Dashing through the snow, with 21 reindeer and 2,000 people

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Thousands of people participated in the Running of the Reindeer during the 2019 Fur Rondy on Fourth Avenue in Anchorage, AK on Saturday, March 2, 2019. (Photo by Bob Hallinen)

Fifteen-year-old Edson Knapp came to Anchorage this weekend to check out the Iditarod and Fur Rendezvous, and he wound up with Spaghetti all over himself.

Spaghetti was one of 21 reindeer and Knapp was one of about 2,000 people who took part in Saturday’s annual Running of the Reindeer — Alaska’s version of Spain’s running of the bulls.

About halfway through the second heat, Spaghetti came from behind and scared the daylights out of Knapp, who in his haste to get out of the animal’s way slipped on snow-covered Fourth Avenue and tumbled to the ground.

“I was running and something came up from behind me with big antlers,” Knapp said. “I turned around and he was right there.

“I was worried I was going to get attacked.”

Knapp grinned as he told his story. There was no attack, only incidental contact. Knapp sprang to his feet, dusted off some snow and laughed. Spaghetti keep running until she reached D Street, where a temporary pen had been constructed for the reindeer, their handlers and the two trailers that brought them to Anchorage from the Reindeer Farm in Palmer.

Spaghetti is lucky she’s not meatballs. Not long after her encounter with Knapp, she created a moment of chaos when she got loose from her handler. But there was no escape — fencing on both sides of the street separated the reindeer and runners from thousands of spectators who lined up three deep on either side of the street to watch.

The Running of the Reindeer, one of Fur Rendevous’ most popular and curious spectacles, is a three-block dash down Fourth Avenue between D and G Streets. Over the years it has raised more than $100,000 for Toys for Tots and provided untold thrills for participants and spectators.

“I had one come up on my hip,” runner Brittney Szabo of Fairbanks said. “I looked behind me and there was nothing. I looked again and there was this big dude with antlers. It was awesome.”

Since 2008 reindeer have shared Fourth Avenue with sled dogs on the first Saturday in March. Iditarod dogs do their ceremonial-start thing in the morning; reindeer do their run-past-people thing in the afternoon.

Sue Weides and Justin Coulter of Chicago attended both events. Which animals were the most impressive?

“Oh, the reindeer. They’re just beautiful,” said Weides, whose attire included a headband with plush reindeer antlers and plastic reindeer glasses with a bright red nose.

“To be honest, we’re impressed with everything.”

The Running of the Reindeer has gone from Rondy rejuvenator to Rondy tradition. This year marked the 84th Fur Rendezous, but the the Running of the Reindeer debuted when the annual winter festival was in danger of going out of business.

“In 2008 I was at that board meeting where we almost closed the thing down,” said Rondy board member Gary Hufford, a past president. “Then we said, ‘Wait a minute, we can do it,’ and ever since it’s been up, up, up.”

The reindeer are a big reason why. The event was an instant success and has become such a signature event that it’s depicted on this year’s Rondy pin. “We’re really honored,” said Lauren Waite of the Reindeer Farm. “We’re really thrilled.”

Alaska folk singer Hobo Jim even wrote a song about it, which is about as big an honor as you can get in Alaska:

Folks I gotta ask ya

Ain’t this pure Alaska

No one does the things the way we do

Hobo Jim was there on hand Saturday to provide entertainment when the reindeer weren’t running. There were four heats — one for women, one for men, one for teams and one for tourists — and about 14 reindeer ran in each.

After each heat the reindeer got a bit of a break at the D Street finish line before being wrangled back to the G Street start line. There, runners parted to create a corridor for the reindeer, which went to the back of the pack. Runners got a headstart of 10 or 15 seconds to ensure they’d get some time actually running with the reindeer, who have deceptively blazing speed.

Among the runners was a TV celebrity — Michelle Oakley, the star of National Geographic’s “Michelle Oakley, Yukon Vet” reality show. She’s a large-animal veterinarian who is frequently in Anchorage because she does work at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, the Musk Ox Farm and the Reindeer Farm.

“Most of these animals are my patients. It’s fun to see them looking so healthy,” Oakley said after her dash down the avenue. “Waldo had an injury (last) summer — his eye — and he looks so good.”

Like many runners, Oakley wore a costume. It included a target on her butt and a stethoscope in her pocket. As luck would have it, no reindeer took aim at the target, and no one — animal or human — needed medical attention.