Alaska: Musher Dallas Seavey became the first six-time champion of the grueling Iditarod sled dog race in Alaska’s 52nd annual event on Tuesday, event officials said.
Not only did Seavey overcome the brutal Alaskan elements, but just two days into the race he was forced to shoot a moose that had “tangled” with his team of trail dogs.
“Dallas has demonstrated his ability to overcome adversity on many occasions, and this historic victory is the epitome of his professionalism, strength and full exemplary care of the dogs,” Rob Urbach, Iditarod executive director, said in a written statement.
Seavey finished in nine days, two hours, 16 minutes and eight seconds, the Iditarod statement said. For his victory, Seavey will receive the largest percentage of the $500,000 purse.
The rest of the field will continue the race until the last person crosses the finish line and receives the “red lantern” prize for showing endurance.
The event kicked off with a ceremonial run in Anchorage, Alaska, on March 2 and ended on Tuesday in the Bering Sea city of Nome after mushers and their dog teams covered 1,000 miles.
The Iditarod organization said on social media that Seavey crossed the finish line at 5:16 p.m. local time with 10 dogs.
On March 4, Iditarod officials said in a written statement that Seavey was forced to shoot the moose in self-defense “after the moose became entangled with dogs and a musher on the trail.”
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Seavey was given a two-hour penalty for not gutting the animal sufficiently as required by race rules. Elk meat was salvaged and distributed to the people to eat.
Seavey, who finished first in 2012 as the youngest Iditarod champion in its history at age 25, went on to win four more races before claiming the historic win this year.
He also won the Yukon Quest sled dog race twice and is the son of three-time Iditarod champion Mitch Seavey.
This year’s 38 competitors was one of the smallest fields since the race’s first year in 1973, when 34 entered. Last year’s was the smallest, with just 33 entries. In its heyday, the race had 70 to 80 participants.
Reminiscent of the famous sled dog relay race to deliver diphtheria serum to Nome in 1925, the race has come a long way since it began as a low-budget novelty consisting entirely of amateur mushers, taking 20 days to complete.
Now the top Iditarod competitors are pros with the logos of top gear bearing sponsors. The teams are tracked by a global positioning satellite and live broadcasts are transmitted worldwide to viewers via the Internet.
