KNBA News for April 8, 2016
Young challenger
By the Associated Press
Alaska U.S. Rep. Don Young says he's looking forward to a spirited and energetic campaign as he seeks a 23rd term in Congress.
Young is the longest serving Republican in the U.S. House and today (on Thursday), he gained a Democratic challenger.
Steve Lindbeck, the former general manager of Alaska Public Media, announced he will challenge Young.
Young's spokesman, Matt Shuckerow, says Young has always welcomed all candidates to the congressional race. He says Young remains focused on winning the Republican nomination in Alaska's primary election this August ahead of the November general election.
Emmonak disaster
By Laura Kraegle, KNOM
Emmonak City Manager Martin Moore asked the state legislature for emergency funding after a fire destroyed five commercial fishing buildings last month and prompted the City of Emmonak to declare a disaster.
If Emmonak is granted or loaned the requested three-quarters of a million dollars, Moore says the city will rebuild critical infrastructure before the upcoming fishing season.
As commercial fishing is the primary source of income and employment in the Kusilvak Census District, Moore says Emmonak needs to rebuild soon — before people around Yukon Delta miss out on their main economic opportunity.
“It’s a big region. It has over 9,000 people, it has over 2,000 family units, and they depend on this fishery to move on forward. We don’t want to lose the market. The people in this area have no hope. The hope is built by people looking forward to getting something in the next fishing season,” said Moore.
Beyond rebuilding the burned structures, owned by the Yukon Delta Fisheries Development Association, Moore says the emergency aid would help the City of Emmonak purchase a new thousand-gallon fire truck and build a water line booster station.
The truck would replace the city’s current, used vehicle, which was too small to fight last month’s fire. Meanwhile, the booster station would house heat and circulation pumps to prevent water lines from freezing.
Moore says the lines were frozen during the fire, so first responders could not access enough water.
“The lines that are 800 feet long are destined to freeze, and they freeze every year,” said Moore.
With lawmakers working to balance the state budget, Moore says he knows it’s a tough time to request funding. While he hopes the state can provide some aide, he says the City of Emmonak has also asked Alaska’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management to help the community pursue federal assistance. The city itself is donating 150-thousand dollars to the CDQ fishery in free or low-cost land, water, and equipment.
Kobuk 400 gets underway
By Emily Schwing, KNOM
The 2016 kobuk 440 sled dog race got underway early this afternoon (Thursday). A mass start sent teams speeding east from the sea ice outside of Kotzebue, toward Kobuk, where they will turn around on the out-and-back route. The field is a mix of rookies and experienced mushers, and trail and weather conditions are prime for a fiercely competitive race.
It was an enthusiastic send-off for dog teams and mushers as they left the start line of the Kobuk 440.
Among 15 mushers driving teams in this year’s race is Noah Burmeister, who posted an impressive eleventh place finish in this year’s Iditarod, after nearly a decade away from the sport. He’s no stranger to the Kobuk 440.
“I ran it in ’07, so it’s been a few years,” said Burmeister.
Burmeister hopes for a win, but he knows there’s plenty of stiff competition with the same goal.
“Yeah, there’s some good, solid teams, but it all depends on people’s strategy. Some of them are rookies up here on this race, so we’ll just see how it goes and take it as it comes,” said Burmeister.
Nicolas Petit also placed well in last month’s Iditarod. He’s new to the Kobuk 440, and he says it’s refreshing to be a rookie again.
“It’s cool. This is my third race this year that I’ve never been to,” said Petit.
Petit’s dogs are young and inexperienced, but he says he’s still racing in the last major competitive sled dog race of the season.
“We’ll do well, but it’s really warm out, and we have to be somewhat conservative, considering that they are really young dogs and they have a lot of miles ahead of them in future years, so I don’t want to ruin them for a 400-mile race, but we should — I think we’ll be moving right along,” said Petit.
After plenty of mid- and back-of-the pack finishes in this and other races in the past, Katherine Keith is also looking to up her game in this year’s Kobuk 440.
“I want a high placing team. I want to be competitive. I think we’ve got great dogs this year, and I’ve had enough races now to get some experience, so I hope we can first have a great, fun race and enjoy the communities, but I want to — I’d like to race,” said Keith.
Keith could be at an advantage. She and her partner, John Baker, run a kennel that sits just along the shoreline in Kotzebue, not too far from the start line.
“It’s really fun just to get out on our own trails and to be able to not have to travel for the race. It’s something we take for granted on this one, but we appreciate it,” said Baker.
According to race officials, trail conditions are excellent. This year’s route is relatively flat, there’s reportedly plenty of snow and not too much open water, despite a spring season that is quickly settling in over the region. But Keith says none of that means the next few days will be easy.
KK: “It’s a competitive and really, really hard race, because you have four or five long runs, 80 or 90 miles, and even on the Iditarod, you don’t run that distance very often, and when you’re limited to your rest in the checkpoints, you can’t really break that up that much, so that will be a challenge.”
ES: “(So it’s) half the Iditarod, less than half the days?”
KK: “Very little rest, relatively speaking, yeah. It’s great that’s what’s good about the race, it’s hard: otherwise a lot of people would come up.”
Mushers left en masse from Kotzebue under a bright, midday sun.
The weather is forecast to remain warm, with day-time temperatures in the mid to upper 30’s, and warmer, which could pose a challenge for the large, thick coated and black dogs that make up many of the teams on the trail.