Photo by Dustin Cook
LEAVING DAWSON – On her birthday, Whitehorse rookie Claudia Wickert scratched from the Yukon Quest in Braeburn this morning. Above: she’s seen waving goodbye to her handlers and supporters last Saturday in Dawson City.
Photo by Whitehorse Star
Yukoners push through overflow toward finish
The race to the Whitehorse finish line continues as Day 12 of the Yukon Quest comes to a close.
The race to the Whitehorse finish line continues as Day 12 of the Yukon Quest comes to a close.
German rookie Bernhard Schuchert arrived in Whitehorse in seventh spot Wednesday evening. Prior to the race, the 60-year-old said this was the last big racing goal of his mushing career.
He finished the event in 11 days, 10 hours and 36 minutes.
At the snowy finish line at Shipyards Park, 29-year-old Quest rookie Alex Buetow finished the race at 8 a.m. today, closely followed by Yukon veteran Luc Tweddell.
This was the third Quest for Tweddell, who ran his first back in 2009.
His ninth-place finish was the highest in his three Quests. He crossed the line in a total time of 11 days, 18 hours and 59 minutes.
The Mendenhall, Yukon resident from Echoes Kennel said prior to the race that next year, his daughters will be old enough to start stealing his dogs and running the Quest on their own.
Twins Lori and Louve Tweddell plan to run the Quest 300-mile race in 2019. And Luc plans to be their handler.
On her birthday, Whitehorse rookie Claudia Wickert scratched from the race in Braeburn this morning.
She attempted to make the final run into Whitehorse but turned around to scratch, citing issues with her leaders.
Overflow on the trail has started to become an issue for mushers on their way out of Braeburn.
As a result, a section of the trail eight miles outside of the checkpoint has been re-routed 500 to 700 metres around the overflow.
Four mushers remain out on the course on their quest for Whitehorse. In his 28th Quest, Alaskan musher Dave Dalton leads the final pack at just over 40 miles outside the finish.
He is closely followed by rookie Riley Dyche and Whitehorse veteran Rob Cooke.
Whitehorse 23-year-old rookie Nathaniel Hamlyn is currently in the red lantern position 14 miles back.
All four mushers are expected to reach the end of their 1,000-mile journey at some point today.
With Wickert’s early-morning scratch, 13 of the 26 starting mushers remain, with nine already in Whitehorse.
The Quest, won by Allen Moore on Tuesday morning, began Feb. 3 in Fairbanks.
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Comments (1)
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jc on Feb 15, 2018 at 9:02 pm
Goodness sakes, you would think Yukoners could do better in the Quest since they live here and have so much of the year to practice. Even beaten by Europeans. Sheesh!