Route
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The trail is composed of two routes: a northern route, which is run on even-numbered years, and a southern route, which is run on odd-numbered years. Both follow the same trail for 444 miles (715 km), from Anchorage to Ophir, where they diverge and then rejoin at Kaltag, 441 miles (710 km) from Nome. The race used the northern route until 1977, when the southern route was added to distribute the impact of the event on the small villages in the area, none of which have more than a few hundred inhabitants. Passing through the historic town of Iditarod was a secondary benefit.
Aside from the addition of the southern route, the route has remained relatively constant. The largest changes were the addition of the restart location in 1995 and the shift from Ptarmigan to Rainy Pass in 1996. Checkpoints along the route are also occasionally added or dropped, and the ceremonial start of the route and the restart point are commonly adjusted depending on weather.
As a result the exact measured distance of the race varies from year to year, but officially the northern route is 1,112 miles (1,790 km) long, and the southern route is 1,131 miles (1,820 km) long. The length of the race is also frequently rounded to either 1,050; 1,100; or 1,150 miles (1690, 1770 or 1850 km) but is officially set at 1,049 miles (1688 km), which honors Alaska's status as the 49th U.S. state.
Read more about this topic: Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Famous quotes containing the word route:
“In the mountains the shortest route is from peak to peak, but for that you must have long legs. Aphorisms should be peaks: and those to whom they are spoken should be big and tall of stature.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“The route through childhood is shaped by many forces, and it differs for each of us. Our biological inheritance, the temperament with which we are born, the care we receive, our family relationships, the place where we grow up, the schools we attend, the culture in which we participate, and the historical period in which we live—all these affect the paths we take through childhood and condition the remainder of our lives.”
—Robert H. Wozniak (20th century)
“A Route of Evanescence
With a revolving Wheel—”
—Emily Dickinson (1830–1886)