Willow musher honored at Iditarod banquet

WASILLA — A Willow musher was honored during the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race awards banquet Sunday in Nome.

Matthew Failor earned the Matson Most Improved Musher Award. Failor, competing in his seventh Iditarod, jumped from a 59th-place finish in 2017 to 13th in 2018. After rising 46 spots in the standings, Failor netted a $2,000 cash prize and a commemorative trophy.

It’s the second top-15 finish in his Iditarod career. Failor, 34, was 15th in 2004. He finished 47th as a rookie in 2012. According to his Iditarod bio, Failor was born and raised in Masfield, Ohio, and graduated from Ohio State University in 2007 with a degree in fine arts photography. Iditarod veteran Matt Hayashida and four-time champion Martin Buser are among those who helped pull Failor into the sport. He opened his own kennel, 17th-Dog in 2013 in Willow.

The top 3 mushers in the 2018 race combined for eight awards. Joar Leifsethf Ulsom earned his first Iditarod title, and scores the top cash prize in the Iditarod race purse, $50,612. The Norwegian also scores the Anchorage Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Official Truck Award, a 2017 Dodge Ram 1,500 valued at $40,000. Ulsom’s lead dog, Russeren, was given the City of Nome Lolly Medley Memorial Golden Harness Award. Russeren is a 4-year-old male. Ulsom also received the GCI Dorothy G. Page Halfway Award. He was the first to arrive in the checkpoint of Iditarod, and earned $3,000 in gold nuggets.

Runner-up Nicolas Petit earned both the Lakefront Anchorage First Musher to the Yukon Award and the Bristol Bay Corporation Fish First Award. The first musher to Anvik gets the Lakefront Anchorage award, which includes $3,500 in one-dollar bills on a commemorative gold pan and a five-course gourmet meal prepared by Roberto Sidro, executive chef at the Lakefront Anchorage. The Girdwood musher scored the Bristol Bay award by arriving first in Kaltag. The prize includes $2,000 and a certificate for 25 pounds of fresh Bristol Bay salmon.

Petit was also the fastest musher from Safety to Nome, and grabbed the Nome Kennel Club Award, $500 and a trophy.

Seavey, who finished third overall, earned the PenAir Spirit of Alaska Award by arriving first in McGrath. The award comes with a framed print by Iditarod artist Jon VanZyle and a $500 flight credit.

Nenana’s Jessie Holmes was named 2018 Rookie of the Year after his seventh-place finish. He received $2,000 and a trophy.

Anchorage’s Scott Janssen was given the Donlin Gold Sportsmanship Award, which includes $3,000 and a trophy. Jessie Royer of Fairbanks was named Most Inspirational Musher, and will have no entry fee for the 2019 Iditarod. Richie Diehl of Anvik earned the Northern Air Cargo Herbie Nayokpuk Memorial Award, and $1,049.

Aliy Zirkle of Two Rivers earned the Leonhard Sepeala Humanitarian Award. Zirkle also has no entry fee in 2019.

Canadian musher Magnus Kaltenborn was the final musher to reach Nome, and earned the Red Lantern.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com