Greg Lincoln
The 44th Annual Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race starts on the river in front of Bethel on Friday, January 27, 2023 at 6:30pm. Musher travels up the Kuskokwim River to Aniak, Alaska and back. Below, in order of registration (as of January 22, 2023). Best races and good luck!
2023 Cuscokwim 300 Masher
Josh McNeillThe 28-year-old from Esther, Alaska, was the first musher to sign up for the 2023 Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race with registration opening on October 3, 2022. McNeill said he will race the Iditarod Gold Loop Trail in 2021 and finish 28th. He also ran his Kobuk 440 in 2019 and finished 9th. This is his first K300 race.
Matthew Failer, 40 years old, and 2019 Kuskokwim 300 champion. He currently holds the record for the fastest elapsed K300 victory. He was runner-up in 2020 and he was in 2022, and was named Rookie of the Year in 2011. He also won the 2018 He K300 Humanitarian Award for Best Dog Care. He and his wife Liz own his 17th kennel in Willow, Alaska. This will be his 7th run on the K300.
Richie Deal, 37, from Aniak, Alaska. He has his 45 dogs in his Real Diehl Racing Kennel. Richie is the 2021 K300 and Bogus Creek 150 Champion. He has completed his K300 his 12th time and in the past he has won the Humanitarian Award (2011) and Best in the West (2012, 2016). He finished his Iditarod his ninth time with his three top 10 finishes (2018, 2021, 2022).
Pete Kaiser, 35-year-old Bethel, will be chasing his seventh K300 win. He won his K300 crown from his 2015, he’s 2018, 2020 and he’s 2021. He won his Best in the West award in 2009, 2013, 2014, 2020 and 2022. K300 Sportsmanship (2010) and Humanitarian (2016) Award Winner and Rookie of the Year Award Winner (2009). Pete is also the 2019 Iditarod Race Champion. His Kaiser Racing kennel has 35 of his dogs. This year marks the 15th year of running the K300.
Lev SchwartzThe 43-year-old from Willow, Alaska will be racing his second K300 with Team Ollie Kennel. He has his 24 dogs. He finished 13th last year. He is also an Iditarod veteran with five finishes. Lev has been mashing for his 20 years.
Jeffrey Dieter, 34, from upstate Fairbanks, Alaska. He has his 34 dogs at his Black Spruce Dog Sledding Kennel, where he runs a dog sledding tour business. He was his five-time finisher in his Iditarod, and his highest finish in 2021 was his 12th. This is my first time racing a K300.
Eddie Burke Jr., age 33, from Anchorage, Alaska. Eddie trains at his Alaskan Wildstyle Racing Kennel in his Nenana. He started dog racing in his 2021. He finished 3rd in the 2022 he Kobuk 440 and his 200 mile he Ididn’trod. He will be racing his second K300 this weekend.
Isaac Underwood, 42, from Aniak, Alaska. He keeps his 32 dogs at his family’s Underwood Kennel. Isaac has been munching on his 20 years as well. He competes in local races such as Akiak Dash, Bogus Creek 150 and K300. Isaac has finished seven times in his K300 and his best result for 2021 was fifth place.
Jessica Kreika, 32 years old, born and raised in Bethel. She has her 24 dogs at her Tailwind Kennel in Knick, AK. She led the team to her 8th-place finish in her 2021 K300 and also won the Humanitarian Award. She raced her Iditarod in her 2019 as a rookie. She is a veteran of her Bogus Creek 150 and her best finish for 2010 is her 5th. Jessica is also an Akiak Dash finisher (2005). Jessica has been a veterinary doctor since 2016. She has her own clinic, her Knik Veterinary Clinic.
Reese Madden, 37, from Nome, Alaska. He keeps his 16 dogs in the Amagpiak kennel. For 2021, as a rookie, Reese will be riding the K300. He also competed in the 2021 He Kobuk 440.
John Snyder, 37, from Akichak, Alaska. He has competed in many local races at Snyder’s Kennel and has 24 dogs. He ran the Bogus Creek 150 in his 2021 and his 2022. In 2022 he completed the K300 as a rookie. This will be his second K300 race.
Will Rhodes, 44, from Two Rivers, Alaska. He has 44 dogs at the McKay’s Alaska Distance Dog Kennel with his wife Brenda McKee and his daughter Isabel.His racing experience dates back to his 2013 increase. This will be his third K300 race of his. He finished 10th in 2019 and 2020.
Brent Sass, age 42, Eureka, AK will run the K300 for the fifth time with the Wild and Free Mushing team. In his kennel he has 60 dogs. He is his three-time Yukon Quest Champion (2015, 2019, 2020), 2022 Iditarod Champion and 2022 Copper Basin 300 winner. He has been runner-up on his K300 twice (2016 and 2017).
Sim Smith, 46, races from Big Lake, AK on his Perseverance Springs Farm Kennel. Sim is a four-time Klondike 300 champion, a four-time Tustumena 200 champion and a four-time Kobuk 440 champion. He has competed in the K300 many times, finishing 3rd in 2014. He’s been running for 40 years. He finished 6th in 2022.
Dave TurnerThe 51-year-old from Fairbanks is a two-time K300 finisher. His best finish was his 8th place in 2020. He is the winner of his 2020 Yukon Quest 300 and 2021 Two Rivers 200. He also competed in the 2022 Far His Rondi where he finished 13th, and in the 2022 Open North American he finished 15th. Dave is in Racing Chaos Kennel He has 46 dogs. This is his third K300 race.
Paige Drobney, 47, will compete again in the K300 in Cantwell, AK. She has her 40 dogs in her Squid Acres Kennel. She ran the K300 in 2020 and finished 14th. Paige has placed 7th in the Iditarod twice, in 2019 and 2020. She has completed the Iditarod her 8th time. She also placed 4th in the Yukon Quest. Her racing history dates back to her 2009 and this will be her second K300 race.
Jason Pavila, 19, Kwethluk will be racing his second K300. In 2022 he won the Rookie of the Year award. He was also the fastest musher to Karskag. Jason won the Bogus Creek 150 race in 2019. He was only 15 years old on his first attempt. Jason also finished 4th in the 2018 Akiac Dash. He’s playing with his family’s Bud his River Kennel team.
Twyla Erhardt, the 31-year-old will compete against the team at Bethel’s Old Friendly Dog Farm, which has 17 dogs. She is a veteran of the Bogus Creek 150 and last year she finished 10th. Twyla will be racing her K300 for the first time this weekend. She is also a hospital nurse and is one of three women to compete in the K300 this year.
Jacob WhitkopMr., 33, has 83 dogs at his Happy Feet kennel in Salcha, AK. He competed in the Copper Basin 300 in 2021 and 2022, both years he finished fifth. He also competed in the Limited North American, Yukon Quest 300, Willow 300, Two Rivers 200 and Willow 150. This is my first time racing a K300.
Jackie Larson, 52, races from Napaskiak, home of his family’s 13-dog Jackie’s racing kennel. He finished his K300 his four times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2017). Jackie is the 2007 and he is the 2015 Bogus Creek 150 Champion and the 2021 and he is the 2022 He is the Akiak Dash winner.
Girdwood’s Nicholas Petit, Seward’s Travis Beals, and Seward’s Sarah Stokey withdrew from the race.
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