The Yukon Quest is a sled dog race run every February between Fairbanks, Alaska, and Whitehorse, Yukon. Because of the harsh winter conditions, difficult trail, and limited support competitors are allowed, it is considered the "most difficult sled dog race in the world", or even the "toughest race in the world". In the competition, first run in 1984, a dog team leader (called a musher) and a team of 6 to 14 dogs race for 10 to 20 days. The course follows the route of the historic 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, mail delivery, and transportation routes between Fairbanks, Dawson City, and Whitehorse. Mushers pack up to 250 pounds (113 kg) of equipment and provisions for themselves and their dogs to survive between checkpoints. They are permitted to leave dogs at checkpoints and dog drops, but not to replace them. Sleds may not be replaced (without penalty) and mushers cannot accept help from non-racers except at Dawson City, the halfway mark. The route runs on frozen rivers, over four mountain ranges, and through isolated northern villages. Racers cover 1,016 miles (1,635 km) or more, temperatures commonly drop as low as −60 °F (−51 °C), and winds can reach 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) at higher elevations. Sonny Lindner won the inaugural race in 1984 from a field of 26 teams. The fastest run took place in 2009, when Sebastian Schnuelle finished after 9 days, 23 hours, and 20 minutes.

Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukon_Quest

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1825:

Locomotion No. 1 hauled the first train on opening day of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, one of the first railways to use steam locomotives and carry passengers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockton_and_Darlington_Railway

1905:

The physics journal Annalen der Physik published Albert Einstein's fourth Annus Mirabilis paper "Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy Content?", introducing the equation E=mc². http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass%E2%80%93energy_equivalence

1908:

The first production of the Ford Model T automobile was built at the Piquette Plant in Detroit. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Model_T

1937:

The Bali Tiger, a small subspecies of tiger found solely on the small Indonesian island of Bali, was officially declared extinct. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bali_Tiger

1940:

World War II: Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and the Empire of Japan signed the Tripartite Pact in Berlin, officially forming a military alliance known as the Axis powers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripartite_Pact

1988:

Led by pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi, the political party National League for Democracy was founded in Burma. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aung_San_Suu_Kyi

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

rain on someone's parade (v): To disappoint or discourage someone http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rain_on_someone%27s_parade

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

If men, through fear, fraud, or mistake, should in terms renounce or give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the grand end of society would absolutely vacate such renunciation. The right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of man to alienate this gift and voluntarily become a slave. --Samuel Adams http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Samuel_Adams