The Iditarod 2013 takes off

Lead dogs on the team of Louie Ambrose run during the ceremonial start of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Anchorage, Alaska, March 2, 2013.

65 teams will make their way through punishing wilderness toward the finish line in Nome on Alaska's western coast 1,000 miles away.

Credit: Dan Joling/AP