Fur Rondy 2008
We just wrapped up one of my favorite weekends of the year - Fur Rendevous. After a few down years, Fur Rondy experienced a major resurgence this year. Tons of people were downtown for the various events, including a mob for this year’s inaugural Running of the Reindeer a la the the running of the bulls in Pamplona.
The marquee event of Fur Fondy is, of course, the three day World Championship Dog Sled races. The races were great - I actually prefer the Fur Rondy races to the Iditarod. Most folks think that the Iditarod starts in Anchorage - however, the start is just a ceremonial start. The real race begins a day later in Willow. On the other hand, The Fur Rondy races are a major sprint dog event that covers a large swatch of Anchorage trails over a period of three days. The teams are fast and long - a dog team consisting of eighteen dogs speeding along at over 20 mph covers a lot of ground very quickly.
Yesterday I tromped down to one of my favorite race viewing spots and took a ton of pictures:
Rounding the Bend
Here they come:
A Musher in Red:
Dogs!
A Sourdough Musher:
The sartorially resplendent Slat Rat viewing the dog races:
Hello. I am 
