| January 24, 2008 |
| The 2008 Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race-25 Years & Running! |
WHITEHORSE, YUKON TERRITORIES and FAIRBANKS, ALASKA--(Marketwire - Jan. 24, 2008) - Reigning Champion Lance Mackey was only 12 years old when Sonny Lindner won the first 1,000-mile Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race in 1984.
This February-25 years and as many races later-both junior and senior Champions will embark on the 2008 Race beginning in Mackey's hometown of Fairbanks, Alaska, with a fierce determination to cross the finish line in Whitehorse, Yukon.
Mackey, 37, has won the last three Yukon Quest races and last March became the first musher in history to win both the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest and the 1,000-mile Iditarod in the same year-a trek comparable to running from Miami to New York City. Lindner, 58, who is back to commemorate the historic 25th Running of the Yukon Quest, is a native of Michigan who now resides in Two Rivers, Alaska's sled dog epicenter, where mid- and long-distance racing dogs outnumber humans four-to-one.
A total of 26 mushers have signed up for this year's Yukon Quest. This will be the 24th race for veteran Whitehorse musher and 1995 Yukon Quest Champion Frank Turner, 60. "I want to enjoy the 25th Yukon Quest as much as I enjoyed the first," says Turner.
This year's impressive roster also boasts seasoned Yukon Quest veterans Bruce Milne, Cor Guimond, Michelle Phillips, David Dalton, Bill Cotter, Kelley Griffin and Bill Pinkham. Combined with a fresh slate of rookies from around the world, including France and Switzerland, the historic 25th Start will be a truly international event. "This year's starting line-up has some very interesting middle-of-the-pack and rookie mushers," said Yukon Quest (Canada) Executive Director Stephen Reynolds. "We're seeing several new mushers sign up and although we all know that the dogs are the true heroes of the sport, this year's roster ensures a very compelling race from start to finish."
This truly 'amazing race' will witness teams of one musher and 14 sled dogs test themselves against extreme arctic conditions, including 60-below Celcius temperatures and 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometres) of frozen mountain ranges, rivers and forests. Regular race updates as the teams check in and out of the Race's 10 official checkpoints and a complete list and biographies of the 27 registered competitors is available at www.yukonquest.com.
The race begins in Fairbanks, AK, on February 9, 2008, and ends 10 to 14 days later in Whitehorse, Yukon. | |
