Iditapod

Iditapod: Mission Iditarod, COVID Protocol

Alaska Public Media | By Casey Grove

Published March 6, 2021 at 2:49 PM AKST

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a dog looks directly at the camera — Musher Dallas Seavey is returning to the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race this year. The four-time champion's success streak came to an abrupt halt in 2017 when race officials announced that several of his dogs tested positive for a prohibited pain reliever. Seavey says he did not give the drug to his dogs, and the race cleared him of any wrongdoing in 2018. Seavey now lives on a vast property in Talkeetna with more than 100 sled dogs. He says he's coming back to the Iditarod with a new perspective after wading through some of the biggest challenges of his life. (Jeff Chen/Alaska Public Media)

The 2021 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is going to look a lot different, one year into a global COVID-19 pandemic. (The Iditapod’s going to be pretty different this year, too, as we'll explain).

The ceremonial start is canceled, so the race begins Sunday in Willow under strict COVID-19 protocols, with a shortened trail that doubles back on itself, a challenge to sled dog teams to cross the Alaska Range not once, but twice, plus coronavirus testing along the way and less access to indoor spaces at checkpoints... This Iditarod is certainly going to be unique.