Dangerous wind-chills postponed this year's Holiday Classic, the second race of the season sponsored by the Kuskokwim 300. Race Manager Paul Basile talked about how he's navigating unaccommodating weather, and how this year he's connecting the K300 to mushing fans beyond the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.
After the Kuskokwim 300 Board delayed its local Season Opener race twice, the second race of the season, the Holiday Classic, has also been pushed back a week to Saturday, Jan. 4. K300 Race Manager Paul Basile hopes, by this weekend, the weather that caused the delay will pass.
“As you may have noticed, it’s been pretty darn cold,” Basile said, remarking on Bethel's sub-zero tempertures and extreme wind chill. “We heard from a handful of mushers that had concerns about the cold and the wind that was forecast, so we postponed the race.”
Basile says these delays are normal for the first races of the season, and the race schedule is built to accomodate them.
“We start scheduling them early in December and leave some room in the schedule with full knowledge that we’re probably going to have to postpone one or both of these races,” Basile explained.
The flexibility may be necessary, but Basile also knows it’s not ideal for mushers, especially for racers traveling into Bethel from surrounding communities.
“We’d like to do it [the races] on schedule. It’s easier for people to plan for, but it’s just the nature of the beast. We just have to bob and weave with what mother nature gives us,” Basile said.
A week after the Holiday Classic, Paul has another event to plan. The first K300 benefit event in Anchorage will be on Jan. 11. There’ll be drinks, live music and K300 apparel for sale.
“There’s a lot of people in Anchorage with ties to the Delta who are excited about an opportunity to be connected to the race in some way,” Basile said, outlining the reasons for adding the event.
The K300 is connecting with with fans outside Bethel and Alaska in other ways, too. In November, the K300 began selling race merchandise online.
"I was amazed," Basile said, "that people from Florida and Connecticut were paying attention to our Facebook feed and our website and going and buying t-shirts and sweatshirts."
As new traditions are beginning, others are returning. The Bethel K300 Concert will occur Jan. 18, the day after the 41st annual K300 race begins in Bethel. The concert will feature Bethel favorites, including Chris Cooke, Michael Faubion and Jacques Longpre.
