GCI Awards College Scholarships to Western Alaska Students
Eight students from eight communities in Western Alaska will receive $2,000 scholarships to cover college books and tuition.
Story49: The Kobuk Comes to Ambler
The village of Ambler, 45 miles above the Arctic Circle, is the main stop on the Kobuk 440 dogsled race. Volunteers at the checkpoint say it takes the whole village to make it happen.
Red Dog Mine Money Distributed to Improvement Fund; NAB Community Projects Being Determined
A group of representatives from each of the 11 borough communities met this week in Kotzebue to define criteria for the projects. “It can’t be directed toward one entity or one person. It has to be something that’s sustainable and is shared with all the community,” according to Hiram Walker, the capital projects manager for the Village Improvement Fund. Teck Resources will contribute $8 million to the VIF this year.
Making Ambler’s Checkpoint Run Takes a Village
People like Lolo Johnson, who’s been a race cook in Ambler for 12 years, make the busy checkpoint run smoothly as mushers come and go and come again.
Browning, King Race for Second as Petit Pushes On
Veteran Tony Browning is the musher with the most Kobuk 440s under his belt, while relative newbie Ellen King is only racing her second.
Petit Extends Lead; Jessie Holmes Scratches
Petit checked in to Ambler for the second time after completing the turnaround leg to Kobuk and back in a swift 7 hours. Holmes says he “way too hard, way too fast” at the beginning.
Two Generations of Kings Racing Kobuk 440: One By Dog Sled, One By Snowmachine
Both Jeff King and Ellen King arrived into Ambler on Friday morning. The elder King isn’t competing this year, but he’s been following his daughter on snowmachine. Ellen was the fourth out of 16 mushers to reach the 2018 Kobuk 440 checkpoint.
Nic Petit First to Ambler
The sun was just creeping over Bornite Mountain when Nicolas Petit rode into Ambler in first position. It’s the third checkpoint in the Kobuk 440 and where mushers tend to take longer rests.
Francesca on the Trail
It was an adventure that she describes as one of the most incredible highlights of her year of service. In April, news volunteer Francesca Fenzi hit the trail for a sled dog race that offers a unique look of what makes rural Alaska so special.