Aliy Zirkle and the SP Kennel Red Team have started the Iditarod Ceremonial Run!
Iditarod: Ceremonial Start Coverage
Just because you’re not one of the lucky dogs in Anchorage doesn’t mean you can’t get a pretty good view of the Iditarod Ceremonial Start!
There’s a good web-cam at the start. Click the image below to open it in a new window:
Also, the Iditarod website is offering free coverage of the start. Click the image below to open the feed in a new window:
SP Kennel team videos will be posted here later today. Meanwhile… Go SP Kennel!
Meet and Greet Aliy and Allen
The Meet and Greet this evening at the Clarion Suites was a great success. It was standing room only! Aliy and Allen entertained the crowd with stories about the trail and talked everyone through the contents of their sleds. Aliy nearly blinded people in the front row with the strength of her handlebar headlight and Allen defended the integrity of his “ziplock” sled bag (dubbed “ziploc” as it looks like it could be made out of a plastic bag!). Then everyone was charmed by Beemer, Ranger, Honda and Dingle – but then, who wouldn’t be?
Later we “dropped” all the dogs so everyone could see and meet them. It’s quite a big deal for the dogs to be around such a crowd as their usual routine doesn’t involve that many people but they were all beautifully behaved.
Tonight everyone, canine and human, is resting up ready for the ceremonial start at 10am tomorrow. Thousands of people are expected to line the route through downtown Anchorage – it’s pretty exciting!
Thanks To Our Sponsors!
The crew took some time out of their preparations today to visit with staff from three of our biggest sponsors: Clarion Suites, Quality Suites and Horizon Lines. Clarion Suites and Quality Suites provide excellent accommodation to the crew with they are in Anchorage and Horizon Lines not only sponsors SP Kennel but is also one of the main Iditarod sponsors. THANK YOU ALL!
Scruggs is sponsored by Clarion Suites and Quality Suites staff so he joined in on the staff meeting and Aliy and Allen presented each team with a fantastic signed poster of the man himself. He lapped up the attention and charmed everyone – as always.
Later the crew visited Horizon Lines with Beemer and Dingle who hammed it up and enjoyed lots of pats and kisses.
Iditarod Bib Draw and Start Banquet
Thursday night the SPK Crew went to the Iditarod Start Banquet and Bib Draw. It was a festive atmosphere with great entertainment and really, really good food. The crew enjoyed mingling with folks from some of the kennel’s major sponsors: Horizon Lines and Clarion Suites as well as many fans and supporters.
Later in the evening Aliy drew bib number 27 and Allen number 48 – which means they should be starting about 42 minutes apart (this is good news for the handler crew as we can get Aliy off down the trail and have plenty of time to get back to the truck to get Allen on his way!)
Here are some snippets from the Bib Draw.
The Team Travels To Anchorage
Team Eagle Pack In Anchorage
There’s a lot going on as SP Kennel gears up for the Iditarod start this weekend!
Right now, the dogs and handlers are driving from the kennel in Two Rivers to their Anchorage home at Clarion Suites.
Meanwhile, Aliy and Allen are already in Anchorage to meet with sponsors, friends and fans. A highlight has been a get-together with “Team Eagle Pack” which includes Martin Buser, DeeDee Jonrowe and others.
Eagle Pack is a lead sponsor for SP Kennel and supplies the primary food for our amazing dogs. Thank you, Eagle Pack!
What’s In Aliy’s Sled? Part 2
Here’s part 2! In this video Aliy takes us on a tour of what she carries inside her sled while she is racing the Iditarod.