Fifteen mushers from along the lower Kuskokwim and as far upriver as Crooked Creek braved subzero temperatures over the weekend to compete in the Campout Race. It’s the final Kuskokwim 300 (K300) Race Committee-sponsored race of the season and has a total race purse of $25,000.
Reigning K300 champion Pete Kaiser of Bethel took first place and $3,200, followed by Kwethluk’s Raymond Alexie and Akiak’s Mike Williams Jr.
The unique, decades-old race doesn’t start as a race at all. On March 22, mushers traveled at their own pace from the Bethel riverfront to a spot 42 miles up the Gweek River. There, they spent the night camped out among family and friends. The following morning, they sprinted back along the same trail to the Bethel riverfront, where Kaiser pulled across the finish line just before 1 p.m.
While 2024 Campout Race champion Raymond Alexie took second this year, the finish gave him the points needed to clinch this year’s five-race Delta Championship Series. The series, launched three years ago, awards points to individual kennels based on rankings in K300 Race Committee-sponsored races, excluding the Akiak Dash and Kuskokwim 300 itself.
On top of Alexie’s Campout Race winnings of $2,900, he earned $5,000 worth of dog food, $1,000 air cargo credit, and a new iPhone. Alexie has dominated the Delta Championship Series, placing first every year since it was launched.
For the complete results of the Campout Race and Delta Championship Series, visit the K300 website.
