50 years of Iditarod Champion Highlight - Emmitt Peters

With 2023 marking 50 years of the Last Great Race, and the 51st running, it's high time we look back on the mushers who had that magic ride into Nome in first. For the next few weeks as we count down to March 4, we'll highlight the 24 Champions of Iditarod. That's right, 50 races with 24 names on the Champion list. Just as more folks have climbed Everest than have run Iditarod, the Champions list is surprisingly short.  

The Yukon Fox

Photo from KTUU Sports archives.

The final rookie to win the Iditarod, Emmitt Peters was not a rookie to the sport. An accomplished sprint musher in his own right, he was encouraged to enter the Iditarod in 1975 after he ran the Fur Rondy Sprint Races where a sponsor would note that he had a "hell of a team" but that he was "running the wrong race." 

Peters had a dream of running the Iditarod and had studied the mushers from the last two races and everything about their runs, but he hadn't planned on entering in 75. With someone willing to foot the bill just days before the start, he headed to Ruby to train and prepare for a last minute entry (something that would not happen today). As Emmitt trained his team his mother - worried her son would freeze to death - and sisters worked tirelessly to make sure he stayed warm on the trail. The village of Ruby chipped in and sewed booties for the dogs. They say it takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a Village to outfit an Iditarod musher.

In 1974, Peters loaned his lead dog Nugget to Carl Huntington and they won the Iditarod. In 1975, Peters would run with Nugget in lead and she would be one of the key factors to his win. Nugget gained a reputation in her years as having the best memory of a dog - and musher. While Emmitt was brand new to the trail, Nugget knew where she was going and how to get there. She was a tough dog - one who refused to wear booties - and by all reports incredibly smart. In fact, Nugget would be a key component to the win.

Peters had decided to take his mandatory 24 in Ruby. Back in those days there were no rules about where one could stay on the trail/in checkpoints. Emmitt decided to 24 in his home village so that he could sleep in the comforts of home. Problem was his mother - like any mother would - did not understand the 24 hour rule and so whenever a team would come into the checkpoint or leave, she would come and wake a resting Peters up to tell him he had to leave. After his layover the musher left dog tired with a well rested and re-energized team.

As the story is told in the book Iditarod: The First Ten Years, Emmitt began to fall asleep on the runners so he climbed into his sled bag and slept as his trusty lead dog Nugget lead the team down the trail. Emmitt would later find out that he passed two teams while sleeping in his sled! 

Peters would be credited with starting the more modern race's run-rest strategy. Instead of going until everyone was tired to rest, he stuck with a schedule: run four hours, rest four hours. Sure, he was getting passed by his competitors as he rested, but his dogs were never too tired to give more when he asked. As decades pass the run rest schedule changes - it's now about 6 to 6, or mushers make the rule of "no more than 50-100 miles" depending on the portion of the trail. But it is key to never let the team get over tired. AND that means four hours of rest for the dogs, the musher must spend that time caring for the dog. Emmitt would be quoted as saying "you have to take care of the dogs better than you. They dogs are the main machine, doin' all the work. You gotta take care of them first." 

Peters would run the race a handful of times after his win, but he would only come so close as second. He is also the last rookie to win the race. As he came in towards Nome, a radio DJ believed him to be another musher. Emmitt corrected him saying something like "no, that guy's behind me," and so the DJ began calling Peters the Yukon River Fox - which has since been shortened to "The Yukon Fox".

Emmitt is still considered one of the greatest of Iditarod history for how he managed to not only beat the odds, but he shaved a ton of time off the record finish time. He dropped nearly six days off the champion finishing time. All because of his dog care strategy, and a dog named Nugget.

Emmitt Peters passed away April 2, 2020 at his home in Ruby. 

If you're an Iditarod Insider, you can view a clip of Emmitt Peters talking about Nugget from an interview in 2016(14?). You can also read the Anchorage Daily News' obituary for Peters here.

What are you thoughts on this new series for the blog? Comment below!

Like what you see and want it to continue, you can "buy me a pizza" as a way to support the costs of running the blog.

2023 Eagle Cap Extreme roster and race preview

Happy race day, folks. Yup, this is getting out late because the Eagle Cap Extreme out of Oregon starts on a Thursday and not a Friday or Saturday and I just realized that last night! Whoops! Vet checks are happening today (Wednesday) and then the teams take off on Noon Thursday.

Like most of the races in the states, there are several classes including a 200 mile race that can be used as an Iditarod and Yukon Quest Qualifier. In fact it is Oregon's only qualifier, and they get to boast having the only one in the entire Pacific Northwest!

This year there are six teams signed up and ready to run the 200 mile race and most are using it as a qualifier for bigger races. Because this roster is so small, I've decided to combine the roster with the race preview. I'll also just say WATCH EVERYONE! This race is not on the fantasy mushing list, so there's no need for me to try to guess who will take home the prize. And, can I be completely honest - I don't really know this race at all. Sure, it's been around a long while, but it almost always lands when another race in Alaska is taking place. Not this year! This is the only qualifier running, so here we go!

200-Mile Roster

10 Jed Stephensen (Nordic Wayfinding) - Website / Facebook / Instagram 
11 Charmayne Morrison (Morrison Racing Kennel) - Facebook / Instagram
12 Bryce Mumford (Cub River Kennel) - Instagram
13 Rex Mumford (Valley Kennel) - Facebook
14 Josi Thyr (There & Back Again Sleddogs) - Website / Facebook
15 Clayton Perry (TSA Kennel) - Facebook 

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. You'll definitely want 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 will be used on this race as well! I know how much fans love those little GPS minions who sometimes hitch a ride with the aliens, and it is confirmed that we will have SPOT trackers on the race again this year. Be sure to check back as once the link goes live I'll edit this post to include it.

Schedule of Events
(Note: times are Pacific Timezone)

Wednesday, January 18
9am-4pm Vet Checks
6pm Musher Meet & Greet
6:30pm Potluck & Bib Draw

Thursday, January 19
12pm Race Start

Saturday, January 21
Finishes throughout the day
5:30pm Awards Reception

Nicolas Petit wins Copper Basin 300

Photo from the CB300 Facebook page.

In a classic Nicolas Petit victory, the Team Petit Racing dogs came charging down the trail to finish the race in first at just a little past Noon on Monday. Petit has reclaimed his title after losing it to Brent Sass. The two teams have battled back and forth for several years now on the Copper Basin 300.

Petit led for most of the race, until Meiers Lake where Brent Sass was first into the next couple of checkpoints, but Petit's rest strategy paid off and the 12 minute lead he had out of Chistochina, those were 12 minutes Sass and his Wild and Free team just couldn't make up.

The race for third appears to be the hotter contest. Jessie Holmes ate up a lot of trail overnight to leap frog over both Hedda Mosleth and Matt Hall. After finishing up their mandatory rests in the final checkpoint, Hall and Holmes had five minutes between them and judging by the trackers, that has not been enough for Hall to hold off Team Can't Stop.

Teams will continue to come into Glen Allen throughout the day. The awards banquet will be held Tuesday evening. 

Petit and Sass race to the finish

The front runners for the Copper Basin 300 are in the home stretch. With just about 8 miles to go, Nicolas Petit looks to clinch the title once again as champion of the CB300. Brent Sass is a solid two miles behind the Big Lake musher, and is quickly running out of time to catch up much less pass. 

Petit took a moment from the runners this morning as he left the last checkpoint in Chistochina to send out a quick message reading simply, "Turned on the afterburners." For a musher who just last weekend conceded his time may have come to an end of being champion of mid-distance races, it seems his prediction was premature.

Or was it a prediction? Nic is known to enjoy playing mental games with his competitors (and tease his fans) and it appears that is exactly what he was trying to do after his third place finish in the Knik 200.

Seventeen miles behind Nic are Jessie Holmes and Matt Hall. Hall is down to eight dogs, Jessie has nine but also has the speed. Their trackers are not consistently pinging so it's difficult to tell who is actually ahead of the other at this point. 

Look for the finishers to begin arriving close to Noon Alaska time.

Sass, Petit, and Hall lead Copper Basin, several teams scratch

It should be no surprise that the top three are out of the Meier's Lake checkpoint within a couple of miles of each other. Brent Sass was first to leave at just before 7pm, Nicolas Petit followed twenty eight minutes later. Even though Matt Hall was second into the checkpoint, he was third out nearly an hour later. 

While there is an hour difference between second and third, Hall has the most rest banked out of the top three. He is running as fast as the top two and only needs two more hours of mandatory rest. Petit needs two and half hours, and Sass three.

The chase pack is starting to leave the checkpoint now, with Hedda Mosleth leading that charge. Hedda is running a team from Dallas' Seavey's kennel, and it does not appear that she is running conservatively. She's keeping up "with the big boys" and may play a spoiler. 

Five teams have scratched on the run between Lake Louise and Meier's Lake. Trail reports from those that made the difficult decision to scratch said that the deep snow and "moose tracks" created conditions that gave many teams minor injuries - causing mushers to either run the second half of the race with a small team, or call it a day. All teams report no major injuries, but they want to keep it that way.

Moose tracks in deep snow can cause a problem for dogs as the holes the moose make in the trail are much deeper than the dogs can step in causing falls and pulled muscles. This type of post holing is not just physically dangerous it's also mentally demanding of the dogs and at the end of the day if they dogs aren't loving it - you're in it for the wrong reasons.

The five teams who've scratched so far are:
Jeff Deeter
Cody Strathe
Vickie Justice
Riley Dyche
Richie Beattie

Not every team that's scratched has "checked in" with followers to give their exact reasons, but the top teams that pulled out earlier have.

With just over 100 miles left to go for the frontrunners, do not expect a winner until late morning (at the earliest) finish on Monday. As stated, they still have three to four hours of rest they have to take on top of keeping up top speeds to make a morning finish even possible - it's more likely afternoon or evening on Monday for teams to show up back in Glen Allen. We'll have a better picture come Monday morning.

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).

2023 Copper Basin 300 musher roster

The Copper Basin, the toughest 300 miles in Alaska - or for sure the coldest. It's also one of the most popular of races in Alaska. This year's roster is a lot of well known names as well as hopeful qualifiers for future Iditarods and Quests. The Knik 200 was chilly enough at -20F for most of the race, but we've seen CB300s that have gotten as cold as -60F (and a lot of teams scratched because of it). This race is not for the faint of heart, and kudos to all who not only run it but volunteer to work it.

As with all of my musher rosters, the list will not be finalized until the night before race day, but for now the twenty nine names are in alphabetical order with each musher's kennel and links. Bib draw is Friday evening, and as usual the roster will be updated to reflect any changes to the roster as well as bib order. Bib draw happened Friday night where the roster was finalized, the honorary musher revealed, and bib numbers listed. Hopefully no one has a frozen truck in the morning and we see everyone at the start line at 10am Saturday!

01 - Honorary Musher, Lance Mackey
02 - Lara Kittelson (Seavey's Ididaride*) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
03 - Anna Hennessy (Shameless Huskies) - Facebook / Instagram
04 - Matt Hall (Smokin' Aces) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
05 - Nicolas Petit (Team Petit) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
06 - Riley Dyche (Dark Horse Sled Dogs) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
07 - Lauro Eklund (Skookum Expeditions) - Website / Facebook / Facebook 2 / Instagram / Instagram 2
08 - Calvin Daugherty (Seavey's Ididaride) - Website / Facebook
09 - Jeremy Traska (Howling Ridge) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
10 - Justin Olnes (ReRun Kennel) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
11 - Gregg Vitello (Northern Exposure Dog Sledding) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
12 - Misha Wiljes (WW Kennel) - Website / Facebook
13 - Bailey Vitello (Team Bailey) - Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram
14 - Jessie Holmes (Team Can't Stop) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
15 - Vickie Justice (Awl Alaskan Kennel) - Facebook / Instagram
16 - Brent Sass (Wild and Free Mushing) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
17 - Cody Strathe (Squid Acres) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
18 - Hedda Mosleth (Dallas Seavey Racing) - Facebook / Instagram
19 - Paige Drobny (Squid Acres) - Website / Facebook / Instagram
20 - Tucker Costain (Ryno Sled Dog Kennel) - Website / Facebook
21 - Joshua Armstrong (?) - Facebook / Instagram
22 - Louve Tweddell (Echoes Kennel) - Website / Facebook
23 - Ronald Stiffner (Fast and the Furry) - Facebook
24 - Jeffery Deeter (Black Spruce Kennel) - Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram
25 - Richie Beattie (WildThingz) - Website / Facebook / Instagram

*Jonathan Hayes had to withdraw due to musher injury, his place was swapped by another member of Team Seavey, Lara Kittelson (which is why her name is not in order alphabetically.)
**Ashely Dove is off the roster due to her team catching a bug on the Knik 200 which then got passed around to the entire kennel. The dogs are all doing fine and it's a minor illness but better to let it run its course than run with sick dogs - DOGS FIRST ALWAYS.
***Amanda Otto hit a caribou near Cantwell on her way to the race and had to withdraw. All humans and canines are fine, truck and caribou not so much. Amanda says she is bummed, but excited to cheer on everyone running this weekend and will focus on the Quest.

Comment below with any thoughts about the roster, or any corrections. 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).

"Not a wildcard anymore!" Eddie Burke wins Knik 200

At about 11:15am Alaska time, Eddie Burke Jr. was first to the finish line on Knik Lake to win the Knik 200. Considered a newcomer by many, Burke sticking with the lead teams and then taking the lead surprised mushing fans - but not his fans nor his kennel. 

As he stopped the team and jumped off to celebrate with his team he yelled out to Kale Casey filming live at the finish that he was no longer a wildcard. The musher gave pets to all of the dogs and a big bear hug from his daughter before signing off the trail as the 2023 Champion.

Eddie is running a team out of Aaron Burmeister's Wildstyle Racing Kennel. Burke has been training under Burmeister's mentorship for about three years now and is looking to complete his first Iditarod in March. Brent Sass would finish several minutes behind him with a happy strong team.

As Brent spoke with Eddie after taking care of their teams. "I thought you were Nic, that's how much I know! I really thought you were Nic!"

So it isn't just trackers that are confused out there. 

Burke and Sass battling for first

Eddie Burke at the Iditarod Picnic.
June 25, 2022. Wasilla, Alaska

Nic Petit left out of the mandatory six hour layover in first early this morning, but by the time the front teams reached the Eagle Quest 2 Checkpoint Petit had given trail to Iditarod Champion Brent Sass. Burke, Petit, and Sass were the chase pack all of Saturday, so it's no surprise that coming off of time differentials they were able to leave ahead of front runners Hugh Neff and Michelle Phillips. 

Michelle Phillips and Hugh Neff left the chute Saturday morning burning on all cylinders, there wasn't a lot of brake riding on the lake and they tore up the trail on a mission. In a two hundred mile race that isn't a bad strategy, speed early doesn't always equal a bad thing (it's three hundred and above that being speedy doesn't always work). But, Neff was the second one out of the start, and Michelle was fourth, they had a longer time differential in the mandatory layover than some of the other teams (Burke is Bib 5, but held with the front runners). That gave Sass and Petit in the chase pack a small advantage as they didn't have quite the same layover.

Burke may come as a surprise to some, he's newer to the mushing game (as a musher) and is signed up as a rookie for Iditarod 51. Burke, though, has the privilege of not only learning from Aaron Burmeister, but he's running Burmeister's dog team. This is the same team that Burmeister's kennel partner Tony Browning will run in the Kusko 300 later this year, and Eddie will drive the team to Nome in the Iditarod. It's a brilliant combination that helps Eddie be right in the mix with the big guns.

Judging by the trackers at around 8:15am Sunday morning, Burke appears to be in the lead just about half a mile ahead of the reigning Iditarod champion. The trackers have been fickle for all of this race, most likely due to the cold teams have experienced all weekend, so we won't know for sure who's in the lead until they cross the finishline in about two and a half hours.

That's right, we're expecting a finish between 10:30am and 11am. Looking at times into Knik Lake last night plus speeds of the teams at the moment, the front runners have about two and a half hours left on the runners. This race is far from over, and no one has shot out ahead of everyone, so it's promising to be an exciting morning.

The red lantern is currently Kaiden Foster who is running dogs out of Nic Petit's kennel and is going at a very slow pace in comparison to the Kennel owner's style. We've had one scratch with Casey Ann Randall of Rock On Racing. No report yet on why she chose to end her race early, but I am sure Randall will give us a run down when the time is right.

Stay tuned, folks, it's another great day of racing ahead!

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).

Over half the roster scratches on Gunflint Mail Run

Thirteen teams started the twelve-dog class in the Gunflint Mail Run this morning in Northern Minnesota, by days end at least seven of those teams would scratch. The race had to change the race route before the start due to trail concerns, but felt that the trail would hold up for the loop. 

There was talk race day morning that there was concern of open water, but as teams ran their first lap it seemed that the race was going to be a fast one. During the second leg teams were obviously going slower and soon reports came in that there was more open water than previously. Teams began to make the decision to either go through it or scratch.

Teams like Erin Aili, Colleen Wallin, and Gunnar Johnson all had to scratch when they hit the water. Reports from teams that scratched were that it just was not worth the swim. 

With the chaos surrounding multiple scratches, the race has yet to update with official final times and placement, however it looks like Matt Schmidt of Sawtooth Mountain Racing takes home top prize.