On the anniversary of the race namesake's birthday, Two Rivers musher Will Rhodes on Sunday won the Knik 200 Joe Redington Sr. Memorial Race.
Rhodes beat 18-year-old Ben Harper of Wasilla by more than an hour. He reached the Deshka Landing finish line right around noon to win the 172-mile race that began Friday at Deshka Landing.
Rhodes, who earlier this month won the 100-mile Solstice 50/100, finished in 20 hours, 17 minutes, 10 seconds. Harper clocked 21:23:20.
In third place, about 20 minutes behind Harper, was Robert Redington, grandson of Joe Sr. The race is run in memory of Joe Sr., who is beloved across Alaska for his role in creating the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Redington was born on Feb. 1, 1917, and died in 1999 at age 82.
Rhodes originally was on the waiting list for the Knik 200 but gained a spot in the race when poor trail conditions forced race officials to postpone it by three weeks. The change in dates prompted the withdrawal of some mushers.
Trail conditions continued to affect the race, which usually starts and finishes at Knik Lake, near the Redington homestead. Officials deemed the lake unviable to handle this year's start and finish and moved things north to Willow, cutting 28 miles from the distance. Teams traveled from the Deshka Landing airstrip to Yentna Station and back, took a six-hour mandatory layover at Deshka Landing and then did the loop again.
Correction: This story has been changed from its original print version, which incorrectly stated that Rhodes mushes out of a kennel owned by Lance Mackey. Rhodes and his wife, Brenda, have their own kennel in Two Rivers.
Knik 200 Joe Redington Sr. Memorial Race
1) Will Rhodes 20:17:10; 2) Ben Harper 21:23:20; 3) Robert Redington 21:44:15; 4) Justin Savidis 21:44:15; 5) Scott Janssen 21:49:23; 6) Dean Osmar 22:03:56; 7) Kristy Berington 22:26:20; 8) Rick Castillo 22:27:00; 9) DeeDee Jonrowe 22:46:20; 10) Anna Berington 23:05:10; 11) Yvonne Dabakk 23:11:45; 12) Tim Pappas 23:12:15; 13) Matthew Failor 23:57:54; 14) Jake Lengang 24:06:30; 15) Alan Stevens 24:20:50. Scratched -- Paul Gebhardt, Robert Bear, Travis Beals, Melissa Owens.