Mushers do not just show up at a race, hop on a sled and take off. Especially any race associated with the Yukon Quest. It takes months of work to prepare, all while dog training must continue. Much of the hard work during a race occurs in the dog yards and checkpoints, start and finish lines. Driving to-and-from, bag drops, harnessing up teams, cleaning up after.
I rarely get to see mushers in action out on the trail, but the activity in dog yards and checkpoints is always exciting and lively.
Dogs always come first — bedding, booties, feeding, loading and unloading, vet checks, melting snow, snacks, jackets, more feeding. Toss in some sled repair and a musher snack, then hit the trail again with little to no sleep.
Volunteer veterinarian Margret Lenfest examines Yukon, a dog from the team of Two Rivers musher Lauro Eklund. Every dog in the race must be checked before the start and at Central Checkpoint, at a minimum. Lenfest is doing a residence specializing in canine sports medicine and rehabilitation at Cornell University, and took the opportunity to volunteer with the Quest. Feb. 12, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
Deke Naaktgeboren, a Summit Quest 300 veteran from Fairbanks, puts jackets on his dogs after reaching Central Checkpoint. Naaktgeboren, who arrived in third place, wanted to give his dogs a little extra warmth after encountering overflow earlier in the race. Feb. 14, 2014. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
Willow musher Adam Lindenmuth, a Summit Quest 300 rookie, gets settled at Circle City, the final checkpoint before the finish. Lindenmuth enjoyed the run along Birch Creek, as the flat ground is typical to his training grounds, but he had trouble earlier in the race on Rosebud Summit, terrain which his dogs are unfamiliar with. Feb. 15, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
A handler from the team of veteran Fairbanks musher Tabitha Hughes pulls dogs out of their box prior to the start of the Summit Quest 300 on Saturday. Hughes runs a mix of huskies and traditional Inuit Greenland dogs and Malamutes. Feb. 13, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
Joe Weber loads a dog from the team of Adam Lindenmuth into a dog box on Tuesday morning after the finish of the Summit Quest 300. Weber and Lindenmuth started mushing together when they lived in Colorado. Lindenmuth took fourth place and was the first rookie to finish. Feb. 16, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
Rookie Bridgett Watkins unloads drop bags for the Summit Quest 300 on Thursday afternoon. The race starts 11 a.m. Saturday at Pleasant Valley Store, 23 MIle Chena Hot Springs Road. Feb. 11, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
Fairbanks-based musher Ben Good tends to his team at the finish of the 2021 Summit Quest 300 on Tuesday morning. A former Quest 300 champion, Good finished this year’s race in fifth place. He took extra rest along the trail to give help build confidence in his young team. Feb. 16, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.
Summit Quest 300 winter Dan Kaduce of Chatanika gets help loading his sled onto his trailer Tuesday morning. Kaduce will now turn his attention to the march 7 start of the Iditarod. Feb. 16, 2021. Robin Wood for the News-Miner.