FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Feb. 10, 2017

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race restart to move to Fairbanks

Anchorage, Alaska – Today, the Board of Directors of the Iditarod Trail Committee voted unanimously to move the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race restart location from Willow to Fairbanks due to the poor conditions of critical trail areas in the Alaska Range.

The ceremonial start in downtown Anchorage will take place as scheduled on Saturday, March 4, beginning at 10 a.m. The restart will now take place in Fairbanks on Monday, March 6, beginning at 11 a.m.

This marks the third time in the history of the Iditarod that the restart has been moved to Fairbanks due to poor conditions in the Alaska Range. The first was in 2003, and second in 2015.

“While some snow did fall east of the Alaska Range over the past couple of weeks, other critical areas along the trail received little snowfall, if any at all, including the trail into Rainy Pass. Additionally, trail conditions leading up to both Ptarmigan Pass and Dalzell Gorge are still considered unsafe at this time for the teams participating in this year’s race.” Iditarod Trail Committee Race Director Mark Nordman said.

Additional details regarding the Fairbanks restart will be available on Iditarod.com as additional planning decisions are made.

This year, 73 teams are registered for the 45th Iditarod, including last year’s top ten finishers.</s>ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Low-snow conditions in the Alaska Range have forced officials with the world's most famous sled dog race to move its official start from the Anchorage area to Fairbanks, 580 kilometers to the north.

It's the second time in three years, and the third time in the last 14, that there hasn't been enough snow south of the Alaska Range to start the race from the Anchorage area. Last year, even the ceremonial start in Anchorage was almost moved because of a lack of snow.

Of particular concern this year are conditions in the always-dangerous Dalzell Gorge, which have been exacerbated by a lack of snow. Several mushers crashed their sleds and one injured competitor had to be rescued by helicopter in 2014 near the gorge, about 150 miles west of the start.

The low snow conditions this year have left the trail covered with exposed vegetation, said the race's chief operating officer, Chas St. George.</s>Low-snow conditions in the Alaska Range have forced officials to move the Iditarod's official start from the Anchorage area to Fairbanks, Alaska.

It's the second time in three years, and the third time in the last 14, that there hasn't been enough snow south of the Alaska Range to start the race from the Anchorage area. Last year, the ceremonial start in Anchorage was almost moved because of a lack of snow.

The town of Fairbanks also marks the traditional end of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog race, which is currently underway.
• Yuka Honda drops out of Yukon Quest in wake of sled dog's death
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Of particular concern this year are conditions in the always-dangerous Dalzell Gorge, which have been exacerbated by a lack of snow. Several mushers crashed their sleds and one injured competitor had to be rescued by helicopter in 2014 near the gorge, about 241 kilometres west of the start.

The low snow conditions this year have left the trail covered with exposed alders, said the race's chief operating officer, Chas St. George.

"We're just not feeling that it's safe enough to run a competitive dog race over this year," race director Mark Nordman told reporters.

Volunteers and race staff members attempted to groom the trail, but St. George said alders and brush were too much to overcome. In a normal year, snow would cover that growth.

"We're going through some major changes with the environment," Nordman said. "We have more willows and brush than we have in years."

The nearly 1,609-kilometre race will have its ceremonial start March 4, in downtown Anchorage, which has seen plenty of snow this winter. The official start normally comes the next day in Willow, located about 80 kilometres north of Anchorage.

However, since mushers will now have to drive their dogs the 579 kilometres from Anchorage to Fairbanks, the race's official start has been pushed back to March 6.

Officials have worried about the effects of climate change for years, and this isn't the only logistical change in its 44-year history.

The race used to have its official start in Wasilla, but a lack of snow and urban growth forced the start of the race 30 miles farther north, to Willow.

The amount of snow in Willow hasn't been a problem these past few years, St. George said. It's what happens "between there and the Alaska Range" that dictates where the race's official start will be.

"I think we've been worried about the affects for a number of years," he said.

The race end will end about nine days later in the old Gold Rush town of Nome. During that span, mushers and their dog teams will have travelled over mountain ranges, through untamed wilderness and battled unforgiving winds whipping off the Bering Sea as they mush down the sea ice to Nome.</s>ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) A lack of snow in the Alaska Range is forcing the start of the world’s most famous sled dog race from the Anchorage area to Fairbanks for the second time in three years.

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race officials made the announcement Friday during a board meeting in Anchorage.

The ceremonial start will be held as normal in Anchorage on March 4. Instead of having the official start the next day in Willow, about 50 miles north of Anchorage, the race will begin in Fairbanks on March 6.

Low snow conditions near Rainy Pass and the Dalzell Gorge, which is dangerous even in good conditions, prompted the Iditarod board to move the race.

The race also started from Fairbanks in 2003 and 2015.</s>ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Low-snow conditions in the Alaska Range have forced officials with the world's most famous sled dog race to move its official start from the Anchorage area to Fairbanks.

It's the second time in three years, and the third time in the last 14, that there hasn't been enough snow south of the Alaska Range to start the race from the Anchorage area. Last year, the ceremonial start in Anchorage was almost moved because of a lack of snow.

Of particular concern this year are conditions in the always-dangerous Dalzell Gorge, which have been exacerbated by a lack of snow. Several mushers crashed their sleds and one injured competitor had to be rescued by helicopter in 2014 near the gorge, about 150 miles west of the start.

"We're just not feeling that it's safe enough to run a competitive dog race over this year," race director Mark Nordman told reporters.

Volunteers and race staff members attempted to groom the trail, but St. George said alders and brush were too much to overcome. In a normal year, snow would cover that growth.

"We're going through some major changes with the environment," Nordman said. "We have more willows and brush than we have in years."

The nearly 1,000-mile race will have its ceremonial start March 4, in downtown Anchorage, which has seen plenty of snow this winter. The official start normally comes the next day in Willow, located about 50 miles north of Anchorage.

However, since mushers will now have to drive their dogs the 360 miles from Anchorage to Fairbanks, the race's official start has been pushed back to March 6.

Officials have worried about the effects of climate change for years, and this isn't the only logistical change in its 44-year history.

The race used to have its official start in Wasilla, but a lack of snow and urban growth forced the start of the race 30 miles farther north, to Willow.

The amount of snow in Willow hasn't been a problem these past few years, St. George said. It's what happens "between there and the Alaska Range" that dictates where the race's official start will be.

The race end will end about nine days later in the old Gold Rush town of Nome. During that span, mushers and their dog teams will have over mountain ranges, through untamed wilderness and battled unforgiving winds whipping off the Bering Sea as they mush down the sea ice to Nome.</s>Once again, the Iditarod is moving to Fairbanks.

The race’s board of directors met today in Anchorage and voted

 unanimously to change the starting point from Willow to Fairbanks. Almost

 immediately after the decision was made behind closed doors, Race Director

 Mark Nordman held a press conference that local TV station KTVA broadcast

 live on Facebook.

“Everybody was really somber. We went through communities and

 effects with, taking of the dogs first and the mushers and the communities

 and the cultural aspects and the economics and everybody knows what a big

 decision this was to make, and how it does effect so many. These are very

 good friends of Iditarod’s out there, and you know it’s tough for all of

 us.”

This is the third time the re-start has moved to Fairbanks in the race’s 45 year history. And it’s the second time in a row the event will not go through it’s southern route, skipping communities like Anvik, Shageluk, and Grayling. The Fairbanks trail heads west toward Galena before veering north to Huslia then back down to the Yukon. The general routing is similar to the original 1925 trail used during Nome’s diptheria outbreak.

Nordman says in spite of good winter conditions across the vast majority of

 the traditional route, snow is unacceptably low in one critical section of

 the trail in the Alaska Range around Rainy Pass and into the Dalzell

 Gorge.

“Fairbanks has good snow, even the coast has good snow, McGrath

 has good snow, but nobody was thinking snow. When you start seeing 12, 14

 inches up in the mountains that’s really low snow to try and go ahead over

 that terrain. We’re used to feet.”

Organizers were heavily criticized in 2014 when they decided to allow

 mushers to race through that same section of the trail. Ice and abysmal

 snow conditions led to injuries and equipment damage.

The Iditarod’s ceremonial start will still take place in Anchorage on the

 first Saturday in March. After that, teams will head to Fairbanks, where

 the re-start will take off on Monday the 6th.</s>A lack of snow in the Alaska Range is forcing the start of the world's most famous sled dog race from the Anchorage area to Fairbanks for the second time in three years.

Start the conversation, or Read more at WTVG-TV Toledo.</s>Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race champion Dallas Seavey waves to the crowd as he begins the ceremonial start of the 1,600-kilometre race in Anchorage, Alaska, Saturday, March 5, 2016. Race officials are moving the official start of the 2017 race due to low snow.

Start the conversation, or Read more at CBC News.</s>Ralph Johannessen drops down onto the frozen surface of Puntilla Lake in the Alaska Range in the 2016 race. The Iditarod Board of Directors voted Friday to move the race restart from Willow to Fairbanks this year due to low snow levels on portions of the 1,000-mile trail.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Anchorage Daily News.</s>The Iditarod Trail Committee board of directors made the decision to relocate the race to Interior Alaska in a quick, unanimous vote Friday after a two-hour-long executive session.

The ceremonial start for the 45th annual race will remain in Anchorage on March 4 when mushers and their sled dog teams snake 11 miles through the city. They will then travel about 350 miles north to Fairbanks for the official race start two days later, at 10 a.m. March 6. The race will cover about 980 miles to Nome.

"It's a different event, but it's still the Iditarod," said Race Marshal Mark Nordman at a news conference after the vote. "It's still a world-class dog race with the best mushers in the world."

Two Northland mushers are slated to take part in the race this year: three-time and 2017 John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon champion Ryan Anderson of Ray will be running his first Iditarod, and four-time Beargrease champion Nathan Schroeder of Warba will be returning for the fourth year in a row. Another 2017 Beargrease musher, Ryan Redington of Wasilla, Alaska, also is in the Iditarod field this year.

Nordman said that while feet of snow dumped on Anchorage this winter, stretches of the Iditarod trail in the Alaska Range didn't fare as well, and were marked by sparse snow and dense brush.

"We're just not feeling that it's safe enough to run a competitive dog race over," he said.

The Iditarod Trail Committee had warned in a statement earlier this month that the perilous Dalzell Gorge portion of the trail had received inadequate snow, and Nordman said Friday that the notorious stretch also included too many spots of open water and unsafe snow-and-ice bridges.

While Nordman said he could possibly get a sled dog team through an alternate route, he said the mountainous weather conditions change quickly, and the board did not want to take chances.

The Iditarod restart has taken place twice before in Fairbanks, in 2003 and 2015. The change delivers a flatter trail to Nome, though the last time mushers started in Fairbanks, the weather turned brutally cold.
The Iditarod Trail Committee announces the race's March official start has been moved from the Anchorage area northeast to Fairbanks, Alaska, due to low-snow conditions in the Alaska Range.