Race History
Four men, all mushers, sat at a table in the Bull's Eye Saloon, in Fairbanks. It was 1983, and the conversation was about a new sled dog race.
They spoke of "what-ifs." What if the race followed a historical trail? What if it were an international race? What if the race went a little longer? What if it even went up the Yukon River?
As early as 1976, a Fairbanks to Whitehorse race had been talked of. But it wasn't until this conversation of Roger Williams, Leroy Shank, Ron Rosser and Willie Libb that it became more than an idea. They decided to name the race the "Yukon Quest" to commemorate the Yukon River, the old highway of the north. The trail would trace the path that the prospectors followed to reach the Alaskan interior from the Klondike during the 1898 gold rush.
The first race tested both race logistics and the talents of all involved. Twenty-six teams left Fairbanks that February day in 1984. Over the next 16 days, 20 teams made it to Whitehorse, with six teams forced to drop out along the way. Sonny Lindner became the first Quest champion, completing the race in 12 days.
The skeptics were silenced; the "dreamers" had done it!
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