Iditarod trail gear, missing for more than a week, has been returned. She said a few thousand dollars' worth of outerwear, including her signature pink parka, went missing from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport after DeNure scratched from the sled dog race about halfway through and flew home early. When she arrived at the baggage claim, she said her bag was not there. It turns out another passenger mistakenly grabbed her belongings.

The 2012 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race has officially ended after two weeks with musher Jan Steves taking the Red Lantern award on Monday morning. The 55-year-old rookie musher from Edmonds, WA crossed the Burled Arch on Front Street in Nome at 2:57 a.m. March 19. Steves extinguished the flame in the Widow's Lamp, which signifies that all mushers and their teams were safely off the Iditarod trail. She was the 53 rd musher to complete the nearly 1,000 mile journey from Anchorage, and then restart in Willow, and finishing in Nome in 14 days, 11 hours, 57 minutes and 11 seconds.

Heavy snowfall in recent weeks is creating some challenges for Iditarod mushers getting ready for the start of the big race. Veteran musher Dee Dee Jonrowe is preparing for her 30th race on the Iditarod trail, and says all the extra snow has her worried about her dogs. At her Willow home, at least 36 inches of snow has fallen in the past two days. Jonrowe says water overflow on some creeks and lakes can injure the dogs if the snow is higher than their shoulders. She says she would really like to get on the trail to Nome right now. “The dogs are ready to go,” Jonrowe said.

An elite group of mushers followed John Baker’s historic run to Nome on Tuesday. The top six: Ramey Smyth: 8 Days 19 Hours 50 Minutes 59 Second s   Ramey Smyth may have come in second, but his run also bested Martin Buser’s previous 2002 record. Smyth’s dogs veered toward the Polar Cub Café on Front Street and Smyth hopped off his sled and ran in to the finish line with his team.  “We gave everything we had,” said Smyth, of Big Lake.

Kotzebue musher John Baker was the first Iditarod musher into Unalakleet Sunday morning, leading the race by nearly two and a half hours over his closest competitor, Ramey Smyth. Baker’s arrival in Unalakleet at 5:04 a.m. with 11 dogs earned him the Wells Fargo Gold Coast Award of a gold cup and $2,500 in gold nuggets. “I’m not too impressed with the speed they’re keeping,” Baker said of his run times. “I thought they’d want to go a little faster.

Stay in the know from the Iditarod Trail. If you already receive KTUU.com Insider E-mails, Click Here to sign up for Iditarod E-mail alerts . To Sign Up for KTUU.com Insider E-mail alerts (Iditarod Updates, Daily Digest or Breaking News) Click Here . To Sign up for KTUU.com Iditarod Text Alerts, Click Here .