Montanans dominate Idaho Sled Dog Challenge

by NBC Montana Staff

Sun, February 5th 2023, 11:42 PM UTC

WARM LAKE, Idaho (Jan. 27, 2023) — Stevensville, Mont., musher Ryan Roberts took second place in the 52-mile Warm Lake Stage Race, a new event at the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge this year for mushers new to the sport or running new sled dog teams. In its fifth year, the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge also stages a 100-mile race and a 300-mile Iditarod and Yukon Quest qualifier in the West Central Mountains of Idaho that are part of the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown. In one of many family connections at the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge this year, Roberts raced against his wife, Jana Roberts, who came in fourth place. (Photo by Melissa Shelby)

NEW MEADOWS, Idaho (Jan. 31, 2023) — Musher Wade Donaldson from Coalville, Utah, took third place in the 2023 Idaho Sled Dog Challenge’s 100-mile race Tuesday at 7:35:31 a.m. with a completed race time of 17:11:31 and averaging 9.19 mph. The Idaho Sled Dog Challenge, Oregon’s Eagle Cap Extreme, and Montana’s Race to the Sky Feb. 11-14 comprise the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown. Celebrating its fifth year, the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge is the only 300-mile Yukon Quest qualifier in the lower 48 and one of only three such events for the Iditarod in the contiguous continental U.S. (Photo by Melissa Shelby)

NEW MEADOWS, Idaho (Jan. 31, 2023) — Musher Nicole Lombardi from Lincoln, Mont., took first place in the 2023 Idaho Sled Dog Challenge’s 100-mile race Tuesday at 6:33:57 a.m. with a completed race time of 16:09:57 and averaging 10.03 mph. She won the event last year, too, and captured first place in this year’s 100-mile race at Oregon’s Eagle Cap Extreme two weeks ago. The Idaho Sled Dog Challenge, Eagle Cap Extreme, and Montana’s Race to the Sky Feb. 11-14 comprise the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown. Celebrating its fifth year, the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge is the only 300-mile Yukon Quest qualifier in the lower 48 and one of only three such events for the Iditarod in the contiguous continental U.S. (Photo by Melissa Shelby)

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WARM LAKE, Idaho (Jan. 27, 2023) — Stevensville, Mont., musher Ryan Roberts took second place in the 52-mile Warm Lake Stage Race, a new event at the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge this year for mushers new to the sport or running new sled dog teams. In its fifth year, the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge also stages a 100-mile race and a 300-mile Iditarod and Yukon Quest qualifier in the West Central Mountains of Idaho that are part of the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown. In one of many family connections at the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge this year, Roberts raced against his wife, Jana Roberts, who came in fourth place. (Photo by Melissa Shelby)

MISSOULA, Mont. — The Idaho Sled Dog Challenge wrapped Feb. 3 with Montana sledders standing out during the competition.

In the 300-mile competition, three Montanans placed in the top five.

First was Jessie Royer from Seeley Lake, who finished in 50:21:16.

Royer Josi Thyr from Olney placed second with a time of 51:03:31.

And in fourth place was Erik Oline from Missoula with a time of 53:12:00

For the 100-mile competition, Nicole Lombardi from Lincoln finished with a time of 16:09:57 and had an average speed of 10.03 mph.

The Idaho Sled Dog Challenge released the following:

With Montana mushers Jessie Royer and Nicole Lombardi winning this year's 300-mile and 100-mile races, respectively, a trend officials have observed persists: Women continue to dominate the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge. According to ISDC founder and organizer Jerry Wortley, women have won eight of the 10 races they've staged since the event's debut in 2018.

Royer won the inaugural race in 2018 -- a sole 237-mile course, then called the McCall Ultra Sled Dog Challenge -- and the 300-mile race in 2020. Canadian musher Jennifer Campeau won the 150-mile race in 2019, when the name was changed to the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge and it joined Oregon's Eagle Cap Extreme and Montana's Race to the Sky to form the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown. Idaho musher Laurie Warren won ISDC's 100-mile race in 2020. Montana musher Josi Thyr won the 300-mile race in 2022, and Lombardi won the 100-mile race.

Montana musher Brett Bruggeman and Idaho musher Kevin Daugherty are the only males to ever win Idaho Sled Dog Challenge races -- the 300-mile race in 2019 and the 52-mile Warm Lake Stage Race in 2023, respectively.

The competition was cancelled in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The final race standings for this year's 300-mile race (266.5 total race miles) are:

1. Jessie Royer (Seeley Lake, MT) -- bib #6 -- 50:21:16 -- 8.07 mph avg.

2. Josi Thyr (Olney, MT) -- bib #8 -- 51:03:31 -- 8.24 mph avg.

3. Jed Stephensen (Sandpoint, ID) -- bib #7 -- 52:03:42 -- 8.41 mph avg.

4. Erik Oline (Missoula, MT) -- bib #2 -- 53:12:00 -- 7.73 mph avg.

5. Bryce Mumford (Preston, ID) -- bib #3 -- 69:24:42 -- 6.80 mph avg.

6. Rex Mumford (Huntsville, UT) -- bib #5 -- 69:24:42 -- 6.84 mph avg.

7. Anna Bolvin (Porcupine Plain, Sask.) -- bib #4 -- N/A (scratched) -- 7.92 mph avg.

The final race standings for this year's 100-mile race (102 total race miles) are:

1. Nicole Lombardi (Lincoln, MT) -- bib #21 -- 16:09:57 -- 10.03 mph avg.

2. Jesika Reimer (Emigrant Gap, CA) -- bib #11 -- 16:39:58 -- 9.79 mph avg.

3. Wade Donaldson (Coalville, UT) -- bib #12 -- 17:11:31 -- 9.19 mph avg.

4. Dallin Donaldson (Coalville, UT) -- bib #13 -- 17:15:59 -- 9.21 mph avg.

5. Kevin Daugherty (McCall, ID) -- bib #15 -- 17:52:01 -- 8.78 mph avg.

6. Trevor Warren (Council, ID) -- bib #20 -- 17:57:32 -- 8.56 mph avg.

7. Thomas Blackham (Terreton, ID) -- bib #10 -- 18:34:04 -- 8.14 mph avg.

8. Bino Fowler (Bend, OR) -- bib #17 -- 19:35:27 -- 7.60 mph avg.

9 Maddie Longpre-Harrer (Calumet, MI) -- bib #18 -- N/A (scratched) -- 8.45 mph avg.

Thyr and Stephensen captured first and second place, respectively, in the 2023 Eagle Cap Extreme's 200-mile race two weeks ago. And Lombardi, Reimer, and Fowler finished first, second, and third, respectively, in the Oregon event's 100-mile race. The Idaho Sled Dog Challenge, Eagle Cap Extreme, and Montana's Race to the Sky Feb. 11-14 comprise the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown.

The final race standings for this year's Warm Lake Stage Race (two 26-mile stages with the winner having the best average time):

1. Kevin Daugherty (McCall, ID) -- bib #7 -- 4:15:39 -- 10.33 mph avg.

2. Ryan Roberts (Stevensville, MT) -- bib #3 -- 4:25:21 -- 9.95 mph avg.

3. Craig Anderson (Enterprise, OR) -- bib #2 -- 4:30:48 -- 9.75 mph avg.

4. Jana Roberts (Stevensville, MT) -- bib #4 -- 4:35:14 -- 9.59 mph avg.

5. Maddie Longpre-Harrer (Calumet, MI) -- bib #1 -- 4:41:36 -- 9.38 mph avg.

6. Jane Devlin (Bend, OR) -- bib #6 -- 4:50:00 -- 9.10 mph avg.

7 -- Liz Nevills (Middleton, ID) -- bib #5 -- 5:23:46 -- 8.15 mph avg.

Race marshal Rick Katucki explained how several mushers who finished later reached higher average speeds than some who finished earlier.

"The average speed is calculated using running time," Katucki said. "In a continuous-format race, which the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge uses, mushers may rest their teams as long as they want. A faster team that stays in the checkpoint longer can finish later than one that rests less. Sled dog racing has a large management and strategy component, and in this instance the mushers with the faster teams finished later because they miscalculated how long they needed to stay or perhaps their checkpoint routines were not as efficient and they didn't return to the trail as quickly as they might have. This is similar to a race car spending too much time at a pit stop."

This year's Idaho Sled Dog Challenge, the fifth annual occurrence, attracted teams from eight states and one Canadian province. There were several family connections among the competing mushers, including a married couple (Jana and Ryan Roberts in the Warm Lake Stage Race), a father and son (Rex and Bryce Mumford in the 300-mile race), and two brothers (Dallin and Wade Donaldson in the 100-mile race).

The Idaho Sled Dog Challenge features world-class mushers. It is the only 300-mile Yukon Quest qualifier in the lower 48 and one of only three such events for the Iditarod in the contiguous continental U.S. The Iditarod and the Yukon Quest are considered the longest and the toughest sled dog races in the world.

According to ISDC co-founder and trails coordinator Dave Looney, the Idaho race is considered one of the most grueling mushing competitions in the world due to its topography.

"Mushers will tell you this is a very, very atypical race," Looney said. "Our elevation change is 39,000 feet, which is greater than the Iditarod. They call it a 500-mile race packed into 300 miles. So the dog care and the pacing and the attention they have to pay to the terrain is really important, because there's a lot of up and down. One musher said the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge is like climbing Mt. Everest -- twice."

The sixth annual Idaho Sled Dog Challenge is already on the calendar, with the Warm Lake Stage Race slated for Jan. 24-25, 2024, and the 300-mile and 100-mile races scheduled for Jan. 28-Feb. 1, 2024. The races operate under a special use permit from the U.S. Forest Service and is the recipient of an Idaho Travel Council grant secured by the McCall Area Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau.

Race organizers said the event couldn't be staged without the generous support of its many sponsors and volunteers. Visit idahosleddogchallenge.com to sign up as a sponsor or volunteer for the 2024 race.

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