Pamplona Has Nothing On Anchorage, Alaska

The inaugural “Running of the Reindeer” will take place Feb. 24, 2008, after the final heat of the World Championship Sled Dog Race. Locals and out-of-town visitors will run down Anchorage’s snow-laden 4^th Avenue followed by more than a dozen of the horned and hoofed creatures. The idea was conceived on a local morning show.

Greater Anchorage, Inc., the organizers of Anchorage’s Fur Rendezvous, are spending $900 on liability insurance for the event, however, due to the docile nature of reindeer, no injuries are expected.

Registration for the “Running of the Reindeer” is available online at www.furrondy.net . Participation is limited to 500 men and 500 women.

Anchorage’s Fur Rendezvous is part of two-jam packed weeks of sporting events and fun-filled activities known as Quad ’08, which includes Fur Rendezvous, the 36^th Annual Iditarod Sled Dog Race®, the Tour of Anchorage and WILDfest. Visitors to the city during this time will enjoy an authentic Alaska experience filled with gold rush era good times.

Anchorage, Alaska is a premiere winter destination, offering visitors a plethora of winter activities including snowshoeing, world-class skiing and snowboarding, ice climbing, glacier viewing, flight seeing and wildlife viewing. For a complete listing of winter activities or to create a customized winter adventure guide, log on to www.Anchorage.net .

About Anchorage’s Fur Rendezvous

Feb. 22 – March 2, 2008

Affectionately known locally as “Rondy,” Fur Rendezvous is part of two outstanding weeks of festivals and winter sporting events known as the Quad ‘08. Rondy began as the brainchild of outgoing Anchorage citizen, Vern Johnson. In 1935, Johnson created a three-day sporting event timed to correspond with the return of local miners and trappers coming to Anchorage to sell their hard-won winter product.

Today, Fur Rendezvous continues to pay tribute to the early Alaskan way of life with an old-time melodrama, Alaska Native tribal gatherings, World Champion Sled Dog Races, craft markets, the Miners & Trappers Ball, outhouse (yes, outhouse) races, a fur auction and the brand new “Running of the Reindeer” event.

Quad 08 Events

36^th Annual Iditarod Championship Sled Dog Race

March 1, 2008.

You can’t compare it to any other competitive event in the world! A race over 1,100 miles through the roughest, most beautiful terrain Mother Nature has to offer. Jagged mountain ranges, frozen rivers, dense forests, desolate tundra and miles of windswept coast will challenge more than 100 sled dog teams as they vie to be first through the burled arch in Nome, Alaska. Danger lurks around every corner with temperatures plummeting far below zero, winds that can cause a complete loss of visibility, the hazards of river overflow, long hours of darkness and treacherous mountain pass climbs. The Iditarod is truly a race extraordinaire, possible only in Alaska.

Tour of Anchorage

March 2, 2008.

See all of Anchorage in a 50k, 40k, or 25k route across town. Billed as a premier ski marathon, The Tour of Anchorage is part of the American Ski Marathon Series, North America's longest running and largest citizen's racing and touring series. There are actually 4 races, a 25 k classical race, and a 25k, 40k and 50k freestyle. Special rates and packages available for participants and spectators.

WILDfest

New this year, WILDfest will offer a “teaser” event in 2008.  Anchorage residents and visitors will have a chance to climb inside WILDfest’s sparkling ice castle near Anchorage’s Town Square. The full festival will premiere in 2009, offering an expanded range of events, including Alaska’s first-ever winter triathlon
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