CB300 Surprise Award

Jeff King won the Copper Basin 300 for the second time in 15 years on Monday, blazing across the finish line only seven minutes ahead of three-time champion Allen Moore. But Moore's SP Kennel left the race with an award mushers in any race covet: the Humanitarian Award for best overall care of their dogs during the race. In an unprecedented move the race veterinarians made the award not just to Allen, but to his entire kennel, which fielded three teams in the race, including his wife, Aliy Zirkle, and his daughter, Bridgett Watkins.

Macgellan noted the reaction of the race veterinarians on the SP Kennel Dog Log: "The CB300 race veterinarians congratulated all of the mushers on really excellent dog care during the race. They said that the overall level of dog care was so good that they found it difficult to spotlight just one musher to receive their Humanitarian Award. What they were really struck by, though, was the fact that one kennel -- SP Kennel -- showed such extraordinary dog care across all three of its teams. The health and fitness of the dogs coming into the race, the care they received during the race and how great they all looked at the end of the race. So, in a first ever, the CB300 race veterinarians presented this year's Humanitarian Award not to a single musher, but to SP Kennel as a whole!"

Lance Mackey book

The Lance Mackey Story: How My Obsession with Dog Mushing Saved My Life, by Lance Mackey, is a very much-anticipated publishing event for sled dog mushing fans. With a foreword by respected veteran musher Joe Runyan, edited by Tricia Brown, and illustrated by official Iditarod artist Jon Van Zyle, Lance's book includes never before seen family photos. Lance Mackey made mushing history in 2007 when he won the 1,000 mile Yukon Quest, and two weeks later won the 1,000 mile Iditarod with many of the same dogs, an unprecedented achievement that changed long distance mushing forever. Check Lance's Comeback Kennel Web site for pre-ordering the book.

Helen Hegener photo

Nome supports the Iditarod

Following Jeff King's lead in contributing $50,000 last week, the city of Nome stepped up to the plate and contributed $50,000 to the Iditarod Tuesday. Nome Mayor Denise Michels explained in a press release: "The Iditarod is an important celebration of Alaskan life, but it's also an important economic engine for the city of Nome and generates millions of dollars in economic activity for many communities and businesses in the state."

New Race: Denali Doubles