Mackey Defends Iditarod Crown

Jamaican musher, pot ban, shriveling purse new to famed race

(AP) - The 38th running of the world's most famous sled dog race kicks off today with a ceremonial start in Anchorage amid depleted finances that have slashed the cash purse even as the cost of mushing climbs. Yet the mystique of the 1,100-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race keeps drawing mushers from around the world, including a first this year—a rookie from Jamaica. More»

Partner's Injury, brutal conditions force out former 'First Dude'

(NEWSER) - Todd Palin won't be picking up his fifth Iron Dog victory in this year's 2,000-mile snowmobile race: Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin's husband has dropped out of the competition because of an injury to his partner. A crash broke the handlebars and springs on Scott Davis's snowmobile and exacerbated a back problem. Conditions on the route from Big Lake to Nome and Fairbanks were brutal, the Anchorage Daily News reports. The weather has been unseasonably warm, resulting in deep ruts and killer bumps, reports the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman . More»

(NEWSER) - John Kerry takes Sarah Palin to task for missing the big picture in her essay today against President Obama's cap-and-trade proposal. Palin, he writes in the Huffington Post, manages to criticize legislation to curb climate change without acknowledging the dangers of climate change itself. "It's like complaining about the cost of repairing a roof without factoring in the leaks destroying your home." More»

They're just fine, governor insists

(NEWSER) - The state of Alaska will sue to challenge the federal government's decision to place polar bears on the endangered species list, reports CBC News. The Department of the Interior cited the bears' diminishing sea ice habitat as a reason for listing them as threatened, but Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin fears offshore shore oil and gas exploration will be inhibited by safeguards for the bears. More»

Too little snow, too much development move Iditarod start north

(NEWSER) - Global warming and development are impinging on the world’s most famous dogsled race and forcing it to make route changes, the AP reports. Organizers of Alaska’s Iditarod say the 1,100-mile race's ceremonial starting route will shrink from 18 to 11 miles, and the competitive start will be moved 30 miles north. More»