Iditarod Restart Will Remain in Willow

On Monday afternoon, the Iditarod Trail Committee announced at a press conference that the race will not be moving from Willow to Fairbanks.  Warm weather and poor trail conditions caused race officials to consider moving the restart, the part of the Iditarod where competitive racing really starts.  Last week, the committee announced that the ceremonial start would take place in Anchorage on March 1st as scheduled, but the final decision on the restart location was not made until officials studied the trail over the weekend and met for two hours on Monday.

In a release on Monday afternoon, the Iditarod Trail Committee says that some sections of the trail remain in poor condition, but that crews and equipment will be dispatched to make some sections safer.

Had the restart moved to Fairbanks, it would have meant a loss of revenue for businesses from the Mat-Su Valley to McGrath.

The Iditarod restart will take place on March 2nd.