34 more teams & 7 new states get into the race

Whew! What a week it's been with new Teams pouring in for the Idita-Read race, with just 11 days until our mushers hit the trail. This week, we welcome representatives from seven new states joining the race -- Florida, Idaho, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. In addition, more teams signed up from Alaska, Montana, and North Dakota. Glad to see more returning 2008 Team Managers, as well!

It has also been thrilling to hear about more cool activities that folks are doing in conjunction with the Idita-Read. In Florida, for example, one school district is hosting an Iditawalk for their students and families, encouraging participants to walk for 1,131 minutes -- what a great motivator for boosting physcial activity together!

More cool tools added to Mushing Kit

I have had plenty of event-coordinating tasks myself this week, such as creating the Musher Guide Video (Flash Player required) and One-page Musher Guide (PDF) to help orient mushers and their assistants with how they will check-in at their individual Base Camps to record their reading mileage, drop-off book reviews, and track their progress along the interactive Iditarod Trail. I also just posted a handy Reading Mileage Worksheet (PDF) that mushers can print and use to track their reading mileage off-line, making it easier to input their mileage whenever they -- or their assistants -- can get online. All of these Tools can be found in the Idita-Read Mushing Kit, including the Team Manager Guide (PDF) and other handy printables.

What's up with Idita-Read's differing trail distances between years?

One clarification for those noticing differences in the total route mileage between Idita-Read years: Many may not know it, but the Official Iditarod Trail switches its mid-trail set of checkpoints between even and odd years. The end result is that the trail length in even years is 1,112 miles, while in odd years -- as in the 2009 race -- the total distance is 1,131 miles. Staying as true to the real Iditarod race as possible, this difference is reflected in the Idita-Read Trail.

For those who have been thinking about joining the Idita-Read race, you may want to hop to it, since it's just around the corner! For those already signed up, make sure to get your Student Mushers set-up on your Team rosters so everyone's ready to roll come Feb. 9 -- review the Team Manager Guide for help, as needed, or email me with questions any time!