Hugh Neff and Ray Redington Jr going over Rainy Pass on Monday late afternoon.  It hasn’t been easy going.

Aliy Zirkle checks into McGrath first, and claims the PenAir “Spirit of Alaska” award.

Veteran musher Dan Seavey is wearing bib 100 for a very good reason. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Iditarod trail. Along Dan’s trip this year he will be promoting the centennial celebration and the history of Alaska’s most famous trail.

Insider Movement Update

Insider Editor Josh Godfrey put together this music montage featuring the dogs of Iditarod 2012.

Dee Dee Jonrowe on her run to Rainy Pass.

You can’t waste time in the checkpoint. Even this early in the race.

The Iditarod is underway!  It was a beautiful day in Willow and the Insider crew captured great images.  Kevin Bodhi, Greg Ritchie and Rob Frost turned in these images.

The Insider was able to catch up with defending Iditarod champion John Baker at Saturday’s official start in Anchorage. Baker says this is the one day mushers can really give back to their fans.

To say that Lance Mackey is a crowd favorite would be putting it lightly, and Saturday he had a chance to give a little back to those fans. Lance says he understands that the Anchorage start is his chance to give back to the sport and to the people who cheer him on.

Growing the sport of dog mushing is of the upmost importance to Mike Santos and his wife. We caught up with Mike before the downtown start and explained why he likes the official start.

This is a quick section from from an interview the Insider did with Gerry Willomitzer. Gerry sees the downtown Anchorage start as a chance to give back to fans and grow the sport of dog mushing.

After finishing 2nd at last year’s Iditarod, Ramey Smyth says he’s back to win. Before the race shakes out, Smyth says the official start in downtown Anchorage is about sharing the dog racing experience with the people of Anchorage, along with his friends and family.

Just before hitting the trail headed for Nome, the Insider caught up with Kelley Griffen. In this section of her interview, Kelley talks about the unique things her dog team will see on their way out of Anchorage.

After taking some time off from Iditarod, Sigrid Ekran is back on the trail. Her and her team of dogs took off out of Anchorage Saturday afternoon, and Ekran says she enjoys giving back to the fans and the sponsors.

Kelley Maixner left Anchorage today headed for Nome, but not before he participated in the big parade. Kelley says the atmosphere downtown reminds him of a parade — a parade for the fans of Iditarod and dog mushing.

The Insider caught up with veteran musher Justin Savidis before the start of the 40th Iditarod in downtown Anchorage Saturday. Justin says he enjoys the official start downtown, but can’t wait to get out into the Alaskan wilderness.

The Millennium Hotel was graced with children from Northwood ABC elementary school in Anchorage Friday afternoon. Third, Fourth and Fifth graders “mushed” their way to the hotel lobby pulling sleds along the way. Once in the lobby the children sang 3 songs for the patrons of the hotel.

Iditarod Insider Producer Greg Heister and Insider Analyst Bruce Lee look ahead at the 2012 Iditarod.