Change of Plans Allen was released from the hospital and arrived back home at about 4am this morning. He was diagnosed with a severe case of bronchitis and will be on medications and bed rest for several days. As we said earlier, and is now Aliy’s mantra, “This race really … Read More
“A Race that Wasn’t Meant to Be” – Aliy Zirkle About 50 miles into the YQ 300, Allen became quite sick and was driven to the hospital emergency room in Fairbanks. Fortunately, Allen and Aliy had been running together at the time. When they stopped to rest at Valley Center, … Read More
Through North Pole Dog Drop Both Aliy and Allen have passed through the North Pole Dog Drop, 33 miles down the trail from Fairbanks. I didn’t get an exact time that they went through, however it was right around 8:40pm. All of the teams passed through the checkpoint within a … Read More
THEY’RE OFF! The Yukon Quest 300 started on the Chena River in downtown Fairbanks one hour ago. Aliy departed in the first position at 5 PM AST. Allen followed, in 7th position, 12 minutes later. A total of 9 teams started the race under crystal clear skies with temperatures hovering … Read More
PRE RACE UPDATE The Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race began this morning, leaving Fairbanks at a pleasant -25 degrees below zero, on a 1000 mile trek through the mail trails of Gold Rush Alaska and Yukon Territory to finish in Whitehorse, Canada. Twenty four teams will be competing in … Read More
With the Yukon Quest and the Yukon Quest 300 in the immediate future, Two Rivers and Interior Alaska plunges into a week of 40 to 50 below temperatures. Reports from near Circle and Central, Alaska (checkpoints on both races) are -65 below zero on the river. Randy Chappel arrived in … Read More
This season, Bridgett Moore Watkins, Allen’s daughter, has become an indispensable member of the SP Kennel team. Bridgett grew up in Fairbanks, went to Arkansas to become an R.N., then returned to Alaska in late 2006. Bridgett and her husband, Scotty, settled in Nome, Alaska, on the Bering Sea. She … Read More
SP Kennel takes 1st and 4th in the Tustumena 100 race early this morning. Allen brought 20 of the dogs down south on Thursday and meet his daughter Bridgett in Anchorage on the way to the Kenai for the Tustumena races. Bridgett and her husband Scotty flew in from Nome … Read More
A slight change of plans will have Allen and Bridgett running in the Tustumena 100 instead of the 200. This is a 100 mile race with 10 dogs per team. It begins on Saturday around 4pm AST. We will post the results as we get them.
Aliy takes second in Two Rivers 100 miler! Aliy took a mix of yearlings and two year olds on the Solstice 100 this past Saturday, January 19. They were the group of dogs that didn’t go on either team for the Copper Basin. The race does a 50 mile loop … Read More
