AOW due March 18, 2012
Name: ________________
Alaska's 41st Iditarod Race Begins
With Ceremonial Start
By Meera Dolasia on March 3, 2013
On Saturday, March
2nd, sixty-six
mushers mushers and
their teams of between
12-16 dogs received a
rousing send off from
enthusiastic fans
in Anchorage, Alaska,
as they began the firstleg of the grueling
world-renowned trail
sled dog competition The Iditarod!
The ceremonial start held so that fans could get an opportunity to view all the
competitors at the same time, is only an 11 mile trek to Anchorage's Campbell Airstrip.
From here the mushers loaded their dogs onto trucks and transported them to
Willow, where the official race began in earnest, at 3pm (PST) on Sunday, March 3rd.
The first contestant out of the gate was veteran musher Martin Buser, who has
completed a total 29 iditarod races - a
record 27 consecutively, and won
four. He is now hoping to add one
more title to his distinguished sled
dog racing career.
Also racing for the same honor, are
two other four-time champions, Jeff
King and Lance Mackey who nailed it
for four consecutive years from 20072010. All of these older veterans will
however have to contend with last
year's champion, Dallas Seavey, who
at 25, also happens to be the youngest winner of this grueling race.
While nobody expects 54-year
old rookie musher Cindy Abbott to
win the race, just completing it will
elevate her into an exclusive
category of one - The first woman
to climb Everest and complete the
Iditarod. If that is not impressive
enough, the fact that this California
professor is blind in her left eye
and suffers from a rare disorder
that causes an inflammation in
blood vessels, which in turn
constricts blood to some organs,
often leaving her dizzy and disoriented, sure is.
Now in its 41st year, the competition often referred to as 'Last Great Race On
Earth', involves sledding about 1,000 miles across the Alaskan wilderness, through
jagged mountains and frozen rivers in below freezing temperatures and against blinding
winds. The race began as a way to commemorate the twenty hardy souls and their dog
teams, who braved minus 40° temperatures to rush a diphtheria serum from
Anchorage to the isolated town of Nome, saving it from an epidemic.
The journey, which lasts anywhere from 11-16 days, depending on the pace, entails the
competitors checking in at 25 pre-designated areas, normally small towns along the
way. While the race always takes place on the historic Iditarod trail that runs from
Anchorage to Nome, the actual route alternates between even and odd years. This
year, the competitors will be traveling the Southern route, which means that they will be
passing through the race's namesake, the ghost town of Iditarod.
The first person to cross the finish line takes home $50,400 USD and a new truck, while
the next 29 split the remaining $600,000 USD purse. But that is not the reason
competitors participate in this extreme event - it is more to obtain bragging rights of
having completed the 'Last Great Race On Earth'.
And while the humans get the glory, it is the brave dogs who cover as much as 100
miles a day on all kinds of harsh terrain, that are the true heroes. As with all sports
teams, they too have a leader or captain to guide them to victory. Also important
are wheel dogs, the workhorses that help pull the sled out of the snow. Other positions
include 'point' and 'swing' dogs.
As you have probably guessed, only select dogs can endure a competition this hard.
Though there are several sled dog breeds that can be used, the most popular are
purebreds like Siberian
Huskies and Alaskan
Malamutes, both known
for theirendurance,
speed and
dependability.
Though the spirit of the
Iditarod remains the
same, a lot has
changed since the first
race was held 41 years
ago. For one, the
leading contenders are
all professionals who
are financed by
corporate sponsors and
spend all year, training for the race. The competitors are also equipped with cell phones
and high-tech outdoor equipment, which includes custom built sleds and Global
Positioning Devices (GPS), that help in tracking their progress. And of course, they now
also write blogs and stream live, as they race across the treacherous route! To follow
this exciting race minute-by-minute check out: www.iditarod.com.
Resources: sbation.com,alaskadispatch,com,abcnews.go.com, iditarod.com
=====================================================================================
Monday, March 11, 2013
1. Why was there a ceremonial start of the Iditarod in Anchorage, Alaska? _______________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
2. Where does the Iditarod really start? ___________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Complete the following table using information from the article.
Martin Buser
Won four consecutive Iditarod’s from 2007 to
2010
Won four Iditarod races
Dallas Seavey
4. What does the word rookie mean? _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
=====================================================================================
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
5. What are some of Cindy Abbott’s accomplishments?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
6. What is another name for the Iditarod? ________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
7. What does the Iditarod commemorate? (Commemorate means to serve as a memorial or reminder
of something).
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
8. What is the Iditarod named after? _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
9. If the winner gets $50,400 and the next 29 finishers split $600,000 how much will each of the 29 get?
Do your work in the box below.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
10. What are the various positions that sled dogs can have?
A. Leader or Captain
B. Wheel Dogs
C. Point
D. Swing
E. All of the above
11. What are the various types of dogs that the mushers use in the Iditarod? Why do they use these
types of dogs? _______________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
12. How has the Iditarod changed since the first race?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
=====================================================================================
A Giant Film
Actor Nicholas Hoult talks about playing a classic fairytale character in Jack the Giant Slayer
MARCH 01, 2013 DOWNLOADED FROM TIME FOR KIDS.COM
By Kelli Plasket
©2013 WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT INC.
AND LEGENDARY PICTURES FUNDING, LLC.
Jack (played by Nicholas Hoult) climbs a
beanstalk that leads to an island of giants in Jack
the Giant Slayer, in theaters March 1.
“Fee-fi-fo-fum.” Giants utter this frightening phrase in ancient tales that date as far back
as the 12th century—most famously in the English fairy tale “Jack and the Beanstalk.”
Jack’s tale is getting an action-packed—and giant-packed—update in Warner Bros
Pictures’ Jack the Giant Slayer, in 2-D, 3-D and IMAX theaters March 1.
Actor Nicholas Hoult (About a Boy, X-Men: First Class) plays Jack, a farm boy from the
medieval English town of Cloister. Hidden high in the clouds above the town is an
island, where there lives an ancient race of giants. When some magical beans send
Cloister’s adventurous princess, Isabelle, up a beanstalk to be captured by giants, Jack
is determined to save her. During a recent press conference, TFK spoke to Hoult, 23,
about his experience making Jack the Giant Slayer.
Q:
Why did you decide to do the movie?
NICHOLAS HOULT:
I grew up with the fairy tale and enjoyed the story as a kid. I enjoy stories where
characters get swept up on an adventure and get taken to strange, magical worlds and
grow along the way. I thought there was potential in the script to make a really cool
adventure movie.
©2013 WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT INC. AND LEGENDARY PICTURES
FUNDING, LLC.
Jack (Nicholas Hoult) joins Cloister's elite group of
royal knights, the Guardians, on a quest up the
beanstalk to save Princess Isabelle from the giants.
Q:
How would you say you are similar to or different
from your character Jack?
HOULT:
His determination and his willingness to go the extra mile for what he thinks is right, I
hope that I have that quality. When he and the princess start developing their
relationship, he is well aware of how she can help the kingdom and what’s going on in
the world around him, and I’d like to think I’m quite aware of what’s going on.
How we are different? He’s a lot braver than I would ever be. If a giant beanstalk
erupted out of the ground and there were rumors about giants being up there, there’s a
part of me that would like to believe I would offer myself up to go save someone, but
that’s pretty terrifying, so maybe I wouldn’t handle the situation quite as well as [Jack]
did.
Q:
What are some new elements that Jack the Giant Slayer brings to the classic fairytale?
HOULT:
The thing that I really enjoyed about the script is that even though it’s based on the
fairytale, it’s been developed into its own storyline. It has throwbacks to the original
story, but it’s also a completely different story. In the original story there was only one
giant. In this story there are a whole bunch of them. They all have individual
personalities and characteristics that are really entertaining and fun to watch, so that’s
definitely something that’s great about this film. The giants are very different from what
people have seen before.
Q:
The giants were created using motion capture and CGI. Did you find it difficult to work
with that?
HOULT:
It was weird because I was looking at a tennis ball most of the time. But it was good that
we did [the motion capture] stuff first because then we could have the giant’s dialogue
being played over a loudspeaker. What they could do very cleverly on this [film] was
that, after the shot, they could overlay what they’d captured with the giants onto the
[monitor] screen, so you could see how you fit within the shot. It [helps] to have a good
imagination, and I’m completely delusional. So if I concentrate hard enough, I believe
that I see a giant there, and then it’s not so difficult!
Q:
Can you talk about the relationship between Jack and Princess Isabelle?
HOULT:
The princess in this film wants to get out and have an adventure. She doesn’t want to
be cooped up in the palace, so at the start of the movie she tries to escape and get out
in the world. She’s very brave and trying to make a difference in the world. They both
help each other through and learn about what they can both achieve in life.
Q:
If you had access to a magical beanstalk like Jack, what would you hope to find at the
top?
HOULT:
I’d like to find an island of marshmallows. If it looked like the island that they created [for
the movie], but less dangerous and more edible, I think that would be a pretty good
place.
Q:
You also starred in X-Men: First Class. What do you enjoy most about being in an
action film?
HOULT:
I enjoy the action side of it. I enjoy the stunts. I enjoy watching things blow up. In [Jack
the Giant Slayer], we’ll be walking through a lake and then get caught up in a giant net,
things like that. Watching the stunt [professionals] throw themselves off buildings and
horses being charged around and arrows being fired and all that stuff, I find that very
fun. I’m a big kid at heart, so to watch that happen is very entertaining.
Q:
Has there ever been a time where you’ve felt a little bit heroic in your own life?
HOULT:
Once, when I was younger, I was surfing [with] my little sister. There was a bit of a
strong undercurrent that was dragging her around. I paddled out and pulled her back in.
I wasn’t that old at the time. That was a bit heroic. I’d give myself a 6 out of 10, or
maybe a 5 out of 10. (Laughs)
Q:
If you could play another fairy tale character in a movie, who would it be?
HOULT:
I’d like to play the dragon that defends the castle that Sleeping Beauty falls asleep in. Or
an evil wizard.
Q:
What do you think kids will love about the film?
HOULT:
It’s fresh and visually pretty stunning. I think everyone wants to go off on an adventure
and experience something new, so I think they’ll just get swept up in this magical
fairytale, which they can imagine themselves being involved in. It’s quite an epic story,
and hopefully they’ll laugh as well. It’s pretty funny.
Warner Bros Pictures’ Jack the Giant Slayer is rated PG-13 for “intense scenes of
fantasy action violence, some frightening images and brief language.” Also starring
Eleanor Tomlinson, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci and Ian McShane.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
13. What other movies has Nicholas Hoult been in? __________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
14. How do you know that this article is written as an interview? ________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
15. What does Hoult enjoy about being in action movies?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
16. How was Hoult heroic when he was younger?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Friday, March 15 2013
17. Complete the Venn diagram about how Jack and Hoult are similar and different.
Hoult
Similar
Jack
18. Hoult stated that he would like to play an evil wizard or a dragon from a fairy tale. If you
were asked to be in a movie about a fairy tale, what character would you like to be and why?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
19. Why is this movie rated PG-13?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
20. How long has the phrase “Fee-fi-fo-fum” been around?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
WRITING
Use the following graphic organizer to help you write a summary of the Iditarod article:
Topic:
The important thing about ____________________________________________ (title of
the article) is _____________________________________________________________
(main idea).
Supporting Detail #1
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Support Detail #2
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Supporting Detail #3
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
But the most important thing about ___________________________________________
Is that ___________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Now use the information from the graphic organizer to write your summary of the Iditarod
article.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________