2025 Knik 200 race preview

It's a bit of a broken record to mention it, but, the weather in South Central Alaska has been... disappointing. With little snow fall since November, and many a Chinook wind over the month of December, trails are more ice than snow. Open water where there should be none has also become a concern. Still, due to the dedicated volunteers working on trail routes, the Knik 200 will happen this weekend. Of course, due to the weather and all it's now more of a Knik 150 as they've had to reroute the race trail away from the river because of open water. But it's still going to be a highly exciting and competitive race.

This year's race has an Iditarod champion as well as the reigning Knik 200 (and 100!) champion. There are many fan favorites, and several junior mushers are signed up as well. 

The musher's meeting and meal at the Knik Bar takes place Friday evening where this year dinner for the mushers are on the organizing committee in honor of a beloved member of the crew Terry Langholz who passed away in 2024. Many mushers both running the race this year and not commented on the post on social media today sharing their appreciation for the beloved volunteer.

According to Accuweather, Knik should see some nice temps for race weekend. Saturday's high is predicted to be 10F, with wind gusts of 14mph making the air feel a balmy 1F. Clouds will be rolling in for much of Saturday. Sunday will be warmer with a predicted high of 18 with winds at 6mph. 

Teams may have no more than 14 dogs to start and no fewer than 10. At minimum, 5 dogs must be pulling in harness to finish the race. The junior mushers had to qualify by completing at least two junior races previously.

This year we have twenty-one teams planning to head down the trail Saturday. They will meet Friday night at the Knik Bar and Grill to draw their bib numbers. The race will begin promptly at 10am and teams will leave in two minute intervals.

Let's take a look at who is likely to be competitive in this year's race.

Who to watch

Emily Robinson - the reigning champion of the Knik 200 sent shockwaves throughout the mushing fandom last year when she beat out Iditarod Champion Brent Sass to win the 2024 Knik 200. The video of her passing Brent just ahead of "no man's land" went viral. The teen phenom seems nearly untouchable and has all eyes on her. She has a quiet confidence that makes her seem much older in the mushing world than she is. She just won the Knik 100 in December (another defended title) so it looks like she's starting her season out in very similar fashion as the last. 

Matthew Failor - the 2019 Kusko champ is always a sure bet for a solid finish in any race. Matt trained under some of the sport's most successful and has created a successful kennel all his own. He runs one of the most popular mushing spots for tourists, wins cooking competitions at the State Fair, and seems to have a well rounded mushing life. Look for Failor to use this as a training run, but if things work out right he can kick it into high gear and take the lead. Strike that, Failor has withdrawn.

Riley Dyche - Dyche reportedly bought some of the top dogs out of Iditarod Champion Brent Sass' kennel to improve on his already successful team of dogs. The Dark Horse musher recently moved to this part of Alaska and has spent the last two summers giving tours to visitors of the Iditarod HQ in Wasilla (just up the road from the Knik 200 start). Expect Dyche to bring the team to the next level this season.

Rohn Buser - Yes, he's related to Martin (this is the #1 question whenever Rohn's name pops up on the roster). The youngest of Martin Buser's sons (both of which are carbon copies of their dad) is no stranger to being on a winning team. Buser was a successful junior musher and held some top finishes when he made the jump to "professional". The soon-to-be-dad-of-two runs a successful tour business with his wife and mushing partner up in the Talkeetna area and has had plans to come back to competitive mushing for several seasons, dipping his toes in a bit more each season. Do not count him out. 

Ryan Redington - 2023's Iditarod Champion grew up on these trails. He knows a thing or two about winning a race. He's almost always looking to be competitive. Expect Ryan to give the roster a run for their money this weekend. He likes to start off fast and stay fast when possible, and this trail could give him just that.

Travis Beals - Beals moved to Knik a couple of years ago to have a more consistent training season. Travis studies mushing like it's a doctorate. He lead the Iditarod for several days in 2024, and when he finally did give up that lead he used that to learn from the choices he made. Expect him to use those lessons this season. It could very well be that this race is just to shake the dust off after a long wet summer and fall, but like Failor expect him to take advantage if given the right circumstances.

Honorable mentions go to Anna and Kristy Berington (always expect a solid race from Seeing Double), Hunter Keefe, and Isaac Redington. All live in the area and run these trails regularly. Redington lead the Knik 100 on the first day and seems eager to be even more competitive in the new year. Let's also keep an eye on Walter Robinson, also known as "Emily Robinson's Dad". Those Robinson Racing dogs are speedy, and Wally's where Emily learned mushing. He could be a major spoiler this weekend.

Be sure to check out the whole roster and cheer on each team.

How to watch

For those of us who cannot watch in person, there will be a lot of refreshing of internet pages, here's a run down on how you can follow along with this weekend's race.

Official Website
The race had to restructure their organization a couple of years ago and is now under the direction of the Knik Iditarod Trail Blazers, so they have just a page on their site for the race, but it has the rules and basic information. They also have a way to follow the times in and out LIVE via a spreadsheet.

GPS Tracker
What would we do without these little trackers that drive us crazy when they go haywire (I will always blame the aliens), and there's hope of trackers at this race, but at publishing time it has not been confirmed. Trackleaders is once again providing all armchair mushers a way to follow the race, you can catch all the tracker action here.

Social Media
The race is most active on Facebook. The race has not been active on Twitter in years. There's also no Instagram. 

For live feeds it may be best to follow the official race page and hope for some feeds there. Kale Casey did cover the Knik 100, but has not announced plans to be at the 200. In fact, the next race he's posted he will be at will be the Copper Basin 300 later this month. If he does end up attending the Knik 200, he'll go live on Facebook!

Mushing race photographer Whitney McLaren will be at the Knik 200 this year so be sure to follow her. Julia Redington is also a photographer who is often at the race.

Schedule of Events

Friday, January 3, 2025
4:00pm-6:00pm Musher's Dinner and Bib Draw

Saturday, January 4, 2025
8:00am Mandatory Vet Check
11:00am Start
**Teams will start on Knik Lake**

Sunday, January 5, 2025
6:00pm Award Banquet

What are your thoughts on this year's Knik 200? Who do you see taking the big prize? Who are you cheering for? Comment below!

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.  

2025 Knik 200 musher roster

New Year, new season! We've already seen several smaller races happen, some making trails work with limited snow. Other races postponed waiting for colder weather to solidify rivers and lakes to a safe thickness. The unseasonably warm start to winter has all race organizers ringing their hands and doing snow dances. 

The first weekend of 2025 is the Knik 200, which due to the lack of snow and frozen rivers will be a 150 this year. That the Knik is able to be held at all is a bit of a miracle as in other years they would have canceled the race entirely instead of truncating or rerouting. As Wasilla/Knik continue to grow as towns/cities you would think there wouldn't be ample space to change trail, but after a successful Knik 100 in December race organizers figured out a way to make it work this weekend.

With the shortening of the race to 150 it can still be used as an Iditarod and Yukon Quest qualifier, so those who are needing this race to achieve their dreams of the bigger races will not be stuck trying to find an alternative this late in the game. 

There are twenty-one teams currently signed up for the Knik 200 - with space still available according to a recent post on their facebook page - it's nearly a 50/50 split on genders running. There are five junior mushers in the race, including the reigning Knik 200 champion Emily Robinson (yes, she's still "just" a junior). One Iditarod Champion is in the mix with Ryan Redington throwing his hat in the ring. His kennel boasts several teams in the race.

As always, this roster will look slightly different come race day once Musher Bibs are drawn the night before. For now the list is in order of how the race shared it earlier this week. If anything needs changing, shoot me a message and we'll get it fixed!

The honor of Bib #1 this year goes to Terry Langholz.

Bib	Musher	Kennel	Link	Link	Link
2	Emily Krol	Redington Mushing		Facebook	Instagram
3	Olivia Frank	Shameless Huskies		Facebook
4	Hunter Keefe	Redington Mush Alaska	Website	Facebook	Instagram
5	Ebbe Pedersen	Turning Heads Kennel		Facebook	Instagram
6	Kristal Hanson	Owl Creek Kennel		Facebook
7	Mazzy Bailey	Redington Mushing		Facebook	Instagram
8	Robert Redington	Robert Redington		Facebook	Instagram
9	Ryan Redington	Redington Mushing	Website	Facebook
10	Anna Berington	Seeing Double Racing	Website	Facebook	Instagram
11	Isaac Redington	Redington Racing		Facebook
12	Walter Robinson	Robinson Racing Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
13	Kristy Beringon	Seeing Double Racing	Website	Facebook	Instagram
14	Riley Dyche	Dark Horse Sled Dogs	Website	Facebook	Instagram
15	Rohn Buser	Susitna Sled Dog Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
16	Aiden Kosciolek	Redington Mushing		Facebook
17	Emily Robinson	Robinson Racing Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
18	Addy Pederson	Windchill Kennel		Facebook	Instagram
19	Chloe Beatty	AK Sled Dog Tours?		Facebook
20	Travis Beals	Turning Heads Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
21	Eric Kelly	Daybreak Kennel		Facebook	Instagram
22	Leni Stolz	Goldstream Gals		Facebook

*Last edit: January 3, 2025 - organized in bib number order. This is the final roster according to the race.

Who are you excited to see on the roster? Predictions for who comes away with the win? Do you expect Emily to run away with this race as she did in the Knik 100 last month? Comment below with your thoughts!

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. 

Bethel's Season Opener and Knik 200 to ring in 2025

Several races took to social media this weekend to announce the first races of 2025. In Bethel the Season Opener has been rescheduled to January 1. The race had to be postponed in mid December due to warmer than normal temperatures making the river ice unstable (and in some areas nonexistant). 

For much of Alaska the above normal temperatures brought rain and very little snow seeing races canceled. For Knik, they were able to make their 100 mile race work - and saw their young repeat champion Emily Robinson defend her title. The Junior mushing phenom is scheduledto run in the Knik 200 - another race she will no doubt be in to defend her title.

The Knik 200 has had to reroute the race to keep teams off the waterways. The race will still be considered a qualifier for Iditarod and the Yukon Quest as it will be 150 miles long. The changes were posted to their facebook page Saturday evening.

Both races are currently taking registrations.

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).

Fast trail sees junior mushers take the lead

Twenty-eight teams took off down the trail Saturday morning on the first leg of the Knik 100. By Saturday afternoon the leaders charged back to the starting line finishing their first fifty miles of the stage race. 

Just over a minute and a half separate the top two teams. Junior mushers Isaac Redington and Emily Robinson will battle it out for the win Sunday, but it's far from their race to lose. The top five teams are close together with about thirty seconds to a minute separating each team. Mushers reported a hard and fast trail for Saturday's start with a packed trail with just a small dusting of snow (making the start a slippery one for handlers).

Isaac Redington will be the first team out at 10am Sunday. The junior musher has a 1min37sec lead over reigning Knik 100 champion Emily Robinson. Robinson, of course, is the junior musher everyone has eyes on as her legend has only grown since she hit the trails several years ago. Last year Robinson played with "the big dogs" and has even bigger racing plans this season. Both junior mushers have a long history with the sport with families that have helped grow their knowledge in the sport. Redington, of course, is a fourth generation musher in his family. Redington's team flew out of the start Saturday morning with the junior musher looking very much in control of the team. Likewise, Robinson looked like a seasoned professional dog musher.

While the juniors were battling for first, "old men" Eddie Burke Jr. and Riley Dyche were close behind coming in third and fourth respectively. Burke is just thirty seconds behind Robinson, with Dyche 1min1sec behind him. Ryan Redington rounds out the top five sitting 1min34 seconds behind Dyche.

Unless weather predictions are completely off, the trail should be much the same Sunday. Teams will leave in the order of their first day placement begining at 10am on Knik Lake. Buckle up, fans, the kick off to the season promises to have a very dramatic finish.

To view a full list of results click here.

Kale Casey will try to go live Sunday on his Facebook page.

Knik 100 takes off tomorrow

Even though the snow fall has been minimal, the temperatures dropped and what little snow that has fallen is enough to make trails acceptable for two days of 50 mile runs for 32 teams. The Knik 100 will take off from Knik Lake on Saturday at 10am for the first leg of the stage race. Teams will meat again on Sunday at 10am to take off from the lake. The winner will be determined by the fastest of the combined times. 

The Knik 100 boasts a stacked roster of well known names in both long distance as well as junior mushers. Iditarod champions, Iditarod Rookies of the Year, etc are among those that will race this weekend. Last year's Knik 100 champion Emily Robinson has returned to defend her title. 

Unlike most of the middistance races, this blog does not have a link list for the teams (due mainly to time constraints). It is unclear if the race will have trackers, however Kale Casey Live hopes to be able to keep everyone informed with camera footage and commentary. You will be able to catch the action over on his Facebook page.

You can read up on all of the race rules here, and information should be posted on the Knik 200 Facebook page.

It was unsure the race would take place due to most of November and December brining abnormally high temps to the region and lots of rain. The race announced that the would make a final decision this past Monday with many of the mushers living close to the race route saying they felt confident they could run a safe race. By Monday evening the race was on and they were all looking forward to hitting the trails this weekend.

There seems to be no lack of excitement to kick off the mushing season.

Mushers hitting the trail tomorrow:

Bib	Musher
2	AddieAnn Randall
3	Emily Krol
4	Katie Wilcox
5	Mazzy Bailey
6	Aidan Kosciolek
7	Baydon Ketts
8	Rohn Buser
9	Alison Lifka
10	Joe Weber
11	Joanna Weber
12	Ryan Redington
13	Isaac Redington
14	Casey Randall
15	Mckena Hanson
16	Addy Pederson
17	Madeline Knolmayer
18	Jessi Downey
19	Matt Riess
20	Sarah Stokey
21	Stanley Robinson
22	Riley Dyche
23	Eddie Burke Jr.
24	Hunter Keefe
25	Sarah Keefer
26	Josh Daily
27	Dean Osmar
28	Anna Hennessy
29	Mary Boniface
30	Isabell List
31	Travis Beals
32	Emily Robinson
33	Kelly Ridley

Season openers may be delayed

The Delta Championship Series - coordinated by the Kuskokwim 300 board - announced on social media this week that in all likely hood the season opener would have to be rescheduled due to unsafe trail conditions. Alaska is having an unseasonably warm December with much of the state seeing rainfall instead of snow, and most bodies of water (including rivers) are still open. 

On the road system the Knik 100 is set to kick off on December 21. the Forecast betweem now and then shows no sign of cooling down, with several days of sleet and freezing rain predicted. Many teams in South Central Alaska are looking for alternate parts of the state to continue training in better trail conditions.

After several years of decent weather early on in the season, fans and mushers all were hoping to see that weather trend continue - but it appears to be a wet and sloppy holiday season in Alaska, with races having to rethink the season.

If things do not drastically improve January races may face a similar fate.

Iditarod 53 roster locked in with thirty-five names

The deadline closed Monday night for Iditarod mushers to sign up for Iditarod 53. Five names were added just under the deadline and announced Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning. The five last minute sign ups brought the total to thirty-five, making this the third smallest field in race history. 

The roster has two returning Iditarod champions, 2023 Iditarod Champion Ryan Redington, and three-time champion Mitch Seavey. Seavey was a last minute addition to the roster shocking many fans on social media when his name was spotted. Mitch last ran in 2022 where he placed 16th. Redington placed 14th in this past Iditarod after having that magic run the year before becoming the first of Joe Redington's family to win "his race".

Eleven of the thirty-five mushers are women. Seventeen mushers are considered rookies (though several are second year rookies determined to make it all the way this time). 

The Iditarod is in an interesting period of race and culture history. As another generation retires out of long distance mushing, a whole new generation of "younger" competitive mushers are filling those roles that at one time were held by only a beloved few. While Iditarod rosters were larger, the pool was small for those truly competitive teams. Now, fifty plus years into the race it feels like we're coming back to those early years of the race where it was anyone's ball game. Experience means a great deal, knowledge too, but the teams are so well matched it has many scratching their heads trying to come up with who are the outright favorites.

There is some excitement to that.

The deadline for applications have passed, but that does not mean names cannot be added - it just comes at a price. Veteran mushers may continue to sign up through the new year but must pay a double entry fee. The rookie musher meeting is later this month. The ceremonial start is in 88 days. In 88 days 35 teams will celebrate one of Alaska's greatest traditions. In 89 days, the race is on.

Mushers listed in order of sign up.

Riley Dyche
Jenny Roddewig
Jason Mackey
Gabe Dunham
Mille Porsild
Matt Randall
Keaton Loebrich
Mike Parker
Dane Baker
Nicolas Petit
Matt Hall
Travis Beals
Sydnie Bahl
Anna Berington
Samantha LaLonde
Jessie Holmes
Michelle Phillips
Ryan Redington
Daniel Klein
Ebbe Pedersen
Brenda Mackey
Lauro Eklund
Charmayne Morrison
Ashley Dove
Justin Olnes
Emily Ford
Jeff Deeter
Hunter Keefe
Connor McMahon
Calvin Daugherty
Bryce Mumford
Mitch Seavey
Bailey Vitello
Matthew Failor
Quince Mountain

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).

Mushing Media Round Up - July 17

It's that time again. Let's do a little bit of a mushing social media round up. Alaska is in full swing of fishing season, so many of the mushers have gone dark as they prepare to stock up for the winter months so the humans can eat, too. However, some made sure to share with fans this week.

If you aren't following Kailyn and Justin Olnes on social media you really should. The owners of ReRun Kennel have a hybrid kennel of sled dogs that they rescue from shelters/rescues plus a few they get from top kennels. They keep fans updated with all the dogs in their kennel on facebook and have started to do dna testing on their rescues to find out just who these pups are.

Bridgett Watkins has written a book. Her father is a Yukon Quest champion. Her step mother is not only a Quest champ (the only woman to do so) but also one of the most beloved mushers of all time by fans (and she's been retired a few years). Watkins is a mom, a nurse, and a second generation dog musher. As she gets to share her story and memories in book form, she took to her kennel page (Kennel on a Hill) to share a few photos of growing up sled dog.

Iditarod Champion/Mushing Legend Jeff King's Husky Homestead gave us the timeline cleanse we all needed this week with a cute puppy nap picture.

Keeping with the theme of puppies, the August Fund has had a very puppy summer as five litters hit the rescue at once. Several kennels took in the puppies and their mamas for their tours. Squid Acres has shared the progress of the pups along the way. Now, it's time to name them.

Sticking with good news, 2024 Iditarod Rookie of the Year Josi Thyr said YES! and announced her engagement!

On a more serious note, there are some updates to the CDC rules going into effect on August 1 regarding taking dogs across the US-Canada border. 

Brenda Mackey and Will Rhodes have had an excellent time with puppies and dogs and creeks and woods this summer. Beating the heat, and Will recovering from hip surgery, there's been a lot of time for exploration in the Interior.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mackey’s Alaskan Distance Dogs (@mackeys.alaskan.distance.dogs)

Jesika Reimer of The Reimer Pack is sharing her adventures of a paddle trip with some of the sled dogs in tow.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jesika Reimer (@jesreimer)

And a quick jump over the twitter has Blair Braverman freaking out about wasps as her sled dogs look on and howl in laughter (so she says). Here's hoping no one gets stung.

help there’s a wasp nest above the front door and I want Q to take care of it in his bee suit so until then I’m hiding under a bathrobe every time I go out and the dogs think it’s hilarious pic.twitter.com/tvTW95y1JB

— Blair Braverman (@BlairBraverman) July 17, 2024

And finally, take a look at Megan Moberly's crew enjoying their new umbrellas giving shade to keep cool under that hot summer sun.

A good friend's work was able to part with two umbrellas which I use for shade in the dog yard - Joe and Astral say thank you auntie Alison! pic.twitter.com/CxVYQi3lQB

— Megan Moberly (@YukikazeSibes) July 17, 2024

And with that, this concludes a weekly round up. This is by no means the full list of mushers posting to their socials this week, just a smattering.

Mushing Social Media Round Up returns!

 It's been a while since this blog has done a "round of" of mushing news/social media posts, but it's back by popular demand (well, semi-popular, some of y'all have asked!) This will by no means be an exhaustive search of each and every kennel out there, but just a taste of what's being shared on a week to week basis (or about that). If you find something interesting, or if you're a musher/race director who wants to spread some news - contact me! We'll all work together to keep up with each other during the busy summer.

So let's take a look at what the world of Mushing Socials has been up to lately.

First, and possibly most importantly, you have have heard the new rules for traveling with animals across borders thanks to the CDC. This has been a very hot button topic within the mushing community as it would make things more difficult for teams traveling through Canada to get to the Lower 48 or Alaska. Races are now in jeopardy for some teams, and the young dogs and new puppies doing tours on the Alaskan Panhandle are looking at being stranded because they won't be able to travel easily. Many mushers in Canada AND the US have spoken out. 

 

Jr. Iditarod sign ups are in full swing and they had two more mushers sign up over the American holiday weekend.

Speaking of Iditarod... THE Iditarod made a few announcements this week. The big one being today (Tuesday, July 9). As you might know, the fame Burled Arch that stands over the finish line in Nome broke apart this spring (thankfully AFTER the race had come and gone). Soon after it was made known that Iditarod finisher and skilled craftsman Ramey Smyth would have the honor of creating a new arch (every 25 years or so a new one seems to need to be made). Now the Iditarod has announced how fans and supporters can join in and raise funds for the arch.

Girdwood's Forest Fair took place this past weekend and "history was made" as the parade to kick off the event was led by a team of sled dogs driven by fan favorite Hunter Keefe. Hunter is part of the team of mushers who run the Girdwood Sled Dog Tours and is having a fantastic summer. (Also amusing is dogs are not permitted to enter the "fair" so to have them lead the parade gave many a good laugh.)

Jr. Musher Thale Randall did something he hadn't done before, he raced the Jr. Mount Marathon race in Seward on the 4th of July. He placed extremely well as a rookie. Thale's dad is running the Iditarod as a rookie in 2025 and his sister has made a name for herself on the junior circuit. The family resides with their sled dogs in the Interior and own Rock on Racing Sled Dogs kennel.

Matt Failor announced that his tour company isn't just dogs anymore, they are now offering ATV tours as well! You can even combine and create a package of both dog and machine. Failor and crew run an excellent establishment that gets high praise from tourists and locals alike.

Dallas Seavey gave an update on the seriously injured dogs from his team (snowmachine incident in November, and homicidal moose on the Iditarod). You may want some kleenex.

As stated, this is by no means all that was posted this week on social media, it's just a sampling. Check back next week for the next round up!

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).