Pete Kaiser wins his 9th Kusko

Photo courtesy of Kuskokwim 300 facebook page.

At 1:57am Sunday Pete Kaiser and his exhuberant team of Alaskan Huskies crossed the finish line in bethel tying Jeff King for the most wins on the Kusko. The Bethel local was greeted by many excited fans, friends, and family as well as a little rain. The trail was said to be fast and even with the changes to the trail and the start time it felt like just another Kusko for the champion musher. The musher will take home at least $30,000.

"I'm pretty proud of our efforts after the challenge of our training this year," Pete told the local media.

It wasn't easy for Kaiser to get to the starting line this year. With the warm winter most of Alaska has seen, Kaiser wasn't even sure he would make it to the race this year. "We managed to do it," Kaiser said, "and I was just really happy we were able to get the dogs to the starting line." He said while the weather wasn't anything they weren't used to in the area, it just went on forever. "Just not ideal training conditions."

Kaiser noted that the fast trail meant that he'd have to run fast early in the race and stick with the front runners if he wanted to manage a chance to win. He was very proud of his team and his race. "It played out almost perfectly," he stated. 

When asked about the trail Pete had nothing but good things to say. It was a fast trail, not a lot of snow drift, no slogging through overflow or open water. "Overall one of the best trails I've ever been on in the Kusko." The musher, who didn't wear his traditional orange parka and fur ruff - he didn't need it when it was 32 degrees overnight on the trail - commented on the beauty of this year's trail. "One of the most beautiful trails we've ever mushed on," he said, "we're going to be spoiled for next year."

Riley Dyche who battled with Kaiser for most of the race came in second place 18 minutes behind the champion. Riley said he had to carry a dog for most of the way from Kalskag to Tuluksak on the inbound trail and he believed that was what sealed Pete's lead for the finishing run. When asked if he planned to be back for future races Riley didn't hesitate to say yes, "this is my new favorite race," he said.

Third place Cody Strathe, who caught a bug on the trail and had very little voice at the finish line. Strathe managed to say that most of the dogs on his team had not run the Kusko before. 

Next up for the Bethel area and Pete specifically will be the Bogus Creek 150. It was another race that had to be postponed, and Kaiser told media this morning his plan was to race in that one. With the warm up starting Sunday it's anyone's guess what the rest of his season will be. His social media team noted that beccause of the poor training season that Pete made the decision not to sign up for Iditarod, so the Kusko will be his "big" race of the year.

Pete gave credit to his dogs for doing so well, surprising their musher. "I'm pretty proud of our efforts after the challenge of our training this year," he said. He mentioned that he asked them for speed for the whole of the race to keep the pace with the front runners and they delivered, as he looked down the line of his happy and alert team in the finish line - tails wagging, "they're just incredible."

Four teams are now into the finish, with thirteen teams still on the trail. 

Top ten are into Tuluksak

As of 7:10pm AKST on Saturday, the top ten are into the final checkpoint of Tuluksak and are on their final four hour mandatory rest. From Tuluksak it's roughly a fifty mile sprint to the finish line back in Bethel. There are several bunches within the top ten of teams close together. The final placement is anything but certain for just about any team.

First into Tuluksak Saturday was eight-time Kusko champion Pete Kaiser. The veteran musher arrived at 5:15pm and had the checkpoint all to themselves for just twenty minutes before Riley Dyche and his team of Dark Horse dogs charged in. Dyche is a dark horse in more ways than one, the musher chose last year to leave social media entirely and so no one really knew what to expect as there was almost nothing in the way of training reports on the musher. He ran a couple of races, but it was anyone's guess would Dyche would be doing ahead of Iditarod. Riley bought many of Brent Sass's main team last year when Sass decided to get out of dogs (in Alaska, he's been in Europe running dogs). Riley brought 8 of the Wild and Free dogs with him to the Kusko.

Fifteen minutes after Riley checked in, Cody Strathe was next into the checkpoint. The Squids ate up some time on Dyche. At 6:09pm Mike Williams Jr. made it to Tuluksak. Williams is having a fantastic race and has many fans and mushers statewide cheering him on. One of the local heroes of sorts, Mike is a favorite in any race he enters. Williams' best finish was 2nd in 2011 according to the K300 archives, and he last ran the race in 2019. Hunter Keefe rounds out the top five, coming in just eight minutes behind Willliams. 

At 6:26pm, teen phenom Emily Robinson rode into the checkpoint. Saturday afternoon Robinson crossed the 200 mile mark - the furthest she's ever raced. Sitting now at roughly 226 miles, the junior musher is now in unfamiliar territory. Last year Robinson nervously laughed when reporters asked her if she was ready for Iditarod, she mentioned that 300 miles intimidated her. The teen who didn't seem to be intimidated by Iditarod champions as she ran them down in 100 and 200 mile races was intimidated by 300 miles. Well, this weekend she took that challenge on and she's minutes from cracking the top five. The only teen, only female, and only rookie in this race looks anything but intimidated.

Lev Shvarts is ten minutes behind Robinson to hold the seventh slot. Behind Shvarts came Matt Failor, giving Shvarts a seventeen minute cushion. Sitting in 9th and 10th place are Cim Smyth and Bailey Vitello who came in at the same time. There should be some very close finishes Sunday morning.

First and fifth are separated by just over an hour. Right now Peter Kaiser has the lead, but it's not a fully comfortable one. We've seen the Kusko throw a curveball for the leaders in the final stretch (Failor's win was helped by such curveballs). The top three are not set in stone. And then there are the chase pack just waiting in the wings. Hunter Keefe will have to pull out the stops to keep Emily Robinson behind him. Several teams could easily end up leap frogging in this last sprint.

At the back, Isaac Underwood and Ebbe Pederson are both resting in Kalskag. 

Top 10

Pete Kaiser at 5:15pm - can leave at 9:15pm Saturday
Riley Dyche at 5:35pm - can leave at 9:35pm 
Cody Strathe at 5:50pm - can leave at 9:50pm
Mike Williams Jr at 6:09pm - can leave at 10:08pm
Hunter Keefe at 6:17pm - can leave at 10:16pm
Emily Robinson at 6:26pm - can leave at 10:26pm
Lev Shvarts at 6:36pm - can leave at 10:36pm
Matthew Failor at 6:53pm - can leave at 10:53pm
Cim Smyth at 7:10pm - can leave at 11:10pm
Bailey Vitello at 7:10pm - can leave at 11:10pm

With roughly fifty miles to the finish and Peter Kaiser leaving at 9:15pm Saturday, expect a finish around 2am AKST on Sunday. 

Do you think we're going to see another re-PETE? Do you think we'll see any surprise placements? Who do you think will end up winning the Red Lantern? Comment below with your thoughts!

Riley Dyche leads the Kusko

The Dark Horse has dark horsed quite well so far on the Kuskokwim. Riley Dyche and his team blazed up the trail Friday night and into Saturday morning. Dyche currently sits in the checkpoint of Kalskag on the return/inbound trail. He is required to take three hours of rest here to complete his mandatory 6 hour rest for the loop. Dyche isn't alone as Cody Strathe of Squid Acres is also sitting in Kalskag finishing up his mandatory rest, but Dyche has about a half hour lead on Cody.

Dyche took an early lead Friday being the first into the first checkpoint of Tuluksak blowing through that checkpoint and on down the trail. He was then first into the Kalskag outbound checkpoint where he elected to take a three hour rest as part of his mandatory six hour. Dyche was not first out of Kalskag nor was he first into the halfway point of Aniak, but he took the lead when he elected to not stay in Aniak on his arrival and continued on the trail loop back to Kalskag.

Dyche's race plan is similar to the one Strathe chose to run. This is the first Kusko for Strathe, it's Dyche's second. As the two leaders rest, a wave of teams who are fully rested are on their way to the checkpoint. The chase pack include Pete Kaiser, Matt Failor, Hunter Keefe, Mike Williams Jr., Lev Shvarts, and Emily Robinson. Yes, that's right, the junior musher running her first 300 miler is comfortably in the top ten and is fully rested. The teen has done a fantastic job of maintaining her team and sticking with the big dogs.

Also in the chase pack are Cim Smyth and Nicolas Petit both of whom still need to complete their six hour mandatory rest. Smyth looks to need two hours of rest having elected to rest for two hours in Kalskag Outbound and Aniak - Petit looks to have one hour. They are currently running in third and fourth position with about a nine mile (one hour-ish) cushion of the chase pack. Well, at least Cim does. Nic's tracker isn't behaving.

Current red lantern is Ebbe Pederson who planned to run a slower race with a lot of extra rest according to a post by Turning Heads Kennel - who Pederson is running dogs from. He is the only team still on the outbound trail on his way to Aniak. Issac Underwood is the only team currently resting in Aniak.

Judging by the tracker, it looks like Pete Kaiser will hit Kalskag right around the time Riley Dyche should be able to pull the hook and take off from his rest (if the math is correct and we all know how often that happens for this blogger). Kaiser has taken all of his mandatory rest on the loop so he could continue on down the trail, but Dyche's team will have had a three hour break and it could be that Dyche has just timed everything perfectly to keep control of this race.

Don't count any of the chase pack out yet, and especially not Kaiser as these are his home trails. It's going to be an epic race to the finish.

What do you think will happen when the chase pack makes it to Kalskag? Can Dyche and Strathe hold them off? Comment below with your thoughts!

Jessie Holmes heads for the finish

Jessie Holmes and team at the restart
of Iditarod 52. May 3, 2024.

Jessie Holmes has a commanding lead on the rest of the field leaving the final checkpoint in Chistochina Monday morning. The musher has over a half hour lead over the next team of Cody Strathe. Jessie and Cody have had a solid lead for most of the race, and it should be no surprise that Holmes has been speedy. Jessie barely lost to Brent Sass last year at the same race, and came second in last year's Iditarod. 

Holmes has hoped to be the "champion" of the races he's entered for several years. He is confident that his team is the best in the business, and it's just getting a handle on how to beat the other teams. He's a marathon runner as well as lives off the grid. He's well prepared for any type of trail condition. He made a huge impression in his rookie year of Iditarod when many counted him out as "just a reality star".

Strathe, too, has mad respect within the community. He and his wife Paige Drobny have created a successful kennel and continue to impress in the races they enter. They've won a few, came close in others. Drobny took the Squids on the Iditarod last year and took her very young team to a top five finish, calmly picking off the "more seasoned" teams of dogs one by one on the river and coast.

Holmes has his eyes set on the big prize of Iditarod this year while the Squids are taking time away from "the Last Great Race". They're both willing to test their teams metal against one another.

The finish line is about 47 miles away. The weather has turned windy on the Copper Basin race and ice has been mentioned as well. Temperatures are still reaching the upper 30s or low 40s. With the average speeds we've seen from Holmes, start looking for a finish around 1:45pm Alaska Time.

Of course, if we don't have a working tracker for Jessie Holmes it will be hard to know if that estimate is too conservative or not. Keep an eye on the race's Facebook page as well as Kale Casey Live for updates.

Top Ten are into Meiers Lake

While most of Alaska was blowing away or melting away.... floating away... it seems the little world that is the Copper Basin 300 remains mostly unscathed. Anchorage recorded wind gusts up to 110mph (officially, some on the hillside said they clocked them much stronger). Palmer flooded. Fairbanks reached late spring temperatures (in some areas 50F).

The Copper Basin is also dealing with unseasonably warm temperatures, but they stayed in the 30s. The trail has seen both snow and rain Sunday. Teams are not reporting a "slog fest" but it is a slower going than what one may be used to seeing in this race.

Then again, many years they have quite a bit of snow and trail breaking to do. It's the toughest 300 miles, after all.

Teams moved through the early morning into early afternoon from Lake Louise and Sourdough. Ten have made the haul to Meiers, including favorites to win Jessie Holmes and Cody Strathe. Strathe with his team of Squids left the checkpoint of Sourdough ahead of Holmes early Sunday morning but at some point was passed by the speedy Holmes. Holmes came into Meiers sixteen minutes before Strathe after leaving Sourdough four minutes behind.

Neither of the top two have taken their mandatory 6 hours plus time differential, but it would be a good guess they've both declared and are taking that rest here. Of the current top ten, none of the teams have taken their mandatory 6, however the chase pack have several who have taken theirs. 

Currently into Meiers Lake:

Jessie Holmes
Cody Strathe
Jonah Bacon
Travis Vanderhoof
Dave Turner
Kelsey Winters
Aiden Kosciolek
Lauro Eklund
Anna Hennessy
Elke Hall
Michelle Phillips
Sam Martin
Ben Simard

Two teams chose to cut their races short Sunday, Laura Allaway scratched at Lake Louise and Jessica Hickey scratched at Sourdough. No official release for either as to reason.

Look for teams to start leaving Meiers Lake around 830p or 9p Sunday night.

2025 Copper Basin 300 race preview

Pack your shorts and tanks, it's not your mama's Copper Basin this year. 

That might be a tad bit of hyperbole, but seriously - it's not every day you see the Copper Basin weather be predicted to being anywhere from 35F ABOVE 0 to 48F! Say what?! The "toughest 300 mile sled dog race" isn't just tough because of the elevation changes and middle of nowhere locations - it's tough because it's supposed to be COLD. Like -40 or more cold. Now the temps are going in the opposite direction. Just as all of the rest of Alaska, the CB300 is dealing with unusually warm temperatures.

Even with the weather (both historic and well as current), the Copper Basin 300 remains one of the most popular races in Alaska. The mushers often comment that they love not just the terrain they pass through, but also the organization of the race itself. It seems that love continues as (at the time this blog post was originally written) thirty-six teams are signed up for the 36th running of the CB300.

As with all races this time of year there's a healthy mix of veteran and rookie mushers alike. Those that are using it for a training run for bigger races, others that are using it to qualify for said bigger races. Some just enjoy the trail close to their home turf, others are just happy to find trails with snow. 

Since the Copper Basin 300 is one of the races followed by Fantasy Mushing, let's take a look at some of the sure bets for a top placement.

Who to watch

Cody Strathe - The Squids came in third place in last year's Copper Basin, Cody on the back of the sled for that one. Paige Drobny ended up in fifth with the Ateam of Squids last year which were mostly young and inexperienced (for a top team) dogs. Expect the Squids to be in top form and ready to battle for top placement.

Dave Turner - Can't leave this guy and his Racing Chaos dogs off the list. Dave is a speedy musher and one who has a few tricks up his sleeve. He's a quick study of the trails and when he can find a way, he makes it happen. Turner hasn't won a mid-distance race in a few years, but it would be foolish to count him out of the top ten.

Elke Hall - Last year the Silver Aces teams were split between their two mushers, this year Elke is representing the whole of the kennel with her top notch team. She's posted several of her training runs specifically for the CB300 on social media, and it looks like she is very serious about how she wants to tackle this year's race. Look for Elke and her crew to not let the boys have all the fun.

Jeff Deeter - Black Spruce has two teams in this race, but it's up to Jeff to take the A team all the way. It's a good guess this race will be used to test out the team for the upcoming Iditarod, but Deeter will want to make sure to stay in the hunt for the top prize. 

Jessie Holmes - Holmes wants a win. It's obvious that he is hungry to get a championship at the CB300, and he very nearly got his wish last year coming in just a minute or two behind champion Brent Sass. This year the two most recent champs (Sass, and Nicolas Petit) are not in the race. Jessie is two years post having a house fall on him (litterally!) and seems to be poised to finally get his win.

Matt Failor - This guy is gonna win 'em all before he retires, he has to. He's won the Kusko, he can win the others. Even though he's all about Ohio State(it's hard to forgive, but we'll allow it - GO BLUE) you can't help but cheer for the guy. He is often awarded humanitarian and sportsmanship awards, but he's also consistently in the mix for the top spots in the mid-distance races he enters. 

Michelle Phillips - Expect her to win or come very close to it. Just do.

Mille Porsild - Mille knows dogs. Mille knows mushing. Mille is a force on the trail. There's some very strong girl power in this roster, and Mille's one of them. She's a fierce competitor and it would surprise no one to see her in the top three. Mille withdrew prior to race day.

Rohn Buser - Rohn came in 8th last weekend in the Knik 200 which he was using as a training run of sorts for the Copper Basin. The dad of soon to be two babes will no doubt work to finish in a top placement. Buser had hinted he would run the Iditarod this year, but then baby changed those plans, so races like the CB300 will be his "big race". Expect him to do well. Rohn withdrew prior to race day.

Ryan Redington - He just came in second place to Emily Robinson on his home trails of the Knik 200. Ryan likes to start out fast and try to get enough of a buffer between he and the rest of the competition. Don't expect anything different here at the CB300, but with the warmer temps that may not be the best strategy. Still, his years living, training, and racing in the Lower 48 may have he and his team a little more conditioned to the wild weather we're having in Alaska this season.

With the above freezing temps predicted for this year's race, it could prove that those that leave out of the start earlier in the line up fare better - at least for the first day - than those towards teh back. Torn up trail that's already slushy/not well set because of warm temperatures can easily slow and tire a team out if they are stuck in the back of the line. Keep bib numbers in mind when you choose your Fantasy Team.

But what about watching if you can't be there in person, well, as always, there are ways to follow online!

How to follow

Copper Basin has several areas where cars cant go and satellites can't find. There's a remote checkpoint that almost no instant communication comes out of. Just remember, if the trackers don't work or the news isn't instantaneous to just be patient. Part of the fun of a sled dog race is the unknown.

GPS Tracker
TrackLeaders.com is once again supplying all of our GPS tracking obsession needs, you can find this year's map and teams here. (The link goes live typically after the bib draw/starting order is finalized.)

Official Website
If you want to see official in and out times, the official website is the best place to find the updated timesheets. Remember, this is all done by volunteer and communication and connection can be sketchy, but if you want the latest greatest numbers use patience and follow along on the CB300 website.

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.

Kale Casey LIVE
That's right, your FAVORITE live stream of any dog mushing race will be covering the action of this year's Copper Basin 300. Kale was out of town for the Knik 200 to celebrate another trip around the sun. However, he's back for the CB300! Be sure to catch when he goes live by following his page on Facebook! And don't forget to buy him a coffee or two. Kale often goes live around an hour before the start to give a little pre-race coverage, so keep your eyes peeled for that notification when he goes live.

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 10
10am-3pm 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 11
10am - Race Start

Tuesday, January 14
6pm - Award Banquet

So, who are you expecting to cross the finish line first? Who are you cheering for? Do you foresee any spoilers? Comment below with your thoughts ahead of the Copper Basin 300!

And, as always, you can Buy me a slice of pizza to help keep the blog up and running. It's always appreciated but never expected.

Iditarod 46: The Bottom's on top!

Cody Strathe's lead dogs lead the team
through Anchorage for the Ceremonial
Start of Iditarod 46. March 3, 2018.

The Iditarod has come into the period of true strategy. Teams are starting to take their mandatory 24 hour breaks. What checkpoint they choose is based on strategy as well as how their teams look as they get to the checkpoints. Teams like Mitch Seavey are resting where they'd planned to rest before they started down the trail on Sunday. Others may decide to push on because they feel their team wouldn't benefit from the rest just yet, and still more will rest earlier than planned due to the deep snow taking a toll on their team's energy.

All of this means that the front runners suddenly look stalled on the GPS tracker, because... well... they are. But it's not something to worry about. Once the teams get their 24 hour (plus differentials) out of the way then we'll have an equal playing field and we can better tell who really is in the lead. 

Takotna is filling up fast, and is a very popular spot for teams to take their mandatory rest (I hear the food is a major factor in deciding where to stay). Note that when they do "declare" their 24, teams CAN choose to leave before it's up... but it will not count as their 24 rest. And when we say 24, we also mean any differential they have to take. Because teams leave at two minute intervals, there has to be a way to make it equal, so the earlier you start, the more time you have to make up and the best way to do that is to add it to the longest mandatory rest. So for bib number 2, he has 67 mushers behind him... so it's 24hours+(67teams X 2minutes)=total rest for the first musher... which means Cody Strathe has to stay in the checkpoint for 26 hours and 14 minutes. Make sense? The only team that gets a straight 24 is Hugh Neff as he is the last musher out of the starting gate.

Mitch Seavey's time (who was first to declare his 24) into Takotna last night was 9:45pm, he is bib number 13, Neff is Bib 68 (remember the bib numbers start at 2, not 1). 68-13= 55. So He has 55 teams behind him... so now we multiply by 2 to get minutes added to 24hours... which is 110minutes so just under 2 hours... (1hour 50mins) So he can leave at 11:35pm.

This is what we diehards lovingly refer to as "Iditamath". I am not good at the maths so these times are unofficial and I'd trust just about anyone else but me.

This is the perfect time for fans to get some well needed rest, or at least get some chores out of the way. With many teams bedded down for the next day and half there's really not a whole lot going on. This is also a great time to get to know the back of the pack. A lot of rookies are just heading to McGrath having hit Nikolai early this morning. So many dreams come true to run this race. Make sure to give them some love too.

You can call and leave a musher gram for any musher/team by calling 907-248-MUSH! The COMMS center will make sure to get the message to your team!