The most important strategic decision Iditarod mushers make happens before the race starts. Every musher must choose a team of up to 16 dogs from their kennel to start the race, and for mushers with more than 16 to choose from, the decision who to take and who to leave home may decide whether they win, place or even show up in Nome. Let’s look at the Iditarod race rules and general musher strategy, and work backwards from the finish in Nome to help explain the process of how most of this years’ mushers will choose which dogs will race and which will be left home or along the trail as dropped dogs.Read more here: http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/how-will-iditarod-mushers-decide-which-dogs-make-cut
