Sports

Jessica Klejka is the last Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta musher to leave the Yukon River. She is just about to enter Kaltag, the last checkpoint before the trail runs over a pass to the coast of the Bering Sea. 

The two other local teams in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race are ahead of her, still on their way to the coast. Pete Kaiser and Richie Diehl are mushing together about 65 miles away from Unalakleet, the first checkpoint on Norton Sound. 

The Norwegian musher Thomas Waerner has lengthened his lead in the Iditarod Sled Dog Race. He came into Unalakleet on Norton Sound a little after 10 a.m. on March 15 with more than a 30-mile lead over the rest of the pack. Nineteen sled dog teams are behind him on the trail from the Yukon River to the coast this afternoon, led by Wade Marrs and Jessie Royer. 

The race among the apparent Iditarod leaders on the Yukon River is nearing its end, and teams have to do a mandatory eight-hour rest at a checkpoint before moving on. Front-runner Jessie Royer came into Kaltag at 3:18 p.m. on March 14 to begin her stay. Six teams followed her into the checkpoint, including Pete Kaiser and Brent Sass. 

The first group of mushers in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race headed down the Yukon River this afternoon with a woman leading the pack. Jessie Royer left the Ruby checkpoint at around 11:30 a.m. on March 13. She will probably make it to Galena early this evening. 

Following her down the river almost an hour and a half later was reigning Yukon Quest champion Brent Sass, with two teams hot on his heels. Joar Leifseth Ulsom and Richie Diehl left within minutes of each other, right after Sass. Ryan Redington left about a half-hour later.

A woman is back out in front of the Iditarod Sled Dog Race running down the Yukon River. Jessie Royer left the Nulato check point at around 9:30 this morning after taking a 3-hour rest and passed Brent Sass who was camping on the trail. At noon today her lead was increasing while Sass stayed put resting his dogs.

Back in Nulato, there are nine teams resting including Rihie Diehl and Pete Kaiser’s. 

Making her way to Galena is Jessi Klejka at the tail end of a pack of 5 other sled-dog teams.

There may be fewer people at the finish line to see the dog teams come in, but the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race to Nome is still on. 

Jessie Royer was first into the Nulato checkpoint, arriving at 6 a.m. on March 14. Richie Diehl’s team came in an hour later, followed by Thomas Warner and Pete Kaiser. Brent Sass, who led the race out of Galena yesterday afternoon, followed his usual habit of passing through the checkpoint and heading out to camp on the trail. 

The Iditarod front runners are in Ruby, resting their teams before heading down the Yukon River. Richie Diehl from Aniak was the fifth team into the checkpoint; Jessie Royer was the first musher to reach Ruby. Diehl came into Ruby at 8:44 a.m. on March 13, a couple of hours behind Royer. Bethel’s Pete Kaiser was the ninth musher into Ruby, arriving at 10:18 a.m.

Jessica Klejka is resting her team in Cripple before making the run to the Yukon River. She arrived there at 7:25 a.m.

At this point, all but two teams in the race have completed the mandatory 24-hour rest.