Jessie Holmes is the winner of the 2017 Kobuk 440. Holmes crossed the finish line yesterday morning at 1:51 a.m. with nine dogs.
Last year’s champion, Nicolas Petit, took second place, arriving 32 minutes behind Holmes at 2:23 a.m. Sunday morning with seven dogs.
Wade Marrs finished in third place in his rookie run of the Kobuk 440, followed by Jason Mackey in fourth and Richie Diehl of Aniak rounding out the top five.
Fifteen out of the sixteen total teams have crossed the finish line in Kotzebue. The latest is Jesse Salyer, who arrived at 3:52 a.m. Monday morning with seven dogs.
And this year’s red lantern, Dempsey Woods, Sr., is still out on the trail, nearing the Selawik checkpoint.
The 2017 Kobuk 440 sled dog race wraps up this evening with a finisher’s banquet in Kotzebue starting at 6 p.m.
