How to Bid for a Sled Ride on the Alaskan Iditarod Trail Race

If you don't have what it takes to single-handedly race 16 dogs across 1,000-plus miles of frozen tundra for almost two weeks, you can enter the Iditarod as an Idita-Rider. Each year the race committee auctions off an exclusive ride in the sled basket of an Iditarod musher for the first 11 miles (17.7 km) through the snowy streets of Anchorage.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Log onto the official Iditarod Web site (iditarod.com), read the Idita-Rider rules on bidding, and mail or fax your completed form to the Iditarod headquarters. Bidding typically starts on November 1 and ends on January 24.
2. Place a bid in the general pool for better odds. All initial bids must be at least $500, and the minimum amount by which an existing bid may be increased is $100.
3. Attend the mandatory Idita-Rider meeting at the Millennium Alaska Hotel, usually the day before the race. The 30-minute session with a dog team will teach you how to get in and out of the sled--and how to hang on for dear life.

What to Look For:

• Bid form at Iditarod Web site
• $500 minimum bid
• Mandatory Idita-Rider meeting
• White-knuckle ride

Tips & Warnings

• The uber-hyper and powerful sled dogs are difficult to control on the narrow city course--it's not uncommon for a musher to lose control of his or her sled.