Iditarod 2008 photos

Iditarod, 2008, Anchorage, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Run little doggie, run!!!

This morning I went downtown here in Anchorage and watched a little of the start of the Iditarod. The sled dog race, known as mushing, runs from Anchorage to nome – well, pretty much. they actually do the “proper” start tomorrow, Sunday, in Wasilla, just north of Anchorage. They race all the way to Nome, over 1000 miles away. Crazy, I say.

It’s a treat to watch the dogs take-off — they’re so super-woundup, eager to run, the energy level is amazing. The din is pretty amazing down on 4th street too, with hundreds of dogs barking, howling, whining and generally causing mayhem. but once they hear “mush”, they’re all business, and off they go. Shooting photos of them as they race down main street is tons of fun.

Cheers

Carl

10 thoughts on “Iditarod 2008 photos

  1. Ron Niebrugge

    Cool Carl!

    Unless you have been there, it is hard to describe the energy level at that start. It is amazing, and those dogs just can’t wait to get running!

    I think the restart has been permanently moved to Willow.

    Ron

  2. Carl Donohue

    Hey Ron,

    That sounds like your way of saying “Carl, you dumba**, the start has been moved to Willow”! 🙂

    I agree about the energy level at the start .. absolutely an amazing experience.

    Cheers

    Carl

  3. Josh

    Great post on the iditarod! It sure is a fun event to watch, even online…

    I’m a former resident of Nome and can’t get enough of the race….Check out our coverage of Iditarod 2008 on iditablog.com.

    I’d love to use some of your photos on our website, shoot me an email and we’ll talk!

  4. Carl Donohue

    Hey Mark,

    You should definitely check it out sometime – it’s awesome.

    Hey Josh,

    Perhaps we can work something out. Shoot me an email if you’d like.

    Cheers

    Carl

  5. Beth Lunsford

    Well, I’m way down here in Atlanta. But I always follow the Iditarod race. I think it’s a great test of animal and human endurance. Great adventure! That’s a great shot, Carl. I always have this PULL to be out west. I was born & lived in California for many years. My whole family moved back to Ga. & I absolutely hate it! Now that my parents have passed on, I hope to move out west again.There’s just not a whole lot of adventurous things on the east coast, unless you want to go to New York & duck the muggers!! I much prefer the great outdoors. Big cities are not for me. P.S. Please, no California jokes!! I’m NOT a valley girl, even though I was born in Santa Monica. Ciao!!

  6. Carl Donohue

    Hey Beth,

    I hear ya, there’s nothing like the West. The east has its treasures, and there are some really nice places, etc, but once you visit the West the perspective becomes SO different. And then once you visit AK, it changes all over again. Good luck with your plans.

    Cheers

    Carl

  7. Carl Donohue

    Hey Rick

    Thanks for the post. Actually, I think it’s just the flapping jowls of a dog racing down the trail – it’s funny how many images, when frozen with a camera and lens, seem to make the dogs look very different to what they did in motion.

    Thanks.

    Cheers

    Carl

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