2022 Fur Rondy OWC is Dedicated to
Jeff Barnhart
Dixie Waddell

Dr. Susan Wagnon
In Alaska, volunteers are the unsung champions of mushing.
Without their passion, their countless hours of dedication, and their unfaltering commitment to musher and canine safety, trail preservation and maintenance, and recording race results for our preliminary and championship races would not occur. Each racing association has one or two, or a handful of volunteers, if they’re lucky, whose mark on the sport has equal weight with the competitors whose team’s race and thrill us all. Since the last time the Alaskan Sled Dog Racing Association and Greater Anchorage Incorporated hosted the Fur Rendezvous Open World Championship Sled Dog Race, speed mushing has lost three Alaskan volunteers whose names are synonymous with our sport. Dixie Waddell, Dr. Susan Wagnon, and Jeff Barnhart, each in their own unique way helped dogs, mushers, and spectators safely understand and enjoy Alaska’s state sport. Individually and collectively their loss has left an immeasurable void in our hearts and minds, but their contributions live on. As the elite dogs and the dog drivers gather for the start of this race, we celebrate the memory of Dixie, Susan, and Jeff and thank their families for sharing their lives with our sprint mushing community.
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