Fur Rondy

I'm up in the great white north again, waiting to jump a plane to dutch harbor. It actually was an opportune time to be hanging out in Anchorage. While waiting here, the Fur Rondy festival has been happening. And what, you say, is a fur rondy? I haven't really figured it out but so far it has involved several festivities involving lots of people in fur hats and coats as well as the start of the Iditarod. It's been pretty cool to be up here, despite the coldest weather I've ever seen. I had the chance to see some actual sled dogs doing their thing, and a few other very creative and notable events. Here's a quick synopsis.

A friend of mine at the Observer training office participated in the world famous outhouse race, the quarterfinal heat shown above. The goal is pretty simple. Push someone in an outhouse to the end of a short course and back, dress up in crazy costumes, and basically make a big idiot out of yourself. Sounds like fun. Some of my favorite team names: "The Kodiak Crappers," "Cool Runs" (Jamaican bobsled theme, shown at the top), and "Romancing the Throne."

Ever heard of Yukigassen? Me neither, until this weekend. Apparently some Japanese peeps with too much time on their hands (I've never been there, but Japan always seems to be a hotbed of bizarre but creative sports) invented a very specific set of rules for a snowball fight and turned it into a sanctioned sport. It's basically part paintball part capture the flag. This is no ordinary snowball fight though, the dudes and dudettes wear helmets and face masks. Oh, and when they throw, they throw some heat.

Though the official start of the Iditarod is up in Wasila, they do a ceremonial lap around Anchorage to kick the thing off. It'd be cool to go see the actual race, or at least some of it as it's over 1000 miles long. But it was fun to get caught up in the spirit and excitement that Alaskans find in the yearly race. Those dogs are pretty awesome. They appear to be nothing but sinew and bone. When the drivers stop, the dogs get antsy almost immediately. According to a man I met, they don't want to eat, don't want to sleep, they just. Want. To. Run.