Ways for Fans to Watch the Copper Basin 300 Dogsled Race

Glennallen, AK – The Copper Basin 300 dogsled race starts Saturday at 10:00 a.m. right in front of KCAM radio in downtown Glennallen. 

This year, the planned race is running counter clockwise- to Chistochina first. Media specialist Kelsey Stanbro emphasized: “This is plan A, but dependent on trail conditions.” Mushers ran clockwise last year, with the Tolsona Lake Lodge as the first stop. 

Last year, mushers had to contend with overly warm temperatures, open water, thin or soft snow, and even rain.

According to CB300 Board President and Race Manager Jason Severs, this year’s mushers can expect “low snow on a couple of small sections of the trail. Most of the trail has a good foot of base and is ridden and packed.” Severs directs a team of volunteers on snowmachines for weeks leading up to the race to pack and prepare the trail. 

Severs also stated, “The sections that have minimal amounts [of snow] had a ton of wind blow through and took a lot of the base. We are looking for more snow but we are pushing forward for the race!” Hopefully, the snow forecasted between our Tuesday morning press time and the race materializes.  

Most locals are familiar with the race start in downtown Glennallen. It is fun to watch each musher and handler work to stage the dogs at the start, and to see how excited the dogs are to run. It’s also a great, informal place to catch up with other community members.

Dog teams leave one at a time every two minutes. It takes about an hour for all the teams to get onto the course. There’s ample space for spectators alongside the starting area. Cross Road Health Ministries is continuing the tradition of providing hot drinks and chili in the Glennallen Senior Center for spectators to warm up with. 

Race headquarters is at the American Legion, which is also where merchandise is available. 

Spectators can also watch the teams from throughout the course, cheer for the dogs, and take pictures, as long as they make sure they don’t interfere with the race. Last year, I enjoyed skiing out onto Lake Louise in the dark to watch the dogs come in.

There are ample indoor opportunities to follow the race as well. KCAM will be broadcasting live. You can listen on the radio or visit https://listen.kcam.org/ to livestream on another device. 

The Track Leaders link on the CB300 webpage will take you to a map with live locations of racers’ sleds. This is fun to watch throughout the race, and also can be helpful for your timing if you’re hoping to watch a team come into the finish line. Finishers should start coming sometime Monday afternoon. 

Last year’s winner, Jesse Holmes, and second place finisher, Cody Strathe, are both registered to run again this year. As always, there are several newcomers, many of whom hope the race will help them get one step closer to the Iditarod.

The CB300 media team will also broadcast live video throughout the race on their Facebook Page. 

It takes a huge amount of grit to get to the CB300. Each musher has an incredible backstory.  Stanbro and the rest of the CB300 team have done a great job telling some of those stories in profiles on the CB300 Facebook page. 

There are so many interesting people involved with this race, from the competitors to the veterinarians from all across the country, to the locals who do any and all things to pull off the event. 

All of the people who make the race happen are volunteers, many working months in advance. Volunteering is also a fun way to get an inside perspective of the race. Visit https://www.cb300.com/volunteers to learn more. Stanbro also asks fans of the race to consider supporting the race financially by sponsoring a mile. 

After the race, there will be a banquet Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. at the Glennallen Middle School Gym. The Copper River School District Future Farmers of America group is catering.  Tickets can be purchased at Race Central.