Running of the Reindeer

Check out around 1:57. Look for the guy with the red jacket and batman mask.


Last weekend was the ceremonial start of the Iditarod, but more importantly it was the 5th annual Running of the Reindeer. Feeling particularly adventurous since moving to Alaska, I decided it would be a great idea to run with a bunch of costumed people while being chased by animals with extremely pointy antlers. What could go wrong? As it turns out, the hardest part of the whole event was actually running 3 blocks in deep snow. The reindeer turned out to be rather tame - they'd rather run around you than over. Not that I'm complaining. They are also extremely fast. By the time I noticed there was a reindeer close for me to pet, it was bolting down the street.

Thrill of the Knight

In order to fit it with the crowd, I decided to make myself a costume. Using several rolls of red and black duct tape I made a Michael Jackson-esque Thriller jacket and a batman mask. Not that they really fit together, but I thought it'd be fun. Turns out, as much as I liked my liked my costume, duct tape is a terrible insulator. It was cold and snowing! I made out better than other though, like the guy who showed up wearing only boots and a pair of daisy-dukes.

The unicorn was dancing with a cow

Wouldn't be an Alaskan even without a husky

Pretty cool spot to watch the start

Earlier in the day, Kelly and went over to the ceremonial start of the Iditarod. Thanks to my company's work with Exxon, I snagged a couple passes to the Exxon hospitality sweet. We had a nice spread of breakfast burritos, cake, cookie, coffee, and or course, smoked salmon. We had a great view of the start line and saw some of our favorite mushers go by. We popped in and out of the suite - it was really hot in there - and we could get front row view from the street. The Iditarod has been on for almost a week now. Mushers are passed the halfway point and should be finishing up in a few days.

The mushers have a good time with the ceremonial start too