Husky News

There was plenty of snow for the 25th running of the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon, something that was in short supply last year when the race was cancelled.

(Photo by Steve/Sue Vankekerix) Two Harbors musher Ward Wallin heads out toward the trail at the start of the 2008 John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon Sunday in Duluth. Mushers encountered warmth, rain, bitter cold and icy trails in the 25th running of the race.

The only problem for the 27 mushers and their teams that took on the 382-mile race was the warmth, the rain and then the minus 20 degree temps that turned the trail to ice.

But what else would you expect from a challenging sled dog race?

Jason Barron of Lincoln, MT crossed the finish line at Billy’s Bar on the Jean Duluth Road north of Duluth at 8:37 Wednesday morning to take home his first Beargrease title. Following in second place less than an hour later was John Stetson of Duluth. Stetson crossed the line at 9:16 a.m., and Matt Carstens of Whitefield, NH took third when he ended his travail along the Beargrease trail at 9:55 a.m.

Lake County mushers Blake Freking and Ward Wallin also were among the finishers that endured the varied conditions.

Freking, the 2004 marathon champ from Finland, finished in eighth-place, coming across the line at 11:36 a.m. Wednesday. Wallin, of rural Two Harbors, is a Beargrease veteran who started the race wearing his traditional multi-colored fleece coveralls and a pink baseball cap. Wallin finished 12th, coming in at 1:29 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. Wallin apparently dropped the pink hat when the weather cooled off, finishing on Wednesday bundled up to fight off the bitter cold and wind that had taken over the second half of the race.

Jennifer Freking, the 2005 Beargrease second-place finisher and rookie of the year, started the race with a calamity, tipping her sled as she roared out of the starting gate at Ordean Middle School in Duluth. Freking recovered, got control of the dogs and headed up the trail with an aching hand. The hand turned out to be broken, and she was forced to withdraw from the race. She and husband Blake plan to be in Anchorage for the start of the 1,100-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in March, so she’ll need to have two hands ready to go for that event.

Sunday’s start saw temperatures in the mid-30s, and it stayed warm through Monday when gray skies turned to rain, including a downpour at Trail Center, the halfway point along the Gunflint Trail. By Tuesday evening the temperatures had plummeted and icy conditions were the norm for the return trip to Duluth.

Source: Lae County News Chronicle