Jeff King rolls into Yukon River checkpoint of Ruby

Four-time Iditarod champion Jeff King has arrived at the Yukon River checkpoint of Ruby. He pulled in just after 1:00 Thursday afternoon. He told KNOM’s Emily Schwing prior to the race that he plans to rest a while there.

The last winning musher to successfully take a 24-hour break in Ruby was Emmitt Peters “The Yukon Fox” in 1975. King in 2014 pushed to Ruby and led the race out of the final checkpoint in White Mountain before a blizzard stopped his team prior to Nome. He scratched from the race.

Other top mushers have completed their mandatory rest and are pushing through Cripple. Brent Sass moved through without stopping just after noon Thursday. Dallas Seavey, the first into Cripple, can leave this afternoon after his rest.