2025 Su Dog 300 musher roster and race preview

We have a brand new race in Alaska this year. Filling a spot that is very much needed, another three hundred mile race in the MatSu area. You could even think that this race is filling the gap left open when the Willow 300 imploded two years ago. Many teams missed the Willow, and it made qualifying for the bigger races that much harder. 

The Su Dog is not just filling a need, it's also making strides to be a more inclusive and positive race. The race's goal is to make it fun and more inviting for newer mushers who are just starting in the mid-distance racing scene as well as bringing in veteran teams. The idea is that this will build a community, where mushers can mentor and encourage one another. 

Another really interesting twist is - there is no prize money. There are prize packages - the site lists items like chainsaws, dog food, etc - but the hope is without prize money this will further encourage the teams to be friendly and helpful and "less competitive" minded. It's a similar attitude and vibe as the T-Dog race that had it's first race last season.

Even with the Su Dog originally scheduled to happen the same weekend as the extremely popular Kuskokwim 300 (which was postponed to February 7), the Su Dog's roster filled up almost immediately. With the race being on the road system and taking place in "sled dog central" it is very accessible by smaller kennels or kennel handlers. The trail has had to be rerouted from the original plan due to weather, and the roster has switched quite a bit with lack of training being cited by many of those that dropped out - however their slots were quickly snatched up but other mushers and they still have a waiting list!

With cooler temps showing up the week before the start, all things are now for sure a go.

So let's take a look at who is signed up, as always once the starting order is finalized the list will be edited to include bib numbers and any other roster changes.

Musher Roster

Bib	Musher	Kennel	Link	Link	Link
1	Mike Dolinar	Susitna Sled Dog Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
2	Chloe Beatty	Fourleaf Dog Sledding		Facebook	Instagram
3	Casey Randall	Rock On Racing	Website	Facebook	Instagram
4	Josiah Liebe	Dallas Seavey Racing	Website	Facebook	Instagram
5	Dane Baker	Alaskan Husky Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
6	Matthew Failor	17th Dog/Alaskan Husky Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
7	Mike Parker	Northern Whites Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
8	Travis Vanderhoof	Dream Team Kennels		Facebook	Instagram
9	Rohn Buser	Susitna Sled Dog Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
10	Skylar Whitcomb	Shameless Huskies		Facebook	Instagram
11	Matt Paveglio	Dream Team Kennel/Barking Mad Dog Jockeys	Website	Facebook	Instagram
12	Hunter Keefe	Redington Mush Alaska	Website	Facebook	Instagram
13	Jeremiah Ovard	Snowhook Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
14	Robert Redington	Dogsled AK		Facebook	Instagram
15	Juliah DeLoach	Oil Well Kennel		Facebook
16	Courtney Hagan	Taku Racing Kennel		Facebook	Instagram
17	Sam Brewer	Tailwind Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
18	Mary Boniface	Tailwind Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
19	Adam Lindenmuth	Sojourn Kennels		Facebook	Instagram
20	Kristy Berington	Seeing Double Racing	Website	Facebook	Instagram
21	Sadie Lindquist	Seavey's Ididaride	Website	Facebook	Instagram
22	Jessi Downey	Aimaagvik Kennel		Facebook	Instagram
23	Laura Kelly	Daybreak Kennel		Facebook	Instagram

*Roster as of January 21, 2025 at 9:30pm

In the spirit of the race, we won't be looking at which teams to watch "for the win", because we really should focus on following and cheering on each team as they accomplish the inaugural Su Dog 300 race.

The Su Dog 300 has many of the traditional rules of sled dog races, but they've partnered with Light Up the Lead Dogs to make sure all teams are visible out on the trails. They have several rules about how sleds and dogs will wear reflective tape and lights so as to be seen. The race states that the trails are shared by many snow machines and for the safety of all involved the rules are needed.

Rules:
10. Lighted collars on lead dogs during all twilight and dark hours except within checkpoints.
11. A minimum of 12 inches of reflective tape/material on the back of the musher’s outerwear.
12. A minimum of 12 inches of reflective tape/material on each of the following areas of the sled bag: both sides, front, and back.
13. Properly fitted, non-chafing dog harnesses worn by each dog on the gangline, with a minimum of 3 inches of reflective tape/material on each side of harness.

Light up the Lead Dogs is a program that was created last year after a series of incidents involving sled dog teams and snow machines saw dogs be injured and killed. While those teams did all they could at the time to be seen, it was deemed that more should be done. If the drivers of these incidents were going to say they couldn't see them/weren't responsible, it was time to change things up. Thus LULD was born from one woman's heart to do more. 

To make this possible, Light Up the Lead Dogs has partnered with the Alaska Snowmachine Alliance to fund as many collars as possible to give them out to as many sled dog teams as possible (racing, recreational). It is an important and worthy goal.

So, while those out on the trails will be able to see and hopefully stop and watch the teams - how can those of us who are "armchair mushers" follow the race?

How to Watch

Official Website
The best place to learn about all things SuDog is the official website. It is well produced, with fun colors, and a lot of information. You will find race rules, musher bios, and other wonderful tidbits.

Social Media
The race is quite active on their Facebook page, using the platform to keep fans and mushers alike informed on all the race news leading up to the start. Any changes, or extra info can be found on their page. They also have an Instagram page that should get a little more active once photos of the weekend are posted.

GPS Tracking
The race's website does say that there will be trackers and to check back on race day to follow along. Chances are they are using trackleaders.com and so once that link goes live it will be shared on this post.

Live Feeds

Kale Casey confirmed that he will be at the SuDog to film the start live and follow the race as much as possible. To follow Kale's feeds you'll need to be able to watch via Facebook where he goes live. He also posts videos/replays on his youtube channel, but those can pop up many hours later. It wouldn't be surprising to also see the race go live on their own social media platforms (which are linked above).

Schedule of Events

January 25, 2025
[Vet checks by appointment]
11am - Musher Meeting
[Vet checks by appointment]

2pm - RACE START

January 27, 2025
SOUP DOG CONTEST - click here for info

[Finishes throughout the day]

January 28, 2025
6pm - Closing ceremony/awards dinner

Are you excited for this new race? Thoughts on the Su Dog 300? Share in the comments 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 Eagle Cap Extreme musher roster and race preview

Oregon's one and only Iditarod Qualifing race is ready to kick off January 22. There are teams from several states getting ready to run in both the 200mile and 100mile classes (there's also a 31mile class). 

The 200 mile class are the ones potentially qualifying for larger races like the Iditarod. Several of the musher bios on the website note plans for running Iditarod in the future and one (Morrison) will be running their rookie Iditarod in March.

There are seven teams signed up to run the full 200 mile race, and ten signed up for the 100 mile. Both rosters are a healthy mix of veteran and rookie mushers. It's worth a few minutes to check out each team and send some encouragement.

Unlike Alaska, the Pacific Northwest has gotten its fair share of snow (or maybe it's unfair since most of Alaska has little to NONE.) The race had to cancel last year due to lack of snow, but it doesn't look to have that problem this year. This is no doubt for the mushers, dogs, and local tourism alike.

So, let's take a look at who plan to head off down the trail this week. As always, the roster will be updated with bib number after the race publishes the info. 

200 Mile Roster

Bib	Musher	Kennel	Link	Link	Link
12	Wade Donaldson	Bear Ridge Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
13	Charmayne Morrison	Morrison Racing Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
14	Misheala Robertson	Morrison Racing Kennel	Website	Facebook	Instagram
15	Kevin Mathis	Go the Distance	Race Bio	Facebook
16	Clayton Perry	TSA Kennels	Race Bio	Facebook
17	Trace Drake	TSA Kennels	Race Bio	Facebook

*Roster as of January 22, 2025 at 9:00pm AKST

100 Mile Roster

Bio	Musher	Kennel	Link	Link	Link
20	Connie Starr	Weeno-Pullyu	Race Bio	Facebook
21	Jesika Reimer	The Reimer Pack	Website	Facebook	Instagram
22	Nicole Lombardi	?	?	?	?
23	Kelly Barton	Paradox Siberians	Race Bio	Facebook
24	Dallin Donaldson	Bear Ridge Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
25	Bino Fowler	Beatfeet Sleddogs	Race Bio	Facebook
26	Natalie Donaldson-Wilson	Bear Ridge Adventures	Website	Facebook	Instagram
27	Madeline Rubida	?		Facebook	Instagram
28	Ryan Clegg	Bear Ridge Adventures	Race Bio	Facebook

*Roster as of January 22, 2025 at 9:00pm AKST

How to Watch

The Eagle Cap has a wonderful website full of tons of information for how to watch in person at the different checkpoints. It is well organized and easy to read, you definitely want to take time to explore their site. Be sure to read the musher bios, some fun little tidbits hidden there.

They are active on Facebook, and will most likely share even more as the race begins.

Trackers should be live for this event and as the race date gets closer that link will become available. (The blog will be updated once the link is live.)

Schedule of Events
(Note: times are Pacific Timezone)

Wednesday, January 22
9am-4pm Vet Checks
6pm Potluck & Bib Draw

Thursday, January 23
12pm Race Start

Saturday, January 25
5:30pm Awards Reception

Kuskokwim 300 announces postponement

Late Wednesday night the Board of Directors released a statement on their website stating that through a unanimous decision the 2025 Kusko would be postponed by two weeks. Citing a warm and wet winter creating a lack of snow pack for a safe trail and concerns that temperatures were projected to continue to rise throughout the week, officials had no choice.

This announcement did not surprise most fans and locals as most of Alaska has had a serious lack of winter. Fans had an inkling this announcement was coming after another one of the Delta Championship Series, the Holiday Opener, was once again postponed due to rising temps just days before. 

Ironically, the Holiday Opener was able to take place on Thursday just hours after the news broke about the Kusko.

This is the first major race in Alaska to have to postpone. Smaller races have had to postpone or cancel, but races like the Knik 200 and Copper Basin 300 were able to make it work even with lack of snow pack, threats of rain, and overflow. But those races had an abundance of trails to choose from that did not rely on mostly travel by river. The Kuskokwim 300 runs mostly on, well, the Kuskokwim River while visiting several of the KuskoDelta villages. 

"Organizers felt that in light of the bleak forecast, a decision should be made to postpone before teams begin making the costly trip to Bethel early next week," the press release stated. "The Race Committee has been in touch with registered mushers in the days leading up to the decision to postpone and at this time, no racers have indicated an intent to withdraw as a result of the change."

Currently there are twentyfive teams signed up for this year's Kusko. Most notibly affected by this change of date will be junior musher Emily Robinson. Robinson, most fans know, has become something of a legend. The teen wins just about every race she enters and the Kusko is set to be her first three hundred mile race. Not every junior musher is allowed to run this race, their entry is up to race officials and committee to allow. Sure, all teams are under that scrutiny, but junior mushers must show that they are capable of handling a 300 mile race by themselves and care for their team by themselves. Robinson has shown this not just on the junior circut, but by also running (and winning) "adult" races like the Knik 200 the past two seasons. 

The problem for Robinson is that this date change puts the Kusko start on the same day as the Willow Jr 100, a race that Robinson is signed up for. The question will be whether the seventeen year old chooses to forgo a race in her division and race in the more "pro circut-esque" Kuskokiwm 300 which will be her hardest race to date (on paper).

This is not the first time the race has had to move its race dates "last minute". There have been several times in race history that changes had to be made, most notibly in 2021 during the Covid-19 Pandemic when they postponed the race so they could figure out a way to run the race safely while also letting mushers from outside the region attend (they limited the number of teams traveling into Bethel to ten). In the 46 years of Kusko history there has never been an all out cancellation of the race.

To view the full press release you can visit the race's website.

Thoughts on last night's news? Do you believe Emily Robinson will (or should) choose to run the Kusko? 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.

Iditarod to decide February 3 which trail to use

In an announcement today that surprises probably no one, the Iditarod Trail Committee announced that they are currently monitoring trail and weather conditions and will come to a decision by February 3, 2025 what to do.

The state of Alaska has had an incredibly unusual winter. Temperatures well above freezing for most if not all of the state. Rain instead of snow has been the norm since December for South Central Alaska. Anchorage, Alaska over the weekend dealt with Hurricane force winds and rain wiping away the last bit of winter everywhere.

This is not the norm, and with it has come a lot of uncertainty for the Last Great Race.

Currently the race is scheduled to hold its Ceremonial Start on March 2 in Anchorage, Alaska with the ReStart to be held in Willow the following day. Snow is often trucked in from outside of Anchorage to put down a trail through the streets and paths of Anchorage for the eleven mile jaunt. In 2016, the race could not make it the full eleven miles due to lack of snow, but they managed to pull off a three mile run ending at the little league ball fields. It wasn't ideal, but it worked. At this time, there's no reason to assume they can't find a similar alternative this year should the snow continue to allude the 49th state.

The big unknown is what trail will the actual race take off from. Currently Willow is reporting above freezing temps and rain mixed with snow - but they do have snow, and they have trails. They're one of the few places that can boast some sort of winter. However, the weather over the weekend with the wind and rain did a lot of damage to many of the trails that Iditarod uses to leave from Willow Lake on their way to Yentna. 

Compounding the problem are the reports that the Susitna River has not frozen over. The Su is one of the many river highways Alaskans use in the winter to get from point A to point B. The Iditarod uses this "super highway" in the early days of the race. In fact, without a frozen Susitna, there is not a good way to get to Nome from Willow. 

Fairbanks has seen quite a bit of warm temps - hitting the 50s this weekend - but they still have snow, and ways to get to the West Coast that does not require swimming. Hopefully. If they choose to do the Fairbanks start it will be the fourth time in race history (the three years prior being 2003, 2015, and 2017 - all of which had normal Ceremonial Starts). A restart in Fairbanks would have the race take off on Monday instead of Sunday, and would likely have about a day earlier finish.

On the opposite end of the trail, Nome is lacking snow and looking more like South Central Alaska with little to no snow in town or out. This is not the only town on the West Coast of Alaska to have winter weather problems. The Kuskokwim Delta has had its issues with above freezing temps, winds, and rain. Several of the Delta Championship Series races have had to be postponed, and there's talk that the Kusko 300 is in jeopardy of starting on time. 

Fans should not worry about a full cancelation of Iditarod 53. As long as there is snow (or even possibly a hint of it) they will do their best to find a way. The Iditarod has never been cancelled in the history of the race, and while there is always the posibility of a first time, the Iditarod took to social media Monday night to assure fans that they are in no way planning to cancel.

The Iditarod Trail Committee will make the decision by 5pm on February 3, 2025. 

What do you think? Fairbanks for the start? Will they get to do the full Ceremonial Start? 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.

Jessie Holmes gets his win

Jessie Holmes at the Copper Basin 300 finish.
Still from CB300 Live Feed.

After playing the bridesmaid several times over, Jessie Holmes is the 2025 Copper Basin Champion. The fan favorite took charge of the race on day one and didn't look back. 

Holmes ran fast straight out of the gate, traveling at first with his B team run by Kelsey Winters. By the second checkpoint their race schedules changed with Winters running a slightly more conservative run rest schedule (but just barely). Holmes then traveled (or battled) for trail with Cody Strathe of Squid Acres. Strathe managed to get within a few minutes of Holmes on the second day, but Holmes kicked it into high gear as they ran into their planned time differential mandatory rest. Between the time differential and his lead, Holmes had it in the bag.

Yes, there were still miles to go in the race and we've learned over the years to not count out the weather, wildlife, and other circumstances throwing a wrench in even the most sure of leads, but in this case - Holmes had the winning ticket.

In a race that was warmer than it has been in years, as the rest of the state dealt with hurricane like winds and rain, Team Can't Stop managed to pull off what their musher has been trying to do for the last seven years. Yes, Holmes won the Kobuk 440 which is a HUGE feat in 2017, but for most of his career he consistently lands in the top five - and many times the top three. This could be the turning point to become the Holmes era (especially since he tasted that Iditarod win last year).

Rounding out the top five, Strathe was able to keep everyone behind him (except Holmes, of course) to take second. Third was a surprise as Dave Turner and his Racing Chaos team picked off teams in the final run. Fourth was Kelsey Winters who also ate up a lot of time and trail on those ahead of her Monday. Fifth went to Jonah Bacon who kept with the front runners for much of the race.

There are currently seven teams into the finish with many more to come through the night and into Tuesday. Your current Red Lantern is Sydnie Bahl. 

Keep watching the race, folks, it's far from over. The trackers will ping until the final team is off the trail. CB300's Facebook Page and Kale Casey are both going live as teams come into the finish. 

Cheer on those teams and let them hear you!

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.

Top ten are into Lake Louise

The Copper Basin start was a warm and breezy affair for 31 mushers Saturday morning. The teams took off from Glennallen, Alaska and headed down the trail towards Tolsona Lodge. Teams of happy and barking dogs charged out of the starting line in two minute intervals cheered on by an eager crowd. 

Several mushers left the start wearing nothing more than a hoodie and carhart pants. No one looked terribly bundled up, and all shared hopes that with the wind the dogs would stay cool. At temperatures somewhere around 38F before windchill, it was not the norm for the toughest 300 miles in Alaska. 

Talk of weather was most likely the top subject Saturday morning. Reports are calling for snow over night into Sunday as well as wind, with snow turning to rain in the heat of the day. The trail is reportedly slow due to the snow the area got over the last few days, and so teams have had to strategize how best to deal with warmer than usual temps as well as ever changing trail conditions.

If anything, those that plan to run the Iditarod in March will have a great training run out of this race.

Currently twelve teams (ten officially) sit in Lake Louise with the first eight coming in just minutes apart from each other. At seventy-five miles into this year's race, it's still too soon to tell who will come out the winner, but there are few surprises as to who are in front at this point. 

Perhaps the lone surprise is that Aidan Kosciolek and Kelsey Winters are the first two in. Aidan is running a team out of Ryan Redington's kennel and Kelsey is running out of Jessie's team. Kelsey had a 16 minute lead on Jessie coming into Lake Louise, but until time differentials are made up during the mandatory rest in one of the checkpoints no run is really equal to the next or an easy comparison. Kelsey started 10 minutes ahead of Jessie back in Glennallen.

The official top ten are as follows (in order of arrival):

Aidan Kosciolek
Kelsey Winters
Jessie Holmes
Lauro Eklund
Jonah Bacon
Travis Vanderhoof
Cody Strathe
Dave Turner
Joey Sabin Dylan Robbins

Each team will have their own strategy of when to take their time differential rest (six hours plus differential). From Lake Louise it's fiftyfive miles to the very remote (and sketchy service area) checkpoint of Sourdough. Look for teams to start heading out around 12:30am or 1am (at least, that's the semi-educated guess).

Did you find the top ten at all surprising? Who are you hoping will keep their lead? Comment below with your day one 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.

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.