List of sled dog races information

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (February 2011)

The list of sled dog races contains dozens of contests created by supporters of mushing, the sport of racing sled dogs. It is unknown when the first sled dog race was held. Humans have domesticated dogs for thousands of years, and sled dogs have been used for transportation in Arctic areas for almost as long. The first sled dog race to feature a codified set of rules was the All-Alaska Sweepstakes, which first took place in 1908. This was followed in 1917 by the American Dog Derby, which was the first sled dog race outside Alaska or the Yukon.^[1] In 1929 the Laconia World Championship Sled Dog Race" was first held in the city of Laconia, New Hampshire. The first race was won by legendary musher, Leonhard Seppala, famous for his role in the 1925 "Great Race of Mercy", as well as, his lead dog Togo and kennel dog Balto. The Laconia sprint race is an annual event today over 90 years later.^[2] In 1932, sled dog racing was a demonstration sport at the 1932 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, but was only included in one other winter olympics in a slightly different form of sled dog racing known as pulka.^[3][4][5]

The most famous sled dog race is the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, an annual 1000-mile race across Alaska. It commemorates the 1925 serum run to Nome. The first idea for a commemorative sled dog race over the historically significant Iditarod Trail was conceived Dorothy Page, the chair of the Wasilla-Knik Centennial Committee.^[6] Even though the race known today was not first run until 1973, thanks to the work of Joe Redington and his supporters.^[7] Joe Redington and the Iditarod helped restart worldwide interest in mushing, specifically in long-distance events.^[7]

Since mushing's resurgence, the sport has proliferated and sled dog races are hosted in towns around the world, from Norway and Finland to Alaska and Michigan. Due to the cold temperatures needed for sled dog racing, most races are held in winter in cold climates, but occasional carting events, typically known as dryland races, have been held in warmer weather.^[8] Other similar sports that using mushing as a means for transport include; carting, pulka, dog scootering, skijoring, freighting, and weight pulling. These are not included in this list because they do not use sleds.

A resurfaced race in 2020 is the Klondike Dog Derby, a 40-mile race around Lake Minnetonka in Excelsior, Minnesota. The race began in the 1930s and died out in 1998, until recently restarting.^[8][9] The majority of sled dog races in North America are held close to the northern border of the United States or farther north. Well-attended races in the United States such as the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon,^[10] Apostle Island Sled Dog Race,^[11] and the U.P. 200,^[8][12] all take place in the upper regions of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, respectively. After these races, the majority of dog sled races take place farther north, in Canada or Alaska.^[8] The Klondike Dog Derby is one of few held in a more urban area that is not in the far north.^[8] Bringing the sport to an urban area of Minnesota has brought attention from local news sources and residents, allowing for first-hand familiarization and education of the sport of mushing that is otherwise hard to come across in an area that is not in the far north. The accessory events held the weekend of the Klondike Dog Derby include the Hug-a-Husky event, Meet the Musher, and allotted time for the public to hear musher's talk and answer questions on the sport.^[9] These events follow the same outline as the Klondike Dog Derby originally had, starting in the 1930s during Hennepin County's winter ice carnivals.^[8] The original race took place during a festival held annually by the Works Progress Administration called "Klondike Day." The festival featured a coronation of an Ice Princess and Ice Queen, a snow modeling contest, ski races, a skating party, and the dog derby. The race featured different classes and allowed people of all ages to harness their dogs to any sled they had at their disposal. This served as a way to connect sled dog racing to the people and bring the community together, thus bringing further attention to the sport throughout the area.^[8] The race was reintroduced in 2020 as a tribute dog mushers and their commitment to the sport. The race allows for spectators and gives people an opportunity to meet the racers and their dogs. This is meant to create a more interactive atmosphere surrounding the sport in the upper Midwest.^[13]

There are three typical types of sled dog races: sprint, mid-distance, and long-distance. These types can be broken down into sub-types. Sprint races cover relatively short distances of 4 to 25 miles/day, mid-distance races cover a total of 100 to 300 miles, and long-distance races cover 300 miles to more than 1,000 miles. Sprint races frequently are two- or three-day events with heats run on successive days with the same dogs on the same course. Mid-distance races are either heat races of 14 to 80 miles per day, or continuous races of 100 to 200 miles. (These categories are informal and may overlap to a certain extent.) Long-distance races may be continuous or stage races, in which participants run a different course each day, usually from a central staging location.

Generally, teams start one after another in equal time intervals, competing against the clock rather than directly against one another. This is due to logistic considerations of getting teams of dogs to the starting line for a clean timed start. Mass starts where all of the dog teams start simultaneously are popular in parts of Canada. Another mode of dogsled racing is the freight race, in which a specified weight per dog is carried in the sled.