Kuskokwim 300
Encyclopedia
The Kuskokwim 300 is the most highly-regarded mid-distance dogsled race
in the world, annually attracting the top mushers in the sport. The race starts and ends on the Kuskokwim River in Bethel, Alaska
, and is run on and adjacent to its namesake river.
Often referred to as the "Kusko 300", or "K-300", the race has been held every January since 1980, and commemorates an early mail route that once tied the settlements along the river to the outside world. Top mushers and hundreds of sled dogs participate in the race for a purse of $100,000, the largest offered by any 300-mile (480 km) sled dog race.
The race is renowned for its often difficult weather and trail conditions. The inaugural race saw a fierce blizzard with dangerously low windchills for the first half of the race, followed by a freak thaw and rain for the latter half. Three separate K-300s (1991, 1999, 2008) earned the nickname "Kusko-Swim", due to strong winds, rain, and deep overflow on top of the river ice.
Staged from January 15 through 17th, the 2010 Kuskokwim 300 was won by musher John Baker of Kotzebue, AK in 47 hours, 56 minutes, and 22 seconds, nearly an hour-and-a-half ahead of second-place finisher and two-time Kusko 300 champion Martin Buser, also a four-time Iditarod champion. It was Baker's first K-300 victory.
2010 Kuskokwim 300 results
"Kotzebue musher Baker pulls away to win Kuskokwim 300", Anchorage Daily News
1981 - Jerry Austin
1982 - Jerry Austin
1983 - Myron Angstman
1984 - Rick Swenson
1985 - Rick Mackey
1986 - Myron Angstman
1987 - Rick Mackey
1988 - Susan Butcher
1989 - Sonny Russell
1990 - Sonny Russell
1991 - Jeff King
1992 - Jeff King
1993 - Jeff King
1994 - Martin Buser
1995 - Ramey Smyth
1996 - Charlie Boulding
1997 - Jeff King
1998 - Greg Swingley
1999 - Doug Swingley
2000 - Charlie Boulding
2001 - Jeff King
2002 - Jeff King
2003 - Jeff King
2004 - Ed Iten
2005 - Mitch Seavey
2006 - Jeff King
2007 - Martin Buser
2008 - Mitch Seavey
2009 - Mitch Seavey
2010 - John Baker
Dogsled racing
Sled dog racing is a winter dog sport most popular in the Arctic regions of the United States, Canada, Russia, and some European countries. It involves the timed competition of teams of sleddogs that pull a sled with the dog driver or musher standing on the runners...
in the world, annually attracting the top mushers in the sport. The race starts and ends on the Kuskokwim River in Bethel, Alaska
Bethel, Alaska
Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, west of Anchorage. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.Bethel is the largest...
, and is run on and adjacent to its namesake river.
Often referred to as the "Kusko 300", or "K-300", the race has been held every January since 1980, and commemorates an early mail route that once tied the settlements along the river to the outside world. Top mushers and hundreds of sled dogs participate in the race for a purse of $100,000, the largest offered by any 300-mile (480 km) sled dog race.
The race is renowned for its often difficult weather and trail conditions. The inaugural race saw a fierce blizzard with dangerously low windchills for the first half of the race, followed by a freak thaw and rain for the latter half. Three separate K-300s (1991, 1999, 2008) earned the nickname "Kusko-Swim", due to strong winds, rain, and deep overflow on top of the river ice.
Staged from January 15 through 17th, the 2010 Kuskokwim 300 was won by musher John Baker of Kotzebue, AK in 47 hours, 56 minutes, and 22 seconds, nearly an hour-and-a-half ahead of second-place finisher and two-time Kusko 300 champion Martin Buser, also a four-time Iditarod champion. It was Baker's first K-300 victory.
Further reading
Kuskokwim 300 Official Website2010 Kuskokwim 300 results
"Kotzebue musher Baker pulls away to win Kuskokwim 300", Anchorage Daily News
Past Champions
1980 - Rick Swenson1981 - Jerry Austin
1982 - Jerry Austin
1983 - Myron Angstman
1984 - Rick Swenson
1985 - Rick Mackey
1986 - Myron Angstman
1987 - Rick Mackey
1988 - Susan Butcher
1989 - Sonny Russell
1990 - Sonny Russell
1991 - Jeff King
Jeff King (mushing)
Jeff King is an American long distance musher who is well known for winning both the 1,049+ mi Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race across the U.S. state of Alaska and the 1,100 mi Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race across the U.S. and Canada .King moved to Alaska in 1975 and began racing in 1976...
1992 - Jeff King
1993 - Jeff King
1994 - Martin Buser
Martin Buser
Martin Buser is a champion of sled dog racing.Martin Buser began mushing at age seventeen in Switzerland. In 1979, Buser moved to Alaska to train and raise sled dogs full time...
1995 - Ramey Smyth
1996 - Charlie Boulding
1997 - Jeff King
1998 - Greg Swingley
1999 - Doug Swingley
2000 - Charlie Boulding
2001 - Jeff King
2002 - Jeff King
2003 - Jeff King
2004 - Ed Iten
2005 - Mitch Seavey
2006 - Jeff King
2007 - Martin Buser
2008 - Mitch Seavey
2009 - Mitch Seavey
2010 - John Baker