Description
On April 1st 2012 was the first ever Great Tucson Itidarod Race, and we had a great time! The next Iditarod Race is April 2013!
This is a shopping cart race in which teams of from 3 to 5 people tied
themselves to a dressed up shopping cart, and manage their outrageously
costumed-selves down the sidewalks of downtown Tucson.
Abandoned Shopping Cart Rescue:
Abandoned shopping carts sometimes lose their way and end up in the
Santa Cruz or the Rillito dry river beds. Help them find their way home,
with a shopping cart rescue. But first, bring them back to life at the
Iditarod. Leave the shopping cart at the Food Truck Roundup, where they
will be picked up and returned finally to their rightful homes. You've
done a great environmental service.
This is an
urban adventure, with a shopping cart tied to your waist or being hand
pulled. Mushers and "dawgs" must have a theme, and be in costume to
support that theme. The races are fun competitions, but are not based on
speed, or who gets to the finish line first. Racers wear costumes of
the absurd such as Spanish bullfighters, javelina astronauts, favorite
vegetables or fruit, puppys, or human pinatas.
Teams can be
used to advertise their charity, their business, their school, their
class, their program, their singing group, their church, their golf
team, their class, their neighborhood, their office, their yoga group,
their family, their brand, their politics, their dance class, etc.
Along the route, the team must get their 'passport' stamped at the
designated stops. 'Passports' will be given at registration, at
Bentley's.
There must be a musher riding in, or on, the cart at
all times. Team members can switch at their discretion. The event will
be video documented and photographed along the way. At the end of the
race, 5 teams are chosen, and awarded $100 each in prize money. All ages
welcome to participate.
Iditarod: (pronounced: Eye-DIT-uh-rod)
History:
The most famous Sled Dog Race in the world was the Iditarod which ran
1160 miles through the roughest and most beautiful Alaskan terrain.
Mushers and dogs raced through fierce mountains, frozen rivers, thick
forests, and desolate tundras.
The Present:
The Great
Tucson Iditarod is tougher still. Mushers have to brave the U of A Mall,
University Avenue, 4th Avenue and it’s perilous underpass, Congress
Street, only to end up at the center of the world: The Tucson Food Truck
Roundup.
The Race:
There is no exact start time. Each team
starts between Noon and 3pm, but at a time of their choosing. Check in
at Bentley’s House of Coffee and Tea, 1730 E. Speedway.
Register:
Entry fee: $30. Payable with check or cash, or on Paypal (pay
dinnerwareartspace@gmail.com), day of the race. At registration, you
will receive last minute tips, and route map. The race ends at the
Tucson Food Truck Roundup at 5pm. Five, $100 cash prizes will be awarded
at 5:30pm.
Along the way, you have to check in at certain
stops. At each stop, the team will need to present their wooden
'passport' to get stamped with a special, locally made, rubber stamp and
color provided by Bob Fril at Ace Rubber Stamps on Pennington St.
-Start at Bentley's, 1730 E. Speedway, then mush through the UA Mall to
-Time Market, 444 E. University
-Skybar, 536 N. Fourth Ave
-Xoom Juice, 245 E. Congress,
then head to the finish line at the Tucson Food Truck Roundup, 76 E. Sixth Street.
Awards:
Clever theme selection,
amazing costuming,
animals!,
artistic and crazy,
award because the judges just loved them.
Preparing for the race:
Get your friends together, create some fun costuming, and you’re good
to go. As always, be safe and be legal. Arriving at Bentley's, drop off
shopping cart and team, get your BFF to park somewhere else. Small
parking lot at Bentley's.
written by
David Aguirre