Is it really that time already? The first of two major thousand mile sled dog races in North America begins later this week, with fifteen teams signed up and prepared to race. Equally as exciting is the super competitive field of twenty-one teams prepared to run the mid-distance Yukon Quest 300. The Quest is a unique race in that it starts in one country and finishes in another. The start and finish rotate back and forth between Fairbanks, Alaska (USA) and Whitehorse, Yukon Territory (Canada). 2020's start will take place on February 1 in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The Quest boasts being the most difficult thousand mile race, and they have a lot of evidence to back it up. Known for its tough terrain, horrible weather, and frigid temps - the Quest tests even the toughest of teams. While Iditarod seems to encourage "bucket list" entries, the Quest favors the more hardcore (though many hardcore mushers have yet to enter, what are they waiting for). Both races offer fans a lot of emotion, excitement, and energy. Mushing is blessed to have two fantastic races in North America.
Due to a few last minute withdrawls in the thousand mile race - due mainly to rookies being unable to qualify prior to the start - the roster is one of the smaller ones the race has seen in recent years. Many familiar faces are back, some well-loved favorites, and three rookies. This should be a very competitive year for the race with past champions Brent Sass and Allen Moore the odds on favorites to go one and two again. There are several teams looking to move up in this smaller field like Torsten Kohnert, Dave Dalton, Jason Campeau, Ryne Olson, Michelle Phillips, etc. And, of course, the rookies are planning to finish; Swede Nora Sjalin is running a team of dogs for Tom-Frode Johanson (who is running his rookie Iditarod with the same team in March), Canadian Pat Noddin who is running a team from Atka Kennel (Quest Veteran Jason Campeau's puppy team), and Alaskan Olivia Webster whose Grandfather is one of the founders of the Quest (husband is Quest Champion Hugh Neff).
So what about those teams hoping to come top ten? Just about all of the veteran teams have a very good chance to break top ten (I mean, there's only 12 veterans in the field so... good odds.) But who has a chance to crack top five or even win the whole thing? Let's take a look at some of the field.
Allen Moore - The three-time Yukon Quest Champion is back again with SPKennel's "Red Team", the A-list team of dogs that Aliy Zirkle will run competitively in the Iditarod in March. Allen and Aliy share a kennel of star athletes. Allen writes in his Quest bio that the majority of his dogs will be four-years-old or older. They are experienced. Last year his team came third, do not expect a much lower placement and don't be shocked if they are first into Whitehorse.
Brent Sass - The two-time and reigning Yukon Quest Champion took a short break from competitive racing a few years back to refocus and remind himself why he runs dogs. Sass came back to the sport and shocked even himself when he came first in a very cold and difficult race. The boost of confidence that a win like that brings makes Sass one of the top favorites to take the 2020 Championship.
Cody Strathe - Expect Strathe to jump up in the standings this year. His bio suggests he's running many of the same young dogs he ran last year, and with the smaller field, Strathe should climb placements. He's bringing along star lead dog Turkey who lead Paige Drobny's team to a seventh place finish in the 2019 Iditarod.
Jason Campeau - You may recognize Campeau's name from the drama on the Quest a couple years ago when he ended up with a double concussion and had to be medevacced off the trail. Campeau has a solid dog team, and is showing that he can be competitive... when he isn't injured. Expect Jason to be safe, but to push for a top five finish (at least).
Michelle Phillips - Not to jinx anything, but this could be a year we see a woman take the title, and it's likely it'd be Michelle Phillips is the one to do it. Only one woman has ever won the Quest (that'd be Aliy Zirkle in 2000), but Phillips has been consistently in the top ten when she's run the thousand mile race and has been one of the dominate forces of the 300. The dogs of Tagish Lake Kennel are the real deal and Michelle could take them all the way.
Ryne Olson - Ryno Kennel's Ryne Olson is another lady musher who could push it all the way. She's only be in the top 10 once for the thousand mile race, but don't count her out. This could be a top 10 or top 5 finish for her this year.
Torsten Kohnert - Another consistently top ten team, Kohnert could prove to be a spoiler in this year's race. It's a good bet that he'll be in the top ten, and who knows he could make top five. He has a strong team and trains for the Quest all year.
Fifteen rookies are running the Yukon Quest 300 this year out of a field of 21 teams. Many are using this as a qualifying race for future Quest and Iditarod runs. With so many rookies, its hard to guess just what will happen in this year's 300, but we have a handful of teams to watch that I want to highlight.
Benjamin Good - A former 300 champion, Ben could probably take this race again this year. It's difficult to know what to expect with the field that they have this year, but it's always a good idea to count on someone who's been first across the finish line before.
Chad Stoddard - Stoddard is a rookie, so don't expect anything one way or the other, however he ran a great race on the Copper Basin 300 this year in the brutal cold. Chad runs dogs out of Lance Mackey's kennel, so his team is a proven dog team and he's grown up in racing with this current crop of canines. Do not be surprised to see him stay mid to upper part of the pack.
Dave Turner - The sprint turned distance musher is the 2019 Tustumena 200 champion, and came in a very respectable 8th place in a very competitive field. It would not be surprising to see Turner compete for a top ten placement in his first YQ300.
Madeline Rubida - She was fourth last year, and it wouldn't be surprising to see her place at least that high again this year. Rubida runs dogs out of Tagish Lake Kennel (Michelle Phillips). Both Michelle and Madeline scratched in this year's Copper Basin 300, not because they couldn't run it, but that the CB300 was not the end goal and in those crazy temps they wanted to keep the dogs happy and healthy. The Quest was the goal.
Nathaniel Hamlyn - Another veteran who has been close to the top, should be able to do so again. There's nothing showing why he wouldn't be as high if not higher than his last YQ300.
How to Watch
Unlike the other thousand mile race in Alaska, the Quest is accessible to all without subscription fees. Most of the media focuses on the thousand mile race, but there will still be updates following the 300. Below are links to the best places to follow the race online.
Official Website
All official releases/statements, in and out times, etc. will be posted on the official site. This is your race central when you can't get to a physical race central. There's a lot of great information on past races, on the mushers, etc. If you haven't already,
give it a look see and make sure to bookmark it.
GPS Tracker
Unlike the Quest's "older sister", the tracker is not behind an iron curtain that you must pay to enter. It won't be live until closer to the start - once bibs are given, etc - but you can bookmark the link now so that you can pull it up on race day.
Click here to see the GPS Tracker map.
Radio Broadcast
KUAC FM will have updates throughout the day during race week. They are one of three radio stations that are offiical stations of the Quest. Based in Fairbanks, they will cover the race from start to finish with musher interviews and stories from the trail.
Their website provides a live stream. This SHOULD be where you can catch the live radio broadcast of the start.
KCBF Radio (ESPN Radio Fairbanks) will also have updates on the race.
Their website also has a live stream. They have not published their race broadcast schedule.
For a radio broadcast of the Finish in Whitehorse, you need to look no further than
CKRW - The Rush. You can listen live on
their website.
Social Media
The Quest is active on both
Facebook and
Twitter, with very quick response time on the latter. Race updates and photo drops will happen throughout the days of the race. Any breaking news or press releases will be announced on both platforms. More photo updates will show up on
Instagram, and they also have
Flickr. The start and finish are normally shown by Facebook LIVE on their facebook page. The official hashtags for the races are #YQ2020 for the thousand mile race and #YQ300 for the 300mile race.
News Publications
The race has two official news partners. In Fairbanks we have the
Faibanks Daily News-Miner, which shares a lot of terrific race coverage. They have recently gone to a subscription based service, so it is unknown how much will be available to the average follower.
In Whitehorse they have
The Whitehorse Star, another fantastic resource. They do not seem to have a requirement for subscriptions, so it may be the better bet for fans to get printed media on the race.
Not an official partner, but another good source for coverage is the
Anchorage Daily News. They are also subscription based and only allow a certain number of free reads before you get locked out... and they follow Iditarod more heavily. So, well, decide accordingly what you want to read where.
Television
KUAC has a TV station and will be broadcasting updates (or so their website says. They are not linked as a television partner with the race, however.
CBC North is the TV Station of the Yukon (Canada) and will have coverage. Look for updates throughout the race.
In Fairbanks,
KTVF Channel 11 is your go to TV Station for all things Yukon Quest.
Schedule of Events
Wednesday, January 29
6:30pm Meet the Mushers (Alaska) @ LaQuinta Inn and Suites
Thursday, January 30
5pm Bib Draw and Banquet @ The Westmark Hotel
Friday, February 14
7pm Meet the Mushers (Yukon) @ Mt. McIntyre
Saturday, February 15
5pm Finishers and Award Banquet @ The Yukon Convention Centre
Did I miss anything? What are some of the things you're looking forward to with these races? Who are you cheering for? Comment below!
