Beargrease Volunteers Brave The Cold To Help Dogs And Mushers

DULUTH, Minn. – The John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon can’t happen without the help of volunteers. Every year, it’s the volunteers that help mushers get their dogs ready for the races. Volunteers help with road crossings, as a dog crew member working with the musher and dogs, and as a part of the finish line crew. We caught up with two volunteers to see how they were involved.

“We saw on the website that they had a list of all of the duties that you can do. And getting the dogs from back here to the starting line looked like the most fun one. So we signed up for that,” said volunteer Blake Johnston.

“Last year’s champion, Ryan Anderson, has a really strong team, some really strong dogs. So he instructed us how to get them from the prep area to the start line,” said volunteer Jessica Chaney.

There are also media and public relations volunteer positions. As the marathon is nearing its 40th race, organizers say that they have high hopes for what next year could bring.

“We’re really hoping to make it a bigger and better event and have more going on, just make it a really big community event for everyone. We’re really excited for next year and we’re already planning for it,” said Vice President of the Beargrease Board Brittany North.

To check out any volunteer opportunities, you can visit their website at beargrease.com.