Campout Race Preview!

13 teams are signed up to compete in this weekend's Campout Race, the final purse race of the Kuskokwim 300 Race Committee season. Complete Race Rules and Roster below.

Teams will travel (not race) upriver on the Kuskokwim then Gweek River to an established campsite about 42 miles from Bethel. They may leave from Bethel any time after 11am on Saturday but must begin at the start line, near the mouth of the small boat harbor, and follow the marked trail. Registered mushers may let others drive their team upriver if desired.

Racers are advised that the trail hugs the left bank (as you go upriver) for the entire route - there are no crossings of the Gweek River.

Mushers, there are numerous cracks in the ice on the trail, even more than during our race last week. The worst of them are mainly on the stretch from Schwalbe Island to the bluffs. The worst cracks were marked this afternoon. Please use caution.

On Sunday morning, the race begins. Teams will take off from camp at 11am and follow the same route downriver to Bethel. There will be a designated spot about halfway down the trail where teams may drop dogs but it is not a checkpoint - stopping is not required. The finish line will be near the old barge on the bank, near the small boat harbor.

All mushers and their crew must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Excessive use of alcohol at camp is not permitted.

The Rules:

1. The event will begin at 11AM Saturday March 26th near the mouth of the Bethel Small Boat Harbor.

2. Dog teams and camp crews will travel up (not race) to a pre-determined camping spot, approximately 45 miles up the Gweek River from Bethel

3. Eight-dog limit; five dogs must be in harness at the end of the race. Teams will be able to drop dogs at the camp spot, and a designated spot along the trail. Dogs may not be added to a team after the Saturday start.

4. The race will start on Sunday March 27th from camp at 11AM. Teams will line up in the order in which they arrived in camp the previous day. (The first team to arrive in camp will be the first team on the trail, etc.)

5. General passing rules apply. No Man’s Land will be marked by a sign about 2 miles from the finish.

6. No pacing by snowmachine.

7. Excessive use of alcohol by mushers or handlers is not permitted.

8. The race purse will be $20,000 paid to the top 15 finishers.

9. Participants must be K300 Race Committee members ($100 annual membership) and be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. All handlers and support crew must all be fully vaccinated.

The Mushers: