Blayne Streeper had it in the bag.
At the end of the second day in the three-day competition, the defending champion in the Fur Rendezvous Open World Champion Sled Dog Race held a lead of more than one minute over his nearest rival. His team was still pulling strong while others were feeling the strain. His strategy and instincts were working flawlessly. All signs pointed to a third day of trail conditions that would be near perfect for his fast, strong dogs.
Knowledgeable race fans agreed that it was a matter of time before he won his sixth Rondy championship and became the third-winningest musher in the history of the sprint race -- and the first to chalk up five consecutive wins.
Then, with one last mile to go in Saturday's 25-mile leg, to the dismay and astonishment of the crowd, "Buddy" Streeper struck another musher.
Streeper and his supporters say it was an innocent slap. But several onlookers thought it looked like a punch thrown in anger. So did many who saw the video clip of the incident posted by a reader on adn.com.
Race authorities agreed and, before the start of Sunday's final heat, disqualified him for unsportsmanlike conduct. Egil Ellis, in second place at the end of day two, went on to win this year's race on Sunday.
Corinne McVee of Anchorage was among those watching at the hill on Cordova Street leading up to 15th Avenue. Luke Sampson of Kotzebue was traveling up the hill and moved to the far right as Streeper caught up with him. But instead of overtaking Sampson's team on the left, Streeper edged up on the right where McVee said there was little space. The result was a near-tangling of the two teams.
Both mushers made it to the top of the hill, by which point Sampson had veered left and Streeper was next to him. As he passed, Streeper took the swipe at Sampson, who appeared to stagger on the video clip, then swore at him.
Several people along Cordova Street were in a position to see the incident, including race officials, a radio announcer and the police officer directing traffic at the top of the hill. Cheers turned to boos.
Coming down Fourth Avenue behind the team of John Erhart, Streeper looked perturbed. His lead dogs nosed to the right of Erhart's sled, where there was no room and Streeper made gestures of frustration as he crossed the finish line. Bringing his sled to a halt, he was terse with reporters who tried to speak with him at what appeared to be a moment of victory.
The Alaska Sled Dog and Racing Association officials began investigating the allegation immediately. A written statement from Greater Anchorage Inc., the organization that runs the winter festival in which the race long has been among the most popular events, said that ASDRA had received five written accounts from trail guards at the site and a number of phoned-in complaints from other witnesses.
They also received a description of the account from Sampson, who declined to make a written protest concerning the matter.
Streeper also issued a written statement with his side of the story. In it he said that as he approached Sampson, he hollered, "Luke! Trail! Luke!"
"He did not hear me and as my leaders reached him and attempted to pass he jumped off his sled and started running along side, interfering with my leaders," Streeper said.
"As my team caught and passed Luke at the top of the hill I slapped his arm to get his attention and hollered, 'Luke, pay (expletive) attention!' "
Streeper said he acted out of concern for the safety of the dogs and felt that the penalty was too severe. He also said, "I regret using profanity during the race and apologize to all of the fans that I may have offended and to my friend Luke Sampson."
Race marshal Janet Clarke said it was the first time in the history of the race that such a penalty had been applied to a musher.
"We sometimes have trouble with the smaller teams because they're run by inexperienced mushers," she said. "What makes this unusual is that racers at this level are so professional and focused. They just don't let their emotions interfere with the race."
She stressed that the disqualification only applied to this race. The Greater Anchorage Inc. press release also said, "We welcome Blayne Streeper/Streeper Kennels to return to the World Championship Sled Dog Races in 2012."
In fact Streeper Kennels was present in a big way on the final day. The Streeper family of Fort Nelson, British Columbia, has assisted many of the competitors in this year's race.
Brent Beck expressed thanks to Buddy Streeper for getting him interested in the sport. Aaron Burmeister's fifth place team was a string of Streeper dogs, as advertised by their harnesses in the official Streeper Kennel colors of green and gold. He also got to use the big Streeper dog truck for the last day of the race.
Blayne's father Terry, in his big, green parka embellished with Canadian flags, worked tirelessly along the chute, assisting other teams as needed and chatting in a friendly way with other Rondy royalty like nine-time champion George Attla. The influence of the family -- whose members include two time winner Eddie Streeper -- runs deep at the Rondy race.
Sampson, who was just getting over an illness at the start of the race, scratched on the last day. He had grown concerned about the condition of his dogs and, before the Cordova hill incident, was considering calling for his truck to come pick them up at every checkpoint. The cheers of the crowd motivated both him and his team, but as they struggled with the hill, he had already decided to pull them out of the final day's competition.
Although the remaining competitors had been advised not to speak with the media, there was no shortage of off-the-record opinion about what happened or whether officials had done the right thing or whether Ellis would have won had Streeper not been removed.
The 2011 race will be controversial for some time to come.
The decision to disqualify Streeper was not made lightly, race marshal Clarke said. But ultimately ASDRA didn't see any other course.
At a pre-race huddle with the mushers she urged them to set their feelings aside for the moment. "It's hard when something this unexpected happens," she said. "But we have a race to run."
The competitors nodded, shook hands, wished one another well, and went to prepare their dogs for the race.
Reach Mike Dunham at mdunham@adn.com or 257-4332.
By MIKE DUNHAM
mdunhamx@adn.com