{"id":120650,"date":"2026-02-02T22:43:36","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T22:43:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/120650\/"},"modified":"2026-02-02T22:43:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T22:43:36","slug":"brooklyn-idiotarod-returns-for-its-23rd-year-with-carts-costumes-and-community-joy-brooklyn-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/120650\/","title":{"rendered":"Brooklyn Idiotarod returns for its 23rd year with carts, costumes and community joy \u2022 Brooklyn Paper"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"Idiotarod\t\t\t<\/p>\n

The 23rd annual Idiotarod cart race took place on Jan. 31, presented by Idiot Labs. <\/p>\n

Photo by Joey LaBelle<\/p>\n

On a below-freezing Saturday, with mounds of snow still clinging to Brooklyn sidewalks, 30 groups of costumed revelers gathered behind their homemade carts, dressed to the nines in satire and spectacle. As they would their way through Bushwick, Williamsburg and into Ridgewood, Queens, passersby stopped to take photos, cheer them on and briefly join the chaos. For longtime fans, it was a familiar sight: the 23rd annual Idiotarod<\/a> race.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Jan. 31 event is a tongue-in-cheek take on Alaska\u2019s Idiotarod Trail Sled Dog Race, swapping huskies and snow for human-powered carts and city streets. Like their canine counterparts, teams braved the cold to push their eclectic creations, which this year included a mobile sauna, a Satan-themed rig and a wildly reimagined Power Ranger.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Idiotarod\"The 23rd Annual Idiotarod.Photo by Joey LaBelle<\/p>\n

Carts gathered in Cooper Park to size up the competition, though the atmosphere was anything but cutthroat. Participants hugged, showed off their creations, and chatted with curious passersby \u2014 including dog walkers eager to learn what, exactly, was unfolding in the park.<\/p>\n

Two members of the \u201cCostume Cult\u201d team, dressed as a Throat Goat and a Party Rat, told Brooklyn Paper they were thrilled to be participating in their first-ever Idiotarod. Members of the city\u2019s Department of \u201cInebriation\u201d rolled out a cart modeled after a DSNY truck, stocked with bottles of liquor. A group aptly named the \u201cHot Tub Crime Machine\u201d found ways to stay warm in 10 degree weather.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Idiotarod\"This participant celebrated her first Idiotarod race after following it for many years. Photo by Joey LaBelle<\/p>\n

Anney Fresh, a longtime Idiotarod<\/a> referee and head judge, said the event\u2019s longevity comes down to its emphasis in creativity and community.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started in 2001,\u201d Fresh told Brooklyn Paper. \u201cI spend the entire day meeting everyone and seeing all of the things. Some hallmarks of the race are bribery and sabotage, so I do reap the benefits of this position. In the old days there was chaining cinderblocks on other people\u2019s carts, but now it\u2019s more friendly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fresh participated in the very first Idiotarod and said the spirit of the event has remained remarkably consistent over the years.
\n\"Idiotarod\"Anney Fresh, Idiotarod\u2019s longtime referee and head judge, outlines the rules before the race.Photo by Joey LaBelle\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not sponsored by some giant corporation. This is people spending time, using their minds for creativity and spreading joy. This is a who\u2019s who of art stars in the New York scene.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fresh added with a laugh, \u201cI have just been in a sauna, I have just sucked the teet of a party goat and now I\u2019m about to go to a Christmas office party from 1982. \u201cThis is the greatest day of the year.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"This team, resembling a Christmas party from 1982, laughed and acted their way through the race.Photo by Joey LaBelle \"Idiotarod\"Competitors must travel across Brooklyn\u2019s busy streets to get to the finish line.Photo by Joey LaBelle<\/p>\n

Throughout the race, carts travel to three different stops, usually bars, where they complete minigames. They race to the final location where they destroy their creations. Stops included Emblem in Williamsburg, Bar Cornelia in Bushwick and an after party at The Deep End on Wyckoff Avenue.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

All the way from San Francisco, this year\u2019s celebrity judge was Tom \u201cTundra Tommy\u201d Kramer, who founded the city\u2019s Urban Iditarod in 1994. That blueprint made its way to Chicago, Austin, Washington D.C., New York and more.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Idiotarod\"\u201cTundra Tommy,\u201d the creator of San Francisco\u2019s Urban Iditarod, was this year\u2019s celebrity judge.Photo by Joey LaBelle<\/p>\n

\u201cThis event is one of the longest ones, 23 years strong, and I\u2019ve always wanted to come to it,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s because of all the sabotage and craziness.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The costumes, carts and decorations are truly unlike anything I\u2019ve ever seen,\u201d Kramer added. \u201cTruly one of a kind.\u201d<\/p>\n