DAWSON CITY - Yukon MP Larry Bagnell has been supporting dog mushing in a small way for years.

This year, he was bitten by the bug, as he told the audience at the Percy DeWolfe race banquet on Saturday night.

"This year, Ned Cathers lent my wife and I a team and we went out, and I can really see how you get hooked by this," said Bagnell .

"It's just fantastic and it's all sorts of fun.

"You really exemplify the spirit of the North, and the spirit that we may need in our civilization, of a time when you can still do things without huge amounts of machinery and nonrenewable fuels.

"We really need that kind of toughness and that survival instinct."

Bagnell was well-received by the audience crowding the ballroom at the Oddfellow's Hall in Dawson.

The return to the ballroom was a sign that the race had returned to former glory.

For the last few years, the smaller space at St. Mary's Catholic Church has been more than large enough, but this year there were nearly three times as many teams - 15 - in the main race and another nine in the Percy Junior, so the larger hall was a necessity.

Gerry Willomitzer of Whitehorse was the winner of the big race this year, completing his move from third place to second and up to first over his last three races.

His winning time from Dawson City to Eagle, Alaska and back on Thursday and Friday was 22 hours and 20 minutes.

Willomitzer and fourth-placer Hans Gatt (22:58) were two of the Iditarod mushers who persuaded the Percy committee to move the race back a week to the fourth week in March so they could run it.

The move is being credited for the large increase in teams, and it has been confirmed that the race will stick to this timing for 2009.

Second place went to Jarod Chinnick, the Rookie of the Year (22:44) and third to last year's winner, Ed Hopkins (22:38), who also won the vet's choice award presented by lead vet John Overall.

Dawson musher Peter Ledwidge (23:26) took fifth prize in what he admitted was a technical victory over Didier Mogia (23:20 and a one-hour penalty).

He was penalized for forgetting to wear his race bib at the finish line.

In his speech, Ledwidge admitted he might have warned Mogia about this as the team passed his.

"I have a bit of a killer instinct when I'm racing and decided that if I couldn't beat him on the trail I would beat him with a technicality."

Neither Peter nor Anne Ledwidge will be in the race next year (they've been taking turns) as they will be in Australia for a year working on a geological contract. For this year,

Peter also picked up the Humane Society Award for great dog care.

Seventh place, the last place with a monetary award, went to the most unusual entry in the race.

Newton Marshal, (24:10) from Jamaica, took the award. He said he encouraged his dogs on the trail by singing reggae songs.

In descending order, the rest of the field were John Stewart, Paul Geoffrion, Michelle Phillips, Scott Read, Laird Crow, Darryl Otto, Simi Morrison and Craig Houghton.

Houghton was the Red Lantern winner for finishing last. He invited everyone to join him in a similar race run in Fort St. James, B.C., where he hails from.

Overall noted it was the first race he can recall where all the teams were back in under 36 hours. Houghton's slow time was still 34:10. Usually the organizers are left hoping that everyone will make it back in time for the banquet.

Race marshall John Borg, from Eagle, was presented with a promise of a pair of fur gauntlets by race committee president Anne Ledwidge.

Borg has been race marshall for 30 of the race's 32 years.

He explained it was a mail run rather than a race for the first two years, so it didn't need a marshal then.

"What you do for Dawson and for the Yukon is really important, so please do anything you can to make the race as great as you have this year,"

Bagnell told the banquet audience.

"This is a lot more people than past years. It's a wonderful event."