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Iditarod web sites
See related pages:
http://www.adn.com/pf/mushing
http://www.iditarod.com/
http://www.adn.com/iditarod/
NOME - Hundreds of Iditarod mushers have passed under the rugged burled arch on Front Street since 1975, when a red lantern musher donated it. But the arch has been deteriorating over the years. And this year, the annual trip to the arch's summer resting place proved a bit too strenuous. The spruce log broke into several pieces Monday as a forklift rolled over a curb carrying the assembled arch. The larger part of the old log atop the arch remains intact, reading "End of Iditarod Dog," said Tom Busch of KNOM radio. A smaller piece has the final word, "Race." At least five chunks of the burls, 2 feet in diameter, also broke from the main log. City workers filled five garbage bags with smaller pieces. The arch was being moved to its summer home next to the Nome City Hall after Jeremy Gebauer of Montana earned the red lantern as the last finisher of this year's Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Gebauer finished 47th in 15 days, three hours, and 18 minutes. He was 51/2 days behind fellow Montana musher Doug Swingley, this year's winner. It wasn't clear if the arch could be put back together. If it is repaired, it won't be the first time. Ten years ago, Nome city workers filled cracks in the arch with gallons of glue and epoxy to try to hold it together, Busch said. The arch has a storied history of its own. The spruce log that forms its cap was found along Rosie Creek, southwest of Fairbanks, by Red Olson, who won the red lantern for finishing last in the 1974 race. Olson, a gold miner in Fox, decided the Iditarod needed a permanent marker at the finish line. Olson enlisted the aid of the local Lion's Club. Members spent about 500 hours shaping the log and routing the inscription into it. The 5,000-pound arch was then airlifted to Nome, where Iditarod volunteer Howard Farley had to pass the hat on Front Street to raise $1,300 to pay part of the freight charge. The arch is officially known as the Red "Fox" Olson Trail Monument.
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