The Yukon Quest has secured enough money for cash prizes, the association's Whitehorse executive director confirmed today.

"Even though we don't know the exact pennies yet, we're confident we have the purse in hand,” Sue Thomas told the Star.

Thomas said Quest officials have to work out their bookkeeping before announcing exactly how much has been donated in the past week and how much is still needed to cover race costs.

Last Thursday, the Quest announced it was still short $50,000 in prize money and $125,000 in cash for actual race expenses.

Thomas said last week that every January, the Quest is searching for funds. If organizers don't raise enough money by race time, the association will carry over the debt until the event is over.

Most of the new donations came from Fairbanks, she confirmed today.

"It makes sense because that's where most of the mushers are from this year,” she noted.

Twenty-three out of the 28 mushers registered in this year's race are Alaskan.

Marti Steury, the Quest's director in Fairbanks, said this morning that her office recently received two large and generous donations.

Kinross, which owns the Fort Knox gold mine in Alaska, handed over $10,000 US to the Quest after reading in the local media that the association desperately needed cash.

The company has never donated to the Quest until now.

"It's perfect,” said Steury. "Our history blends together. Prospectors used dogs for centuries up here.”

The hospital in Fairbanks has been a major donor in previous years and only recently committed to providing $5,000 to this year's race.

The Fairbanks office has received cheques from people all over the North, with some donating around $1,000.

"It shows that this race does not belong to Alaska or the Yukon,” Steury said.

"It belongs to the community of the North.”

But even with all the new donations, the Quest still needs money for race expenses.

"We still need help, but oh, my gosh — we are so humbled by this support,” Steury said.

"We are just the stewards of this. This race belongs to so many people and so many places.”

The 1,600-km race to Whitehorse will begin Feb.4 in Fairbanks.

The race has been run annually since 1984.