A melee erupted in the streets of San Francisco when over 400 caninus homo erecti (humans imitating dogs) took to the streets, some at breakneck speeds, others collared, leashed and heeling nicely with their owners in control, but all howling, mushing their sleds ... err ... shopping carts in the 11th Annual Urban Iditarod.

According to a March 10, 2002 article at sfgate.com, legend has it that Tom “Tundra Tommy” Marsh was inspired by those who tortured themselves on the 1,150-mile course in Alaska. From there, the Urban Iditarod was born.

The three-mile course began at 1 p.m. at Howard and Minna Streets, before winding its way through Chinatown and North Beach and finally culminating on the green at Fort Mason.

Along the way, the pack was required to make mandatory hydrant/pit stops including favorite watering holes for the pups like the Campton Alley Wateringhole, Red’s Place and Jack’s Cannery Bar.

Two of the team members from The Superweiners, Lisa deMello and Donovan Bayunga, rested in the alley near Red’s Place. Training for the event meant one firm commitment.

“Drink a lot (of beer),” they panted. The veteran racers collectively have seven years experience between them.

In addition to drinking, they also recommended deMello’s special Jell-O shots. The secret is “they contain Jell-O and jungle juice,” deMello said. With no more time to speak, they scampered off with their red capes flying behind them and their wieners - wrapped in buns - atop their heads.

At the finish line, several of the canine competitors, including some from SF State, spoke about their experience.

Raul Keally, 33, a marketing/business administration alumnus of SF State, said his decision to enter the race was spontaneous.

“I got an e-mail from a friend, and my wife’s out of town, so I decided to come out,” he said as he lapped at his beer.

Keally was part of the seven-person French Poodle team that included two women and five men. The team said they believed they came in 12th or 13th. Their efforts at a first-place run may have been hampered by at least one inter-species “fight” that broke out.

“I only saw one casualty, a cat beat up by a dog,” said Keally. “But I think that may have happened before the race.”

One team of four graduate chemistry mutts from UC Berkeley agreed that beer and water played a big part in their training.

Team member Amanda Crockett, 24, advised future mushers to “drink hard and run.”

“Try to stay on the sidewalk or street, because you don’t want to pass out in the gutter,” said Crockett's teammate, Max Montana, 24.

Asked if his team encountered any problems with other dogs in the race, mutt David Tilley, 24, said,

“No more than usual, but there were a couple of butt sniffers.”

The Underdogs, clad in “tightie whities,” included Kelly Zender, 23, of SF State. Conditioning for the team was mandatory.

“We trained by a regimented drinking schedule,” said Zender, a graduating anthropology major. “We stuck to it - we’re committed - and we said, ‘Just go for it.’”

The team said they believed they may have placed first or second, but admitted to cheating. Underdog Kyle Ingham, 28, an ad executive, said there was use of performance-enhancing herbal supplements (no steroids, ‘creams’ or ‘clears’) in the dogs’ training. “Yeah, they were Milk-bone shaped,” he said.

Wearing black spandex skirts and matching red tops, the Incredabeagles included SF State conservation biology graduate student Johanna Kertesz, 24.

She and her teammate Ulrike Krotscheck, 29, an archaeology Ph.D. candidate at Stanford, said the race was easy for them.

“We are training for a marathon, and run five days a week,” said Kertesz.

“This was nothing for us,” added Krotscheck. “We did 18 miles yesterday.”

As the day drew to a close, the canines milled about, with tails wagging. One pup, Kathrin Woltering, 30, stood alone as several male dogs circled near her. With a cone around her neck, the bandaged Woltering said some dogs had tried to bite her and take advantage of her impairment.

“I am a sick puppy,” she howled.