Thunder Bay musher makes history at Jr. Iditarod in Alaska

A 17-year-old musher from Thunder Bay made history at the Jr. Iditarod sled dog race in Alaska this past weekend.

Julia Cross and her team of 10 dogs from Redington Mushing came second out of nine very talented mushers.

She was only the fourth Canadian to compete in the Jr. Iditarod in the event's 42-year history. The race spans 225 kilometres, and takes place over two gruelling days.

Cross said the competition was not without its challenges, including breaking trail for most of the race.

"It was one of the most tedious races I've run as there was a lot of snow and it took a long time and it was a long, slow ride,"said Cross. "And I've run races with fresh snow before but not that much fresh snow. And not being the first team out the entire time."

Cross drew bib #2 on Friday Night, meaning she was first out of the start chute on Saturday morning. On the first day, she led the pack of nine mushers for all of the approximately 110 kilometres, to the remote half-way checkpoint of Yentna Station.

Cross arrived approximately 20 minutes ahead of the next competitor.

"I kept looking back the whole time, expecting to see a dog team," she said. "Because there were some pretty awesome dog teams. And I was expecting one of them to come up behind me and pass me."

After a 10-hour mandatory rest period where Cross camped outside with her dogs, she made the return trip to Willow, Alaska – approximately 120 kilometres away, through 40 to 50 centimetres of fresh snow.

Cross and her team once again led the race for most of the course.

"We were the first team at every single check point and we were leading the race until the last 30 miles," she said.

At the end of the race, Cross and her team finished in second place, with a total time including mandatory rest of 29 hours, 45 minutes and 30 seconds.

This result made her the highest placing Canadian to ever race the Jr. Iditarod in the 42-year history of the race.

In addition to her second-place finish, Cross won the Sportsmanship Trophy, Blue Harness Award for Best Lead Dog and the First Female.

For her efforts, Cross will receive three scholarships, and a variety of other prizes.

"I'm amazed," said Cross. "It was an absolutely incredible race. It was a really good group of people to be racing against. And it was a really fun race."