Hi Boys and Girls,
In a few short hours, Iditarod 40 will begin. Today is the Ceremonial Start in downtown Anchorage. Have you ever wondered what it takes to get the roads of downtown ready for dog teams to travel on? Dog teams have different requirements than cars do. They need snow covered roads. Since the roads are usually cleaned for cars to travel on, where does the snow come from for the dog teams?
Last night there was a rumble of trucks around Anchorage. Dump trucks and huge snow blowers were busy gathering snow from all over town. The dump trucks then went to 4th Avenue and dumped the snow in the road. Other equipment then moves the snow around and prepares the trail. I think this part of the trail is 2 miles long. So it’s a busy night getting a road for cars turned into a trail for dog teams.
When the last team leaves the chute today, and the fans and dog trucks head out, the process will reverse. The roads will be cleared so that cars can once again drive and park downtown. It usually takes less than 24 hours from start to finish.
Now that downtown is ready, hope you are. Check back often for posts and updates.
See you on the trail,
Gypsy