Mushers Sent Off to ‘Hike!’ on Beargrease Marathon’s 300-Mile Trail

"It feels like Beargrease, and what makes Beargrease so special," Redington said.

DULUTH, Minn.- Just follow the howls of the excited dogs Sunday and you’d find the Beargrease Marathon mushers and their fans excited to see them tackle the longest sled dog race in the lower 48 states.

“The energy of the dogs, the energy of the fans, it’s just surreal that we’re at this point already,” said Monica Hendrickson, Marketing and Developing Consultant for the Marathon.

Barks, yelps, and howls of excitement cut through the air at Billy’s Bar in Duluth, as dogs pawed and pulled to get after the miles of trail in front of them, while their mushers stared it down in anticipation.

“The spectator turnout is awesome but it’s always nice to get out on the quiet of the trail with the dogs,” Erin Letzring said.

While Letzring is the Marathon’s defending champion, she said leaderboards go out the window when you’re behind the dogs, trying to make it to Grand Portage. “No, you can’t let that add pressure.”

“I mean obviously yes it would be fun to do it again but you never know what’s going to happen so you’re just going to go run the dogs that we’ve got, have fun, enjoy, and then if things go well they go well,” she said.

The same goes for Ryan Redington who finished behind Letzring last year — by barely 10 seconds. “But it’s a dog race anything can happen,” he said.

The two-time Beargrease winner said his team’s stepped up over the past year.

“Better dogs, I think I think I’ve got a better team this year,” said Redington. “More evenly matched dogs and I’m excited to see how they do.”

Redington is lucky to even be in the race this year. While training in Bayfield in January, a snowmobiler struck some of his dogs and took off.

His wheel dog Wildfire was thrown into the air and was left with a leg that was broken in three places. Another dog, Willy, suffered a bruised foreleg. The snowmobile driver stopped for a moment and then left the scene. “Those two dogs would have been in the team, in the main team for sure,” he said.

But the mushing community made sure his signature all-green suit was seen at the starting line again.

“But we had to borrow couple dogs from a good friend Wade Mars for the B team and I moved a couple from the B team up to the A team,” said Redington.

Wildfire underwent surgery to repair his broken leg. Redington said the 3-year-old has a “long road to recovery.” The dog was on Redington’s team that finished seventh in the 2021 Iditarod.

Last year, the Beargrease ended at Mineral Center, stopping short of the Grand Portage Casino and Lodge finish due to poor snow coverage there, which would have been dangerous for the dogs.

This year the race once again carries mushers back to the Casino along the lake, and the fans waiting to welcome them.

The 300-mile trek tests not only the teams’ performance and endurance, but how well mushers are in tune with their dogs.

“A lot of our marathon mushers do a lot of education trying to teach people about the dogs why they’re bootied why they might have vests on,” Hendrickson said, “and kind of how they’re metabolizing throughout the race.”

“Again, it’s a very strategic sport, and nutrition’s a big part of it,” she said.

This year brings a better snowpack under their paws, but that’s coupled with warmer temps.

Despite all they need to monitor, mushers said the trail can still be relaxing.

“Just cruising along, you know, you’ve already put all the hard work and effort and everything into getting to the starting line and being here, so now it’s kind of just time to enjoy what you have going on,” said Letzring.

With in-person cheers guiding them along once again, there’s a lot to enjoy.

“It feels like Beargrease, and what makes Beargrease so special,” Redington said.