Buddy Streeper drove his team of huskies to the fastest time for the second straight day in the Open North American Championships in Fairbanks.
Streeper and his team of 11 dogs made the 20.26-mile run in 66 minutes, 28.3 seconds. He was about 50 seconds slower than he was Friday, but that didn’t impact his lead.
The British Columbia musher will take a lead of nearly four minutes into Sunday’s final heat. His nearest competitor? His wife, Lina, who vaulted into second place by mushing her team of 11 dogs to Saturday’s second-fastest time.
Anny Malo of Quebec, second after the first heat, was fourth in the second heat to slip to third place overall.
Streeper is trying to sweep sprint mushing’s two biggest titles. He won the Fur Rondy Open World Championship last month in Anchorage.
Saturday’s top 5
1) Buddy Streeper 66:28.3; 2) Lina Streeper, 68:02.5; 3) Kourosh Partow 69:07.4; 4) Anny Malo 69:22.3; 5) Michael Tetzner 69:36.1.
Two-day total times
1) Buddy Streeper 132:08.8
2) Lina Streeper 136:03.7
3) Anny Malo 136:39.0
4) Ricky Taylor 138:30.5
5) Kourosh Partow 138:37.9
6) Amy Dunlap 139:05.2
7) Ken Chezik 139:11.6
8) Michael Tetzner 139:29.2
9) Ariane Jasmin 141:40.2
10) Carl Knudsen 142:42.9
11) Marvin Kokrine 143:36.7
12) Guy Gerard 145:06.7
13) Nikki Seo 146:37.7
14) John Erhart 149:31.7
15) Thomas Moore 149:34.0
16) Armin Johnson 150:57.1
17) Don Cousins 151:33.9 17
Scratched — Rejean Therrien.