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North American Championship Sled Dog Races
A Short History

A special "thank you" to Sherri Pristash of the Alaska Dog Mushers Association,
Fairbanks, Alaska, for providing this information on the Limited and Open North American Championship Sled Dog Races.

[History]
[ONAC Champs 1946-2015]
[LNAC Champs 1975-2015]

Sled Dog Racing in Fairbanks

By PETE BOWERS

(From the 1983-1984 ADMA Race Season Program)


Since 1927, sled dog racing has been a Fairbanks area tradition that has captured the minds and hearts of many. Although no longer unique to Alaska, dog mushing has its roots here and continues to be identified throughout the world as "Alaskan." The history of dog mushing is ingrained deeply in the history of Fairbanks and the villages scattered along the Yukon, Tanana and Koyukuk Rivers. Dog teams once were vital to transportation in the Interior and have been the focus of the area’s major sporting events for many years.

Modern sled dog racing dates back to the gold rush era of Nome. The Nome Kennel Club held races such as the All Alaska Sweepstakes (408 miles) and the Borden Cup Marathon (26 miles) from about 1906 until 1916, when gold mining activities declined in the area. The focus of Alaskan sled dog racing turned to the Interior after that. A 57-mile race was run between Ruby and Poorman, and, in 1927, the Signal Corps race was created in Fairbanks by the Washington-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System. The Signal Corps races initially followed a trail of some 58 miles between Fairbanks and Chatanika, which reached 2,240 feet in elevation near Summit. In 1931, the contestants ran two 30-mile heats, and in 1935, it became a mid-distance race to the Salcha bridge and back. In 1935 a musher named Bob Busky won the race for the third time and retired the trophy.

At least three other major races were held in Fairbanks between 1927 and 1941. The Sweepstakes trophy competition began in 1936, consisting of three 30-mile heats. In 1940 and 1941, that race became a mid-distance classic of some 165 miles round trip between Fairbanks and Livengood. Between 1927 and 1934, the Fromm trophy was presented to the winner of the women’s sled dog championship, which ran over a distance of about 17 miles. The H.Wendell Endicott Sweepstakes, a 17-mile sprint, began in Fairbanks in 1928 and was discontinued in 1933.

ADMA Brochure Cover

Dog racing in Fairbanks brings people from the bush villages to the city, and people from all walks of life together at the race track. In the past 57 years, dog teams have been driven by fishermen, laborers, river boat pilots, Air Force officers, lawyers, judges, doctors, biologists, miners, trappers and people claiming numerous other professions. The history of dog racing in Fairbanks is inexorably entwined with the lives of many colorful individuals, including Fred and Joe Stickman of Nulato and Walter Nollner of Galena, a trio of native mushers from the Yukon River who dominated some of the earliest races. The kennels of Judge Cecil H. Clegg. District Attorney Julian A. Hurley, and Thomas B. Wright made major contributions to racing and breeding of race dogs, while the winning records of Bob Busby, Johnny Allen, and Bergman Kokrine have only recently been challenged.

Dog racing in Fairbanks was interrupted from 1942 through 1945 by World War II. It resumed in 1946 with the first North American Championships (NAC) sled dog derby. Originally a four-day event of 18, 18, 18, and 20 miles, which followed the Chena and Tanana Rivers, the NAC was moved to the Creamer’s Field area in 1953 where it consisted of 20, 20, and 30 mile heats.

The postwar race drivers were mostly new faces to sled dog racing fans. People like Horace "Holy" Smoke of Stevens Village, Andy and Effie Kokrine of Tanana, Jimmy Huntington (the original "Huslia Hustler"), Charlie Titus of Minto, Dan Snyder of Kotzebue (the winner of the first true NAC), and Lt. Col. Norman Vaughn (who in 1953 flew the USAF official dog team to Fairbanks) were among the notable drivers of the late 40’s and early 50's. The 1950 NAC winner, Gareth Wright, is still active in the sport and in 1983 again won the Open NAC.

The Alaska Dog Mushers Association (ADMA) was founded in 1948, in part through the efforts of Mike Agbaba and Jake Butler, to promote dog mushing, dog racing, the humane treatment of dogs, and especially, the North American Championships. Since then, the ADMA has sponsored numerous preliminary races and limited class races, in addition to Fairbanks’ premier sporting event, the 70-mile Open NAC.

In recent years, there has been continued development of sled dog racing in Fairbanks with a greater than ever emphasis on scientific feeding, breeding, and training. Teams from the Koyukuk region, driven by such notable mushers as Jimmy Huntington, Cue Bifelt ,Bergman Sam, Warner Vent, and George Attla provided some of the best dogs and competition to be found anywhere. Other Interior villagers from places such as Minto, Tanana, Rampart, and Galena also continued to produce top contenders.

DogThese kennels, as well as those developed by the likes of Harold and John Greenway, Lester Erhart, Steve and Rosie Losonsky, Roland "Doc" Lombard, Bill Taylor, Gareth Wright, and Harvey Drake produced some of the major lines of race dogs that are actively sought by mushers today. Names like George Attla, who won his first NAC in 1969 and has since won it six more times, and Dr. Roland "Doc" Lombard, who won his first NAC in 1958 (the first outsider to do so) and also a six-time winner have consistently provided excitement for the crowds. Other recent contenders include Carl Huntington, the only triple crown winner in dog-racing history (NAC, Fur Rendezvous, Iditarod), Harvey Drake of North Pole (who has the fastest time ever recorded for a NAC race heat, slightly more than 19 mph) and Harris Dunlap of Bakers Mill, New York, the 1982 winner.

The women mushers have not exactly been idle through this long history of sled dog competition. In addition to the 1927-1934 Fromm Trophy races, a woman’s NAC was run from 1952 until 1982, when it made way for the Mini North American. Though competitors such as Effie Kokrine, Libby Wescott, Rosie Losonsky, Natalie Norris, Jean Bryar and Roxie Woods consistently provided some of the finest dog teams and racing competition to be found anywhere.

The limited class races of the 1970's and 80's have also provided excitement and spirited competition. One shouldn’t get the mistaken impression the "limited class" equates with "limited quality." Many of the Open team drivers today actively buy, sell, and swap dogs with owners of the smaller kennels, and many of the limited class teams are dog for dog as fast as their open class counterparts. The limited class races have produced drivers such as Rosie Losonsky, Linda Leonard, Jane Cosgrove, Roxie Woods, and Kathy Frost/Lloyd Lowry, who have fielded consistently strong teams in recent years.

All in all, the sled dog racing tradition of Fairbanks has truly earned this town the title of ‘"sled dog racing capitol of the world." With 57 years of nearly continuous dog-racing competition and 39 continuous years of North American Championships, Fairbanks and the North American are in a select category. Just as we associate Newport with sailing, Louisville with horse racing, Wimbledon with tennis, and Daytona or Indianapolis with car racing, so should we think of Fairbanks and sled dog racing. It is an exciting and colorful tradition that we can all take pride in.

OPEN NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONS: 1946 - 2015
1946 • ANDY KOKRINE
1947 • ANDY KOKRINE
1948 • CHARLIE TITUS
1949 • DAN SNYDER
1950 • GARETH WRIGHT
1951 • HORACE SMOKE
1952 • HORACE SMOKE
1953 • HORACE SMOKE
1954 • RAYMOND PAUL
1955 • WILBUR SAMPSON
1956 • JIMMY HUNTINGTON
1957 • BERGMAN SAM
1958 • ALFRED WELLS
1959 • ROLAND LOMBARD
1960 • CUE BIFELT
1961 • BEATUS MOSES
1962 • ROLAND LOMBARD
1963 • ROLAND LOMBARD
1964 • ROLAND LOMBARD
1965 • KEITH BRYAR
1966 • ROLAND LOMBARD
1967 • ROLAND LOMBARD
1968 • BILL TAYLOR
1969 • GEORGE ATTLA
1970 • GEORGE ATTLA
1971 • GREENWAY/TAYLOR
1972 • GEORGE ATTLA
1973 • HAROLD GREENWAY
1974 • ALFRED ATTLA
1975 • GEORGE ATTLA
1976 • HARVEY DRAKE
1977 • CARL HUNTINGTON
1978 • GEORGE ATTLA
1979 • GEORGE ATTLA
1980 • HARVEY DRAKE
1981 • PETER NORBERG
1982 • HARRIS DUNLAP
1983 • GARETH WRIGHT
1984 • DOUG MCRAE
1985 • EDDIE STREEPER
1986 • GEORGE ATTLA
1987 • GEORGE ATTLA
1988 • MARVIN KOKRINE
1989 • ROXY WRIGHT-CHAMPAINE
1990 • CHARLIE CHAMPAINE
1991 • ROSS SAUNDERSON
1992 • ROXY WRIGHT-CHAMPAINE
1993 • ROXY WRIGHT-CHAMPAINE
1994 • ROSS SAUNDERSON
1995 • AMY STREEPER
1996 • AMY STREEPER
1997 • NEAL JOHNSON
1998 • MICHI KONNO
1999 • EGIL ELLIS
2000 • EGIL ELLIS
2001 • EGIL ELLIS
2002 • EGIL ELLIS
2003 • BUDDY STREEPER
2004 • EGIL ELLIS
2005 • EGIL ELLIS
2006 • EGIL ELLIS
2007 •
BLAYNE STREEPER
2008 • EGIL ELLIS
2009 • EGIL ELLIS
2010
• EGIL ELLIS
2011 • EGIL ELLIS
2012 • EGIL ELLIS
2013
ARLEIGH REYNOLDS
2014 ARLEIGH REYNOLDS
2015BLAYNE STREEPER

LIMITED NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONS: 1975 - 2015
1975 • 7-DOG • FRED MAYO
1976 • 7-DOG • JENNIFER SMITH
1977 • 7-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1978 • 7-DOG • BONNIE DRAKE
1979 • 7-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1980 • 7-DOG • ROXY WOODS (WRIGHT)

1981 • 7-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1981 • 5-DOG • KATHY FROST

1982 • 7-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1982 • 5-DOG • MARILYN COGHILL

1983 • 8-DOG • VALERIE HONEA
1983 • 5-DOG • PAT MCGRAW

1984 • 8-DOG • KATHY FROST
1984 • 5-DOG • JOHN KRIEG

1985 • 8-DOG • ROXY WRIGHT
1985 • 5-DOG • FAWN HUBLER
1985 • 3-DOG • BRENDA RICHARD

1986 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1986 • 5-DOG • TIM BUZZARD
1986 • 3-DOG • MARI HOE-RAITTO

1987 • 8-DOG • ROSS SAUNDERSON
1987 • 6-DOG • BOB STEVENS
1987 • 3-DOG • PUNKY MOORE

1988 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1988 • 6-DOG • DOROTHY ARTHURS
1988 • 3-DOG • KRISTIN AASHEIM
1988 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • RAY KOKRINE
1988 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • VICKIE KARNS
1988 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • TOM HARTSHORN

1989 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1989 • 6-DOG • MARI HOE-RAITTO
1989 • 3-DOG • MARI HOE-RAITTO
1989 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • KENT KARNS
1989 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • WES GRAF
1989 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • TOM SCHMID

1990 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1990 • 6-DOG • DOROTHY ARTHURS
1990 • 3-DOG • KIM BURROWS
1990 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • JEANETTE VAN BUEREN
1990 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • DIANE DABROWSKI
1990 • 1 -DOG SKIJORING • KENT KARNS

1991 • 8-DOG • KATHY FROST
1991 • 6-DOG • NANCY NOLKE
1991 • 3-DOG • BOB STEVENS
1991 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • WES GRAF
1991 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • TOM SCHMID
1991 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • B.GAUDINIER-BEADLES

1992 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1992 • 6-DOG • NANCY MCKEWIN
1992 • 4-DOG • MARY ARNDT
1992 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • MARI HOE-RAITTO
1992 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • WES GRAF
1992 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • B.GAUDINIER-BEADLES

1993-1994 • ?

1995 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1995 • 6-DOG •
GERRI HANSCHEN
1995 • 4-DOG • TERRY KILLAM
1995 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • JOHN CARLSON
1995 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • BILL SAARI
1995 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • BERNIE KITKA

1996 • ?

1997 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1997 • 6-DOG • DORI HOLLINGSWORTH
1997 • 4-DOG • JEORG HORNEFF
1997 • 3-DOG SKIJORING •  ?
1997
• 2-DOG SKIJORING •  ?
1997
• 1-DOG SKIJORING •  ?

1998 • 8-DOG • LINDA LEONARD
1998 • 6-DOG •
ANGIE FITCH
1998 • 4-DOG • CAROL KLECKNER
1998 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CINDY SALMON
1998 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • STEPHANIE PIKE

1999 • 8-DOG • HELMUT PEER
1999 • 6-DOG • KIRSTEN DEUTSCHLANDER
1999 • 4-DOG • CAROL KAYNOR
1999 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CINDY SALMON
1999 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • KRIYA DUNLAP
1999 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • KIT CALLAHAN

2000 • 8-DOG • HELEN LUNDBERG
2000 • 6-DOG • REX JONES
2000 • 4-DOG • CAROL KAYNOR
2000 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CINDY SALMON
2000 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • JIM HERRIGES
2000 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • KRIYA DUNLAP

2001 • 8-DOG • HELEN LUNDBERG
2001 • 6-DOG • BIRGITTE NAESS
2001 • 4-DOG •
LENA BOYSEN-HILLESTAD
2001 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • TOM MC GRANE
2001 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • KINE MOEN
2001 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • KRIYA DUNLAP

2002 • 8-DOG • HELEN LUNDBERG
2002 • 6-DOG • BIRGITTE NAESS
2002 • 4-DOG •
DEANNA PARTOW
2002 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • TOM MC GRANE
2002 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • JIM HERRIGES
2002 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • KRIS RASEY

2003 • 8-DOG • KEN CHEZIK
2003 • 6-DOG • KOUROSH PARTOW
2003 • 4-DOG • DEANNA PARTOW
2003 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CINDY SALMON
2003 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • JIM HERRIGES
2003 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • KRIYA DUNLAP

2004 • 8-DOG • USCHI LIEBHARD
2004 • 6-DOG • KEN CHEZIK
2004 • 4-DOG • BEVERLY STEVENS
2004 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CAROL KLECKNER
2004 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • JIM HERRIGES
2004 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • ANDY SEITZ

2005 • 8-DOG • USCHI LIEBHARD
2005 • 6-DOG • GREG SELLENTIN
2005 • 4-DOG • UWE RADANT
2005 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CAROL KLECKNER
2005 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • AMANDA BYRD
2005 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • KARI LOVETT

2006 • 8-DOG • USCHI LIEBHARD
2006 • 6-DOG • KOUROSH PARTOW
2006 • 4-DOG • SCOTT CAMPBELL
2006 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • CINDY SALMON
2006 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • SUSAN SEITZ
2006 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • ANDY SEITZ

2007 • 8-DOG • CHRISTIAN TAVEAU
2007 • 6-DOG • JENNIFER PROBERT
2007 • 4-DOG • MALINDA HOLMES
2007 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • ANDY WARWICK
2007 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • KRIYA DUNLAP
2007 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • ANDY SEITZ

2008 • 8-DOG • ROB DOWNEY
2008 • 6-DOG • JENNIFER PROBERT
2008 • 4-DOG • JENNIFER PROBERT
2008 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • BRIAN CHARLTON
2008 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • KRIYA DUNLAP
2008 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • JIM HERRIGES

2009 • 8-DOG • JENNIFER STERLING
2009 • 6-DOG • JENNIFER PROBERT
2009 • 4-DOG • JENNIFER PROBERT
2009 • 3-DOG SKIJORING • ANDY WARWICK
2009 • 2-DOG SKIJORING • KIM WELLS
2009 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • ANDY SEITZ

2010 • 8-DOG • JENNIFER PROBERT
2010 • 6-DOG • AMI GJESTSON
2010 • 4-DOG • JENNIFER STERLING
2010 • SKIJORING • REBECCA KNIGHT

20118 DOG • DAWN BROWN
2011 • 6-DOG • DAWN BROWN
2011 • 4-DOG • JENNIFER STERLING
2011
• 3 DOG SKIJORINGSARA ELZEY
2011
2 DOG SKIJORINGGREG JUREK

20128 DOG • CHRISTIAN TAVEAU
2012
• 6-DOG • KATI DAGENAIS
2012
• 4-DOG • KOUROSH PARTOW
2012
SKIJORINGGREG JUREK

20138 DOG • CHRISTIAN TAVEAU
2013 • 6-DOG • JESSICA DOHERTY
2013 • 4-DOG • LENA BOYSEN HILLESTAD
2013 • 3 DOG SKIJORING • JAMIE JOHNSON
20132 DOG SKIJORING • YVETTE HOEL
2013 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • SVEN IVAR MOEN

20148 DOG • DAWN BROWN
2014 • 6-DOG • KIM WELLS
2014 • 4-DOG • DAWN BROWN
2014 • 3 DOG SKIJORING • ANDY WARWICK
20142 DOG SKIJORING • JAMIE JOHNSON
2014 • 1-DOG SKIJORING • REBECCA KNIGHT

20158 DOG • JERRY WOODS
2015 • 6-DOG • DAWN BROWN
2015 • 4-DOG • PAM SCHAMBER
2015 • 1 & 2-DOG SKIJORING • GREG JUREK

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