Word: iditarod
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Curious, Flyby picked up the first puzzle but sadly couldn't piece together any of the answers. Our vocabulary was bolstered just by staring at the page, though—did you know that Iditarod and syzygy are actual words...
...epic challenge for man and man's best friend: the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which begins Saturday, is a grueling 1,150-mile trek in which a human captain (or musher) and an average of 16 dogs brave Alaska's frozen tundra and icy forests to compete for $69,000, a new truck, and the honor of conquering one of the country's last frontiers...
...modern Iditarod, which for more than a week winds from Anchorage to the isolated town of Nome, began in 1973. When settlers rushed to Alaska in search of gold around the turn of the 20th century, the Iditarod Trail - for which the race was christened - served as the primary artery for ferrying mail and supplies. Given the frigid conditions, the route was often impassable except by dog sleds. (See pictures of the Iditarod...
That lackluster turnout failed to dissuade Page and venerable musher Joe Redington Sr., who mortgaged his home and sold a piece of land to help finance the event's start-up costs. Their efforts helped persuade officials to stage the first full-length Iditarod in March, 1973, in which Dick Wilmarth and his lead dog, Hotfoot, triumphed by covering the inhospitable terrain in 20 days. Since 1983, the Iditarod - the word is said to mean "distant place" in indigenous Alaskan dialects - has steadily grown in popularity, becoming both the most popular sporting event in the state and an international touchstone...
Success in the race has minted heroes out of many ordinary Alaskans. Among the giants of the Iditarod are five-time champion Rick Swenson; families like the Redington, Seavey and Mackey clans, who have captured multiple championships and together have placed an entrant in every race since the event's inception; and four-time winners Susan Butcher and Martin Buser, who owns the record for the event's fastest recorded time (8 days, 22 hrs. and 46 mins). To prepare for the rigors of the journey, mushers spend months prepping their dogs, who are subject to drug screenings and tracked...