I came for the dogs but stay for the people.
Donna Olesen
In the race for 10th place, two-time veteran Bill Pinkham won.
But it was no small victory for rookie Mike Ellis, who placed 11th. It is believed he and his team set a new Yukon Quest record for Siberians.
Ellis's team of purebread Siberians.
The bigger, fluffier sled dogs tend to go slower than the traditional long-distance racing dogs, huskies. Ellis’s team covered the 1,000-mile trail from Fairbanks to Whitehorse in 12 days and more than 10 hours. (We’ll wait and let the judges decide if it was a record run.)
Pinkham, 49, of Colorado Springs, CO, arrived at the Finish Line Thursday night at 10:21. Ellis, 37, of Rumney, NH, arrived shortly thereafter, at 11:07 p.m.
Ellis and Pinkham arrived in Whitehorse 46 minutes apart.
Both mushers remember exactly when Pinkham stole the lead. Ellis was resting at the time.
“I had my boots off and I had my feet up barefoot in front of the fire,” Ellis said, while Pinkham stood by and chuckled knowingly.
Both men agreed it was a “wet” ride out of Braeburn, but that things improved.
Looking back, Ellis said his most memorable moment was the Northern Lights display a few days earlier between Stepping Stone and Pelly Crossing. Even the dogs were mesmerized, he said. “It was amazing.”
Eagle Summit, the point at which six mushers scratched, was memorable too, he said, but not overly difficult for his powerful team.
But it was no small victory for rookie Mike Ellis, who placed 11th. It is believed he and his team set a new Yukon Quest record for Siberians.
Ellis's team of purebread Siberians.
The bigger, fluffier sled dogs tend to go slower than the traditional long-distance racing dogs, huskies. Ellis’s team covered the 1,000-mile trail from Fairbanks to Whitehorse in 12 days and more than 10 hours. (We’ll wait and let the judges decide if it was a record run.)
Pinkham, 49, of Colorado Springs, CO, arrived at the Finish Line Thursday night at 10:21. Ellis, 37, of Rumney, NH, arrived shortly thereafter, at 11:07 p.m.
Ellis and Pinkham arrived in Whitehorse 46 minutes apart.
Both mushers remember exactly when Pinkham stole the lead. Ellis was resting at the time.
“I had my boots off and I had my feet up barefoot in front of the fire,” Ellis said, while Pinkham stood by and chuckled knowingly.
Both men agreed it was a “wet” ride out of Braeburn, but that things improved.
Looking back, Ellis said his most memorable moment was the Northern Lights display a few days earlier between Stepping Stone and Pelly Crossing. Even the dogs were mesmerized, he said. “It was amazing.”
Eagle Summit, the point at which six mushers scratched, was memorable too, he said, but not overly difficult for his powerful team.
