2021 Iditarod

49th Annual Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Dallas Seavey in 2013
Venue	Iditarod Trail
Location	Alaska
Dates	March 7–18, 2021
Competitors	46
Champion
Dallas Seavey

The 2021 Iditarod was the 49th edition of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Alaska. The race began on Sunday, March 7, 2021, in Anchorage, Alaska.[1] 46 mushers participated in the race including past winners and noted racers Aliy Zirkle, Martin Buser, Dallas Seavey, Peter Kaiser, Joar Leifseth Ulsom, and Nicolas Petit.[2]

The 2021 Iditarod was won by Dallas Seavey, who finished on March 15 with a total race time of 7 days, 14 hours, 8 minutes, and 57 seconds.[3] Aaron Burmeister and Brent Sass finished second and third, respectively.[3] This was Seavey's fifth time winning the race.

Race format

On February 5, 2021, the race officials announced they had canceled the ceremonial start in Anchorage, which usually is an 11-mile (18 km) route through the city.[4] Rather than restart at the usual checkpoint of Willow Lake, the 2021 race restarted at Deshka Landing in the Susitna Valley because of COVID-19 restrictions.[5]

Normally on odd-numbered years, the Iditarod races along the southern race route. However, because of the pandemic, the Iditarod Trail Committee decided to put together a new route, called the Iditarod Golden Trail Loop.[6] The route utilizes portions of the traditional southern route up the checkpoint at the town of Iditarod, then goes to the ghost town of Flat, which serves as a turnaround point. The rest of the route is then run back along preexisting trail, ending in the town of Willow. It is noted this route will require entrants to go through the Dalzell Gorge and Farewell Burn twice, two notorious sections of the route near the Alaska Range.[7] No previous race route has attempted to traverse the Range twice, or backwards from a normal route. The 2021 race rules require the mandatory 24 hour layover, which is used to equalize the time differences in starting positions, to be used at or before the Iditarod checkpoint.[8] The first of two mandatory eight hour layovers can be taken between Rohn checkpoint and the return to there, and the final layover will be taken at the town of Skwenta.

Mushers were required to wear face masks, with strict social distancing measures.

References

1. "Iditarod cancels traditional ceremonial start in Anchorage because of COVID-19 concerns". Anchorage Daily News. 2021-02-06. Retrieved 2021-02-08.
2. "Musher List - 2021 Iditarod - Iditarod". iditarod.com. 13 January 2013. Retrieved 2021-01-30.
3. "Final Race Standings". iditarod.com. March 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
4. Hanlon, Tegan; Anchorage, Alaska Public Media- (2021-02-06). "Iditarod cancels 2021 ceremonial start in Anchorage". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved 2021-02-08.
5. Iditarod Trail Committee (5 January 2021). "Iditarod XLIX restart and finish to take place at Deshka Landing" (PDF). Iditarod.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-02-06.
6. Media, Tegan Hanlon, Alaska Public (2020-12-21). "The 2021 Iditarod sled dog race is still on, but will end in Willow". KTOO. Retrieved 2021-02-03.
7. Iditarod Trail Committee (18 December 2020). "The Iditarod announces the Iditarod Gold Trail Loop for its 49th running" (PDF). iditarod.com.
8. "On the revamped out-and-back Iditarod route, Skwentna will be the site of mushers' final layover". Anchorage Daily News. 2021-01-23. Retrieved 2021-02-08.