“If you’re a race fan, you need this book. Kudos to Freedman for putting together his love and extensive knowledge of the sport together in such a readable, usable fashion.” -June Price, Sunhusky Reviews, on Amazon (full review below)
The 2023 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race begins March 4th in Anchorage, and Lew Freedman’s 50 Years of Iditarod Adventures: The First Fifty Years of the Last Great Race details fifty years of race history with all of the names, all of the checkpoints, and all of the statistics! A terrific reference book for race fans!
The book provides a handbook to the legendary race with details of each annual running, records of all of the award winners, and biographies of many individuals and families who have contributed to make the race what it is today, a worldwide phenomenon and The Last Great Race on Earth. If you have a question about who won and when, who was 15th in 1985, who won the Halfway Award in 2006, or who scratched in 1973, it’s all in here! Every musher, every race, every detail!
The cover art is by famed Alaskan artist Jon Van Zyle, a two-time Iditarod finisher (1976, 1979), a member of the Iditarod Hall of Fame, and the Official Artist of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The artwork, which also appears as the official poster for the 50th Anniversary Race, features the smiling and ghostly features of race founder Joe Redington gazing at a scene of mushers at a camp fire in the snowy wilderness.
The book can be ordered from Northern Light Media or any bookstore!
50 Years of Iditarod Adventures: The First Fifty Years of the Last Great Race, by Lew Freedman. Published in February, 2022 by Northern Light Media. 310 pages, over 80 b/w photos, $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.
Amazon Review
5.0 out of 5 stars Top notch overview of 50 years of Iditarod adventure
Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2022
Having moderated a couple Iditarod related online groups in the past, I can attest to the fact that author Lew Freedman has managed to answer most of the FAQs that pop up, well, frequently. It will be a handy, easy to read resource for fans. Lots of list of who ran/won/placed/won awards and more. Freedman has also taken a look at some of the memorable characters of the sled dog race, including families who have become a part of race lore, the Mackey and Seavey families. Lots of photos, too, including I should probably admit, one of my own, and maps. If you’re a race fan, you need this book. Kudos to Freedman for putting together his love and extensive knowledge of the sport together in such a readable, usable fashion.