2025 Iditarod: Meet the Mat-Su Mushers

Riley Dyche

Big Lake

My finance Isabel and I live in Big Lake, AK with our 38-dog kennel. We have a great veteran team and after a year off from the race we look forward to running a competitive team this season. For more, see darkhorsesleddogs.com.

Gabe Dunham

Willow

Gabe Dunham was born and raised in Fairbanks. Her family moved to Valdez when she was very young and when she discovered her passion for outdoor adventures and animals. She started running sled dogs when she was about 16 years old. Gabe ran her first race when she was 18. For the next nine years she mentored and worked with Linwood & Kathi Fiedler, with Alaska Heli-mush, and learned extraordinary dog care and astounding training techniques from them. In 2011 Gabe moved to Bend, Oregon where she completed a degree in Fish and Wildlife Management with OSU. She had a small team of dogs and would enter every race she could get to from the Bachelor Butte to Wyoming Stage Stop. In 2018 Gabe moved to Montana while running her own sled-dog tour business, Evermore Adventures. This drove Gabe’s passion for mushing even stronger. In 2019 Gabe was the first woman to finish the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown where she took 2nd place. In 2020 she set a course record in the Eagle Cap Extreme 200. A few weeks later she took 2nd place in Race to the Sky 300. She finished running Montana’s Race to the Sky, loaded her dogs and sled, headed north and moved back home to Alaska. Today she has a kennel of strong, talented Alaskan huskies that love to go on adventures. The Evermore Adventure kennel is looking forward to running down the Iditarod trail. Gabe would like to take this moment to thank everyone who has supported her along the way over the years. There are so many wonderful individuals and corporate sponsors that have helped her get to the starting line.

The Evermore dogs and I are eternally grateful for your support.

Nicolas Petit

Willow

I’ve been racing for over a decade starting with Jim Lanier’s Northern Whites. I sran Raymie Redington’s dogs until I was able to have my own team. Thanks to Beamer making amazing pups, we’ve had some real success. My dog team is now a real family of dogs that is super fun to run. For more, see TeamPetit.com.

Sydnie Bahl

Wasilla

Sydnie Bahl was born and raised in Minot, North Dakota. She graduated from the University of North Dakota in 2013 with a doctorate in physical therapy. In 2021 Sydnie and her husband Nick moved to Alaska to follow their dreams of living a life of adventure. While working as a physical therapist in Alaska, Sydnie met Cindy Abbott. Cindy’s captivating mushing stories ignited a spark in Sydnie, intriguing her with the idea of running a dog team across the Alaskan wilderness. This curiosity led Sydnie to a sled dog tour with Vern Halter at Dream a Dream Sled Dog Farm. The tour was a transformative experience and Sydnie was immediately hooked. The very next day she started working at Dream a Dream Sled Dog Farm, and within weeks she began learning how to run her own dog team. With a newfound passion and determination, Sydnie continues to race and train with Vern Halter’s Dream a Dream Sled Dog Farm. Her journey from a physical therapist to an Iditarod contender is a testament to her adventurous spirit and unwavering dedication. For more, see sydniebahlmusher.com.

Anna Berington

Knik

The team will be trained by both twins Anna and Kristy. Anna is lucky enough to take the team while Kristy does the Yukon Quest and other races. It will be hard without her. For more, see seeingdoublesleddogracing.com.

Ryan Redington

Knik

Born into the mushing family, Ryan proudly carries on the family legacy of running dogs, racing, raising awareness for the sport of dog sledding and advocating for Alaska Native values. His grandfather, Joe Redington Sr., is known as the ‘Father of the Iditarod’ for co-founding the 1,000 mile race in 1973, and helping to establish the route as a national historic trail. A dedicated heir of the sport, Ryan has been mushing ever since he could hold onto the sled, and has excelled at sprint and marathon sled dog races across the Midwest and Alaska. Ryan is the 2023 Iditarod Champion. He is also the 2019 and 2021 Champion of the Kobuk 440 in Kotzebue. For more, see redingtonmushing.com.

Matthew Failor

Willow

Matthew Failor is a veteran Iditarod musher, Kuskokwim 300 Champion, and multi-time humanitarian award winner in mid-distance racing. He and his wife Liz own and operate Alaskan Husky Adventures in Willow, Alaska, where they offer locals and visitors a chance to meet their Iditarod team and experience the joy of dog mushing for themselves. Their race team name, 17th-Dog, is a tribute to their supporters. For many years, mushers could take 16 dogs on the Iditarod. Family, friends, and fans of the team are symbolically dubbed the 17th-Dog that make it possible to race. For more, see akhusky.dog.

** Information courtesy of iditarod.com.