The Yukon Quest Canadian board's $126,331 debt has been whittled down to $11,281, board president Claire Festel announced at a press conference this morning.

'We're quite proud of it,' she said inside the White Pass and Yukon Route railway depot at the end of Main Street.

The final $11,281 of the debt will be paid out to We-no-nah Canoes for boats the organization bought for the 2001 River Quest.

With only one organization left to pay, Festel said, the Quest worked out a repayment plan with the company.

'It's a mutually acceptable repayment schedule,' she said.

The debt will drop to $8,782 after the Quest hands over the $2,500 it received Wednesday when it sold one of the two canoes left, manager Stephen Reynolds said.

The other canoe will be sold off in a raffle, he said. Currently, the Quest is applying to sell $5 raffle tickets for the canoe.

Approval will likely come in time for next week's annual general meeting, where more details will be available on the raffle, Reynolds said.

Since 2002, the Quest has been working to pay off the more than $126,000 through numerous fundraisers. It was noted a total of $73,073 has been paid out.

Other businesses the Quest owed money to permitted their debts, totalling $41,976, to be moved into sponsorship. They will get the sponsorship benefits of the amount owed to them.

For example, a company which was owed $1,000 could become a lead dog sponsor. It would then receive a street banner displayed downtown, a 1,000 Mile Club membership, which includes a jacket and a current year's Yukon Quest poster autographed by the mushers.

Festel said the community and business support has been exceptional over the last couple of years as the organization has worked to get itself out of debt.

'That's basically where we stand,' she said.

At the Quest's annual general meeting next Thursday, the board will release its financial information from the past year to its members.

There are also three spots opening up on the board of directors with at least three volunteers interested in the positions.

'It's a really strong team,' Festel said, adding nominations from the floor will also be taken.

She pointed out that over the past year, the territorial government has agreed to continue its financing for marketing as well as forgive the $29,400 the Quest still owed the government on a loan for a downtown retail store a number of years ago that didn't succeed.

Government loans to non-profit organizations like the Yukon Quest were forgiven last December.

The territorial Community Development Fund put money toward trail improvements and promotion, while the Department of Education supplied funding for support staff.

Meanwhile, Human Resources Development Canada also funded staff support over the course of the year, Festel said.

Three people work out of the Quest office on Main Street.

While the Quest is drawing closer to being debt-free, it's also hoping to keep up the momentum it's gained. It's looking to have 100 new business members and 100 new individual and family members over the course of the summer. That time period is typically a more financially difficult time for both Quest offices in Fairbanks, Alaska, and in Whitehorse.

Next Thursday's annual general meeting will be held at the Riverview Hotel beginning at 7 p.m.

The annual sled dog race, which runs between Whitehorse and Fairbanks, is scheduled to start in Whitehorse on Feb. 13, 2005.