I’ve got an hour and forty-five minutes of video from Aliy’s on-board camera during the Ceremonial Start on Saturday. There’s some good, interesting footage all throughout it, but it’s way too long for this format. Plus, I don’t imagine you want to sit through a “feature film” length movie!

So, I’ve cut it down to give you the last 30 seconds before her actual start and then the first four minutes of the run down 4th Avenue and around “the corner.” I think you’ll find it’s enough to give you an “up close and personal” experience of what it’s like to start the Iditarod, and to give you a good sense of the ceremonial run.

Note: If any of you seriously want to watch the whole video, let me know in the comments and I will try to render it out and stream it from somewhere on my server. I’ll be happy to give it a try if you really want it, but please only ask if you are serious about it… Thanks!

20 Responses

  • This is awesome! The crowd is pretty incredible too! Is the whole start on the streets of Anchorage, or does it go out on trails at all? I know it ends at the Airstrip, but I'm not sure exactly where/what that is. I would be curious to see the "end" of the start, and what it is like there.

    Thanks!
    Emily

  • Thanks again for doing this Mac! We really appreciate all that you do to help us ride along with SP Kennels. And thanks to Aliy and Allen for allowing us to look in on their world and dream!

  • that was by far the best clip ever. i had tears in my eyes wanting so much to be there. maybe next year! p.s. i would love to see the whole thing.

  • An amazing video !! I've seen the scenery from the crowd-view. Now the whole start watching as sitting in the sled is just so much cooler! Of course it would be cool to see the complete course of 11 miles. But I don't know if it has to be the complete course. Maybe it would be cool to see a couple of metres every few miles. I would really appreciate if you're able to give us more of the start, but you're doing a wonderful job anyway! Thanks for that! 🙂

  • That was the best seat in the house. Thanks..
    After the race, would it be possible to burn the entire trail video to dvd and sell it?

  • Wonderful!! I'm amazed that the dogs aren't more distracted by the people and the yelling!

    YES! I'd love to see every foot of what Aliy has in the way of video! I'd love to see the terrain they travel. AND it would remind me of what it was like riding behind the dogs on our trip to ANWR!

    Sigh……

  • I'm with Steve V. Would it be possible to burn a dvd we could buy? I'll put my order in now! SP Kennel videos are the best!

  • That's fantastic, thanks for sharing! Was that Happy I saw checking out the sidelines and even veering over there somewhat?

    I love to listen to Aliy. Whether she's narrating as she's going down the trail, on video describing the indivdiual dogs, or just caught on camera as she's going about taking care of the dogs, she always sounds so upbeat and positive. How fun that must be for the passenger.

    I'd love to see more of the video, but I hate to have you go to any extra work right now when things are so busy. Maybe later? Also, I'm pretty ignorant and don't know what it takes to watch a streaming video. Do I have to load more software to do that, or can I just watch it like I watch these YouTube videos? If I have to download software or sign up for something, then, as much as I'd like to see it, I probably wouldn't be able to do that.

    Thanks for making this video available and for all the other information you're providing here.

  • Great idea re: the full video sale… great ride and lots of real fans out there!

  • Very nice. Just post it in 5 minute increments so we can see the whole thing. I hope you get some pay for all this work online man.

  • Oh yeah, we love to see everyting you have of the trail! And like Andrea it was also for me not possible to keep it dry. Please let us now where we can find the rest of the ride. p.s. does a dvd work in Europe, i think you have a different system.

  • This is so great! I would love to see the whole thing and I'd order the DVD in a heartbeat!!

  • I for one really appreciate all your updates Mac! You do an awesome job. I love Aliy's videos, she is so animated, always sounds like she is having a ball…love the way she talks to the dogs. Good luck Team! Sindy

  • Let me see what I can work up about "the whole shebang"… I'm really not too keen on the idea of a DVD… mastering, copying, shipping… ugh…

    I think something on the web would be better… probably a med-high res Quicktime video… Did I mention that the original is in widescreen format?… You can see everything!

    I will tell you that I watched the whole thing last night in Anchorage… It is beyond fantastic… Aliy's running commentary to the "real" IditaRider provides priceless insights…

    Might be the best video of the entire Iditarod…

    Okay, so there's your teaser! Stay tuned!

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