Our favorite 30 photos from the 2024 Iditarod ceremonial start

By
AKPM Staff
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Two dogs jump in the snow.
Sled dogs jump in excitement at the starting line of the 2024 Iditarod ceremonial start in Anchorage on Saturday, March 2, 2024. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)

Thirty-eight mushers and hundreds of sled dogs dashed through Anchorage on Saturday for the ceremonial start of the 2024 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

Temperatures hovered in the single digits, with wind chills making it feel even colder during the early-morning hours downtown as mushers prepared for the parade-like event. 

Many teams have done this all before, like Aaron Burmeister who’s setting out on his 22nd Iditarod. But more than a dozen others prepared to head to Nome for the first time.

“The pre-race jitters are real,” said rookie Isaac Teaford.

As teams traversed the 11-mile route down city streets and trails, fans held out their hands for high-fives and offered hot dogs and beers to the passing mushers. It was a sunny and joyful scene ahead of Sunday’s official race start out of Willow.

Here are some of our favorite photos from the day:

a musher with a disco ball helmet
Paige Drobny, an Iditarod veteran, wore the most festive attire at the Iditarod’s ceremonial start, with a disco-ball helmet, a silver-sequined cape and matching, shiny capes made from space blankets for each of her dogs. (Casey Grove/Alaska Public Media)
Two dogs in kennels
Iditarod sled dogs Pearl (above) and Hoodoo poke their heads out of a dog truck ahead of the ceremonial start. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A man in a green jacket waves to fans on a street in downtown Anchorage Alaska.
Defending champion Ryan Redington waves to fans downtown. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A man in a brown winter jacket pets a sled dog
Iditarod musher Lauro Eklund rubs the ears of one of his sled dogs. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A woman with blonde hair in a dark coat comforts a dog that is in a shared crate with other dogs on a bed of straw.
Iditarider Renee Hicks gets to spend time with the dogs running on Travis Beals’ team ahead of her ride through the city. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
a musher and a dog team go down a snowy hill
Paige Drobny drives her team down the notorious Cordova Street hill in her disco-ball-themed outfit. (Tim Rockey/Alaska Public Media)
A woman with a mega phone cheers on a trail at a festival
Fans cheer on the mushers along the city’s snowy trails. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A large crowd gathers on both sides of the road as a sled dog team races.
It was a sunny and clear day for the 2024 ceremonial start. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A woman with heart shaped glasses on dances and sings.
Dani Edwards dances with friends at the Trailgate party set up along the city trail. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
a musher gets high-fives
Fans eagerly hold out their hands for high-fives from Ryan Redington. (Tegan Hanlon/Alaska Public Media)
A man dressed up in gold party attire dances.
Chad Vandenbergh throws around some dance moves at the Trailgate party. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A woman wearing various furs walk on a winter trail.
Monique Gassek shows off her fur coat and hat at Trailgate. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
a boy in a coat waves to the camera
Lathan Ahmasuk traveled all the way from Nome with his mom for the ceremonial start. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A woman in a sled dog shakes hands with a fan.
Anna Berington shakes hands with fans at the starting line. She usually races with her twin sister, Kristy, but Kristy is sitting out of this year’s race. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
multiple people warm their hands by a heating lamp.
People gather around a heating lamp to warm up downtown. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A man in a blue coat walks with his son on his shoulders
Rabun Fox holds his son on his shoulders so he can see the mushers. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A man in a black puffy jacket walks out of his sled dog trailer
Pete Kaiser, winner of the 2019 Iditarod, walks out of his dog trailer. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
A man in a brown coat comforts a brown and white dog that is jumping up on him.
Joe Clark hangs out with Benjamin Good’s lead dog Timber. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A man dressed in winter gear with a dark vest and gloves works on preparing a sled that will be used for racing.
Jason Mackey puts plastic on his sled runners ahead of the ceremonial start. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A man and a woman with fake decorative antlers pose for a photo in front of a yellow building.
Sara and Jesse Tellinger ventured from Kodiak to watch the ceremonial start. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A man with a fur hat and a red jacket that has several iditarod patches on it kneels next to 2 dogs.
Robert Henric helps to keep a dog calm as they get ready to parade through Anchorage. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A man runs with a dog that has three legs down the street as his team prepares to run the Iditarod.
Five-time Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey runs with Whopper toward the Iditarod ceremonial starting line, the rest of the team following behind. (Adam Nicely/ Alaska Public Media)
A woman in blue winter clothing on a sled with a white bib that has the number 12 on it.
Mille Porsild sets off toward the starting line. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A woman on a sled in heavy winter clothing with bib number 37 being pulled by dogs down a road as viewed from above.
Musher Calvin Daugherty leaves downtown Anchorage. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A man in a red jacket with a white bib that has the number 29 on it raises his hand up in the sky as people on the side of the street look on.
Aaron Burmeister brings his sled dog team to a momentary halt as they wait for the signal to takeoff. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
Two people dressed in wolf costumes one is blue and the other is brown pose for the camera as people walk behind them.
“Aktikaani” (left) and “Finn the Aussie” celebrate the Iditarod. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A brindle patterned dog jumps up and down while waiting to start sled racing.
A dog leaps with excitement at the ceremonial start. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
A man and a woman kneel in front of a camera taking photos with 2 black dogs.
Musher Matthew Failor (left) and wife Liz Failor take a photo with Ballad and Sonic Boom. (Adam Nicely/Alaska Public Media)
a musher and a dog look at each other
Paul and musher Hunter Keefe greet one another. (Tegan Hanlon/Alaska Public Media)

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