Fairbanks, Alaska was founded by Captain Barnett in 1901 when his steam boat, the Lavelle Young, was grounded in what is now Downtown. He had originally been trying to set up a trading post in Tanacross, where the Tanana River met the Eagle – Valdez Trail. When he ran aground, the miners in the area immediately bought supplies and convinced him to set up the trading post in Fairbanks. This proved to be a wise decision because Felix Pedro first struck gold in 1902. The Territorial Courthouse was moved from Eagle to Fairbanks in 1903 and insured its continued existence.
Fairbanks has always been a boom, bust town. First with gold, then with World War II and the Alaskan Canadian Highway and finally during the building of the Oil Pipeline. It has a varied history and population. The population of the City of Fairbanks is a little over 35,000 and close to 98,000 in the Fairbanks metropolitan area. It is the 2nd largest city in Alaska and is the hub of travel and commerce for the interior and northern villages and towns.
Gold is still a large part of the economy. The Fort Knox Gold Mine produced 333,000 troy ounces of gold in 2007. Current price per once:1,372.75
Question: Is this the same route (more or less) that Aliy ran when she won the race? The interview with Allen was great in that he explained what he had to go through to get to the summit.
Question: I know we can't get into the minds of dogs, but what do you think the dogs are thinking when they refuse to go or head in the opposite direction?
Question: Some people call this the toughest race in the world. Now that both of you have run the Iditarod and the YQ, do you agree with this statement?
Congratulations (in advance) for finishing so well in the Yukon Quest. It is a huge accomplishment. The coverage from your site and the YQ's site really allowed those not familiar with mushing insight to the race. Thank you SPKennels for your coverage.
This is the route the Quest takes every year. It just switches directions ever year. Aliy won the Quest running from Fairbanks to Whitehorse.
Both Aliy and Allen will tell you either race can turn extremely difficult. It usually has to do with weather. The trail in the Quest tends not to be as well groomed, but that's not always true.