Sled dog enthusiasts who have not entered next year’s Iditarod could still experience the exhilaration of travelling around the Alaskan course.

This is because organisers have launched an auction to tie in with the race, with the winning bidders about to take a ride along the first 11-mile portion of the course.

Entrants will have to stump up a minimum of $500 (£304) to enter the competition, with $7,500 guaranteeing a participant’s favoured sled.

The Iditarod Trail Committee is holding the contest, which closes on January 22nd.

It is being held ahead of the 2010 race, which kicks off in Anchorage on March 6th.

The likes of Newton Marshall, Sue Allen, Lance Mackay and Ken Anderson are all set to be on the starting line.

In total, participants cover 1,150 miles at the event, using teams of 12 to 16 sled dogs.

After ten to 15 days of racing across the frozen grounds, the course concludes in Nome on the western Bering Sea coast.