For Wendy Scramstad, the Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay has always been a family affair.

"It's family oriented, that's what I really like about it,” she said. "My whole family gets involved in it.

"I've either been the team mom or been a participant or supported my husband and my daughter, my sons have been in it – we've done it for many years and enjoyed every minute of it.”

Scramstad, customer service supervisor for Yukon Electrical Company Limited (YECL), is captain of the Killerwatts, a team made up of her husband Rick, who is doing the final two legs, daughter Julianna, her friend Heather Milligan, YECL superintendent of operations Jay Massie, YECL electrical technologist Norm Curzon and YECL general manager Dwight Redden.

Rick and Curzon are the only two "very avid” cyclists on the team, Wendy said.

"They are both what you might call hardcore cyclists,” she said. "The rest of us are kind of like bike riders. We do it for fun and fitness, but we're not necessarily what you'd call crazy cyclists. Two of them are.”

The Killerwatts are one of the record-breaking 275 teams entered in the 19th annual Kluane Chilkat Bike Relay, a 238.3-kilometre, eight-leg ride starting from Haines Junction tomorrow morning and ending up in Haines, Alaska.

This year's bike relay also drew nearly 1,200 riders, close to the maximum number set, with records being set for the solo and two-person categories: 52 loonies and 85 toonies.

The Killerwatts feature riders ranging from 28 to 56 years old.

Wendy is 55. But she doesn't feel it.

"I'm only 20 in my head,” she laughed.

For the past five years, she and Rick have entered in Cycle Oregon, a week-long, 750 to 800 kilometre bike ride which includes living in a traveling tent city.

There, cyclists average 80 to 100 kilometres per day.

"It's a much different style of riding,” Wendy said.

Tommorrow, Wendy will tackle leg six, a 26.9-kilometre run.

But she's not overly concerned about the steep incline up past 3 Guardsmen or the windy crosswinds that plague riders.

"Think about it, we just heard today, on the summit tomorrow, it's suppose to be plus six and raining, and I'm still doing it,” Wendy said. "I don't even care.”

Wendy did the bib pick up at Mount McIntyre on Wednesday.

This year, organizers chose to hold two separate captains meetings.

That's helped make pre-registration run more smoothly, Wendy said.

"It seems to be better organized.

"It's a great event. This is the 19th annual race, and next year will be the 20th anniversary, so I'm sure we can look forward to better things.”

Wendy said she has been involved since she can remember.

So has YECL, a major sponsor of the event.

"We sponsor it every year because it is a great community event and there's so many people from the Whitehorse area and our communities that we serve that participate in it,” said Laura Carlson, corporate communications advisor for YECL.

"Of course, Haines Junction is one of the area that YECL serves, and this is obviously a big boost to their economy and a big attraction for them.

Carlson added that YECL likes that the bike relay involves fitness and the outdoors – everything the Yukon stands for.

"From Yukon Electrical, as a corporate sponsor, we're always looking for opportunities in the communities where our employees can get involved.

"So that's the wonderful thing about our sponsorship, that we can put a team in as well, and of course we've got a mix of Wendy's family and employees.”