ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) \u2014 Hundreds of barking dogs will take over downtown Anchorage on Saturday for the ceremonial start of the world\u2019s most famous sled dog race. The event, catered to fans who hope to see and cheer on their favorite mushers, takes place a day before the competitive start.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what to know about the 54th running of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which features a new amateur category and financial support from a Norwegian billionaire.<\/p>\n
What is the Iditarod?<\/p>\n
The Iditarod was conceived by co-founders Dorothy Page and Joe Redington Sr. as a long-distance sled dog race to honor both Alaska\u2019s mushing tradition and the Iditarod Trail. That was a 938-mile (1,510-kilometer) freight and mail route that ran from Seward on Alaska\u2019s southern coast to Nome, on the Bering Sea on Alaska\u2019s western coast.<\/p>\n
The start of the race was placed in the Anchorage area to energize residents of the state\u2019s largest city. The late Howard Farley<\/a> was instrumental in making Nome, about 1,000 miles (1,610 kilometers) away, the finish line.<\/p>\n Thirty-four mushers started the 1973 race, but only 22 finished.<\/p>\n Dick Wilmarth won it in 20 days. He never raced again. When asked why, he once said, \u201c Cause I won.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Since then, mushers have become faster and faster, with winners reaching the finish line a block off the Bering Sea in about 10 days.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a small field of competitive mushers<\/p>\n The number of mushers jostling to be the first to Nome has varied over the years, but the retirements of many longtime mushers and the high cost of supplies<\/a>, such as dog food, have kept the fields small this decade.<\/p>\n The largest field was 96 mushers starting the race in 2008. Over the race\u2019s first five decades, about 60 competed on average. Just 33 started the race in 2023 and 2025 \u2014 the fewest ever.<\/p>\n This year, 34 mushers are competing, matching the number who started in 1973. They will glide their sleds over 11 miles (18 kilometers) of trails in Anchorage past cheering fans on Saturday. The competitive 1,000-mile (1,610-kilometer) race starts Sunday on a frozen lake about 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of Anchorage. <\/p>\n A Norwegian billionaire provides financial backing<\/p>\n There actually are 37 mushers in this year\u2019s race, but three are not eligible for the championship or prize money. The Iditarod has started a new Iditarod Expedition Musher Program, which allows people to race in the honorary category.<\/p>\n Participating this year will be Norwegian billionaire Kjell Rokke, who now lives in Switzerland, and Canadian entrepreneur Steve Curtis. Unlike Iditarod contestants, they are allowed outside help. <\/p>\n Norwegian musher Thomas Waerner, who won the 2020 Iditarod<\/a> and then famously was stuck in Alaska for three months because of the COVID-19 pandemic, will provide support for Rokke running a dog team. Four-time champion Jeff King will aid Curtis on a snowmachine.<\/p>\n Rokke is providing financial support to the race, including boosting the race purse by $100,000 to a total of $650,000 and providing $170,000 in support for the 17 Alaska Native villages that serve as checkpoints.<\/p>\n Iditarod CEO Rob Urbach said Rokke\u2019s donation to the purse should raise the payouts to competitors, with the winner getting about $80,000, well above the nearly $57,000 paid to the top musher last year.<\/p>\n \u201cI believe it is healthy for the sport to evolve and look at new opportunities,\u201d Waerner told The Associated Press in an interview conducted by private message. \u201cThe cost of running a competitive kennel has increased significantly over the years, and this initiative is an attempt to explore more sustainable ways to finance both a racing kennel and the race itself \u2014 while maintaining high standards for dog care, training, competition, and overall quality.\u201d<\/p>\n Curtis, whose addition was only announced three days before the ceremonial start, has committed $50,000 to support youth sports programs in villages along the Iditarod trail, race officials said in a social media post.<\/p>\n This year\u2019s field includes four competitive mushers from other countries: two from Canada, one from Norway and one from Denmark. <\/p>\n Three former champions<\/p>\n Even though Waerner is ineligible to win, the field includes three other former champions all looking for their second title: defending champion Jessie Holmes<\/a>, 2023 champion Ryan Redington<\/a> and 2019 winner Pete Kaiser.<\/a><\/p>\n