Seventy-seven teams are set to compete in the 2017 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Veteran musher Noah Burmeister of Nome and Nenana was the final musher to sign-up before the deadline.
The deadline for sign-ups for this year’s Last Great Race ended Thursday night at midnight.
Nineteen rookies will compete this year, including local Nome musher Rolland Trowbridge and Paul Hansen of Kotzebue, in addition to international competitors from France, England, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.
Nome’s Melissa Stewart, Bethel’s Pete Kaiser, Richie Diehl of Aniak, as well as John Baker and Katherine Keith of Kotzebue will be competing again this year.
Reigning 2016 Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey will be joined by all of last year’s top ten finishers: Mitch Seavey, Aliy Zirkle, Wade Marrs, Joar Leifseth Ulsom, Nicolas Petit, Ralph Johannessen, Jeff King, and Scott Smith.
The countdown is on for the start of the 2017 Iditarod Sled-dog race in 91 days on March 4th.
