Thread: Iditarod Mushers Begin Sled-dog Race Through Alaska Wilderness

JUNEAU, ALASKA—
Mushers from around the world set off on Alaska's famed Iditarod sled-dog race to Nome on Monday in sub zero temperatures on an alternative never-before-used route from Fairbanks that could lend a new level of unpredictability to the contest.

The nearly 1,000-mile (1,600 km) Iditarod race, which typically takes nine days or longer to complete, commemorates a 1925 rescue mission that delivered diphtheria serum by sled-dog relay to the Bering Sea coastal community of Nome.

But for the first time since 2003, the mushers will not compete along one of two traditional trails after race officials deemed sections of the established route unsafe. Instead, they created an alternate trail, and moved the start to Fairbanks from Willow.

More here: Iditarod Mushers Begin Sled-dog Race Through Alaska Wilderness

Originally Posted by misskit

But for the first time since 2003, the mushers will not compete along one of two traditional trails after race officials deemed sections of the established route unsafe. Instead, they created an alternate trail, and moved the start to Fairbanks from Willow.

wonder why?