by Christopher Chatterton

Created on: February 06, 2009   Last Updated: March 02, 2010

Mention the word "Iditarod" to most people outside of the United States and they will probably look blankly at you and ask if it is something to do with drain cleaning. I must admit that I myself had no idea what the word meant until I saw a fascinating programme on the Discovery Channel. The documentary "Iditarod: The Toughest Race on Earth", introduced me to the compelling and unique sport of dog sled racing across the beautiful frozen wilderness of Alaska that is the annual Iditarod Race.

What is the Iditarod?

Background and history

The Iditarod is a specific dog sled race covering 1,150 miles of some of the most diverse terrain on earth. The race takes through jagged mountain cliffs, dense pine forests, desolate tundra and mile upon mile of windswept coastline, set against the backdrop of Mother Nature's own light display, the Northern Lights (Anon, 2009).

There are various origins of the word Iditarod in the local history of Alaska. To the oldest inhabitants of Alaska the name is reminiscent of an old Athabaskan Indian village on small river also known as the Iditarod River (Anon, 2009c). However, to most historians the word Iditarod refers to the abandoned gold-rush town established in 1910 and the nearby mining district.

During the 1920's settlers came flooding into the region in search of gold via the coastal ports around Seward and Knik. The trail used by the prospectors to reach the mountains became known as the "Iditarod Trail" (Anon, 2009).

The connection with the dog sled began at this time, as a dog sled was the only means of travel during the winter. However, as the gold began to dry up, and with the advent of the aeroplane delivering mail that had once been the job of dog sled teams, the need for the Iditarod trail became less important. The final blow for the tradition of dog sledging came with the introduction of snowmobiles, which started to be more widely used in the 1930's (Anon, 2009).

The trail lay virtually dormant for the next four decades until a woman from New Mexico arrived in Wasilla, Alaska in 1960. That woman was called Dorothy Page and she was responsible for starting the Iditarod race, which has also become known as "The Last Great Race on Earth".

How the Annual Iditarod got started

The name Dorothy Page has become synonymous with the Iditarod. The Iditarod was the brainchild of Dorothy G. Page, a New Mexico immigrant who settled in Wasilla, Alaska in 1960. She became president of the Wasilla-Knik Centennial Committee in 1966

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