2023 Copper Basin 300 race preview

Glen Allen, Alaska is about to get busy and full of dogs as the Copper Basin 300 is set to kick off this weekend. As of January 11 there are twenty nine teams set to take on the most difficult 300 miles of Alaskan terrain for a sled dog race. That may or may not be hyperbole, but it WILL be one of the coldest races we see all year - CB300 has a reputation.

As teams head from their kennels to the starting line, the roster has had last minute changes and withdrawals as illness and injury have caused several teams to rethink their season. Most notably was the announcement out of Mitch Seavey's kennel that Jonathan Hayes, scheduled to run part of the Seavey A-team in the CB300, was swapping out for another handler's turn on the runners - Lara Kittelson. Hayes suffered a knee injury on a last minute training run and may be out the rest of the season, though the musher's hopes are high he will be ready to go for next weeks' Willow 300.

Also unable to make the CB300 is Ashley Dove who is currently working on her Iditarod qualifiers like Hayes. Dove ran in the Knik 200 with a team from Josh McNeil's kennel and the dogs have come down with a cough. McNeil reported that all dogs in the kennel are up to date on vaccinations and are showing mild symptoms, but they will not be running the Copper Basin. The right move. Weeks ago Amanda Otto swapped in for Jeff King who chose to not run this year's race after all.

A quick look at the weather forecast from AccuWeather has Glen Allen's high on Saturday at a balmy -11F. The race begins at 10am so the temp may be closer to the -18 they're predicting with the 5mph wind gusts adding to the cold. There shouldn't be much sun as they expect it to be mostly cloudy. This will be perfect musher weather, but if you're headed up that way you may want to bundle up and invest in some hand and toe warmers. By afternoon the wind will be a steady 5mph with slight gusts of 6mph. Fun times. I think I'll stay in and watch the trackers.

If you're reading this blog trying to finalize your Fantasy Mushing team ahead of the start, I've got you covered with some top names to watch.

Who to Watch

Brent Sass - The Iditarod and Yukon Quest Champion came in second in last weekend's Knik 200, but now we're closer to his backyard. While Sass is looking more towards Quest and Iditarod for his team to be in peak form, his dogs looked strong after the "awesome" trails they had in Knik. Expect him to at least stick in the chase pack to be in position to make his move and come out on top or nearly so.

Cody Strathe & Paige Drobny - The teams from Squid Acres will definitely be in the mix. It's unclear if they are splitting up the teams evenly with a mix of veteran and rookie dogs in both teams or if they are running and A and B team. Either way neither musher is an unknown to the top of the field and they could prove successful again here in the Copper Basin.

Jeff Deeter - Half of Black Spruce kennel, Jeff is not shy of the race circuit, and can always play a "spoiler" in the favorites' standings. He has more than an outside chance of coming in for one of the top places. 

Jessie Holmes - Team Can't Stop really can't. This will be Jessie's first big test to see how his recovery is going after having a close to death experience in Golovin this summer. The veteran musher and reality tv star had no doubt that he would make it to the starting line, but it will be interesting to see if he takes it easy or goes all in (and hopes his body holds together). He shared a few updates early on in training and it seems he hasn't missed much time at all with the dogs. Mushers are a different breed.

Matt Hall - The 2007 Yukon Quest champion is another who is no stranger to the crazy cold temperatures that the CB300 is known to throw at teams. While it does seem it may be a tad warmer thatn in years past, the Interior dog teams thrive on this race for a reason. This is just like home. Watch Hall to be another contender for one of the top placements.

Nic Petit - Nic took to facebook after the Knik 200 where he placed a respectable third conceding this season to other, faster teams. Whether that was hyperbole to fake his competition out or not, do not trust Nicolas Petit to not give it everything he's got. Expect him to be in that chase pack and make a move when he can. Do not trust the down and out posting.

Travis Beals - One half of the Turning Heads kennel in this race, be sure Travis has the main race team. His ultimate goal is Iditarod Champion, and to win that he has to have an unbreakable bond with the team he's taking to hopefully get there. Beals will be joined by his partner Sarah Stokey on the trail, but don't expect them to travel together (though if it does go that way, good for Sarah!) Travis and Sarah have withdrawn from the race.

There are five other teams I would also suggest adding to your fantasy team, they could all be spoilers to this whole field. Calvin (Leon) Daugherty is the son of "Lost Boy" Larry Daugherty and is running dogs out of Mitch Seavey's kennel, many of his team are looking to become the A-team for Christian Turner's Iditarod team, but Mitch typically sends his handlers (especially in their first season) to the races with very conservative schedules so he's a very outside shot - but he'll definitely finish (unless it goes to -60 again, then be prepared for a WD). Riley Dyche is another up and coming musher who has already made his mark in past seasons and could easily spoil those listed in the who to watch listing. Jeremy Traska is another solid musher and team that could find themselves in good position for a top placement. And the Vitellos, a father and son duo who are rookies to Iditarod, but not to mushing. 

But how can you watch if you aren't right there with the action? Glad you asked...

How to Follow

2022 marks the full return to whatever we call normal in the sled dog world. Thankfully while a lot of the world shut down in 2020-2022, mushing was able to continue with little change due to the remote nature of many of the races. This year it's back to normal routes, normal volunteering, and normal armchair watching. Here's how you can have the winning strategy to keep tabs on all the action.

GPS Tracker
The best way to make a mushing fan happy is make GPS tracking available, and the link should go live sometime after the bib draw on Friday. As always, this blog will be edited to add in that click for your one stop shopping for all things race following. TrackLeaders.com is once again supplying all of our GPS tracking obsession needs, you can find this year's map and teams here.

Radio Broadcast
KCAM Radio will broadcast the start beginning at 10am (or shortly before). If you're in the area you can listen to the broadcast on AM 790, or online through this link.

Social Media
Updates will most likely be posted on the race's facebook page, and possibly their twitter account. There may even be live video feeds, but there's been no promise that systems will work for the whole start. If you are tweeting, instagramming, etc. the traditional hashtag is #CB300.

KCAM normally posts updates throughout the weekend on the race on facebook as well. KTUU/Alaska's News Source is always good for a recap of the races.

Schedule of Events

Friday, January 13
10am-4pm Registration and Mandatory Vet Checks
5:30pm Mandatory Handler Meeting
6pm Mandatory Musher Meeting & Bib Draw
*Rookie Meeting follows directly after Bib Draw*

Saturday, January 14
10am - Race Start

Tuesday, January 17
6pm - Award Banquet

Will you be watching? Who are you hoping takes the win? Comment below with your thoughts!

If you like what you see and want to support my addiction (I mean HOBBY) of following these races and stalking (I mean cheering on) the mushers, you can buy me a slice of pizza (that really goes to paying for my internet/web expenses).