Rita Wehseler, from Stoney Creek Kennel in Hovland, MN, is back for her seventh CopperDog! Her lead dogs are Mieter, Saber, Thread, and Ski

She would like to thank her sponsors; Lang's Feeds, K-9 Health Forward, Claire Seekins, and Chris Johnson.

And hey... Rita won the 2022 Beargrease 120. Just saying...

Good luck, Rita!

Joanna Oberg, from Grand Marais, MN and Run Silent Racing kennel, is back for her ninth CopperDog 150! Her leads are Tamar, Nikita, Laska, Granite, and Bandit.

Joanna's crazy mushing story is a recent one from the Lake Minnetonka Klondike Dog Derby which is run on, well, a lake! It was super windy and the trail was drifted-over in stretches causing teams to go off trail. Her team followed the tracks off trail from teams ahead of them taking them onto an ice road where she could barely stop and hold the team.

She needed to get back on the trail and the only person around able to help was a lady standing a little ways off with her young teenage son. Joanna waved and yelled to get their attention to come help and while she was understandably nervous, the lady stood on her brake while holding the handlebar while Joanna explained she needed to lead the leaders back over to the trail which was a little ways away.

She managed to hang on while Joanna ran the leaders back over as fast as she could. Just as she got to the trail, the rear of the team surged forward, causing a tangle. The woman had fallen off a short way back, thankfully she was ok! Joanna thanked her again for the help and took off! Never a dull moment in dog mushing and thank goodness for helpful spectators!!!!

She would like to thank her sponsor, Agimac River Outfitters .

Good luck, Joanna!

Sarah is running her third CopperDog this year, although she has attended six times! Her leads will be Flame and Bagherra from Flying K Kennel in Mountain, WI.

How did she get into mushing? Once upon a time, there was this guy that asked her if she wanted to help him move some dogs... now she's a musher and he has a girlfriend!

Speaking of this guy, she would like to thank Ryan Beaber and Beaber Construction for sponsoring her!

When Sarah is out there running this year she will be reminiscing of last year when she had some great conversations running up the hills the last day with Frank Moe and her leader King Louie. He told her if he didn’t have a bum knee he would be running more like her in those mashed potatoes. Sarah lost King Louie this year too, but she knows both King Louie and Frank will be out on the trail guiding her this year!!

Good luck, Sarah!

Christina Gibson, from Carlton, WA, is attending the CopperDog for the first time! Her kennel is Whiteout Racing and lead-dogs are Farce, Windshear, Nellie, Bear, Rubicon, Sadie, Bogus, and Lilly.

Christina would like to thank the following sponsors; Windigo Outfitters, CaraSport, and Earth & Sky Studios.

She'd also like to thank Jessie Royer for helping her fill out her team for the season, as well as her mom Emily, boyfriend Aidan, and mentor Laura. She's thankful for all of their endless support for her and her team as she couldn’t do it without them!!

Christina has too many crazy adventures to list here, but her dogs sure keep life interesting!

She's very excited to race the CopperDog trail with her team and we're excited to have her here! Good luck, Christina!

Mike Bestgen is from Saint Cloud, MN and he is calling-trail out of Fugarwekennels! He is returning for another CopperDog! He has attended every single CD150 since the first race in 2010 [the -ONLY- musher to have raced in every single CD150]. His lead dogs this year are Glock and Magnum.

To quote Mike when asked about sponsors; "same three sponsors again; Me, Myself, and I."

Good luck in the 2022 CopperDog 150!

Tom Bauer and his wife Sally are the owners of the Otter River Sled Dog Training Center and Wilderness Adventures in Tapiola, MI where they offer sled dog rides, tours, and camping trips!

His lead dogs this year are Triton, Herc, Gary, and Jack.

Tom and Sally also help mentor and train several members of the Mushing Club at Michigan Tech. They have two members running in the CD80 and one in the CD25 this year!

Between Tom, and his son Roy, the Bauer family has raced every single CopperDog!

Tom would like to thank his sponsor, Heikkinen Firewood!

Good luck, Tom!

Gwenn is joining us for her first CopperDog 150 from Boulder, WY! Her lead dogs will be Easton, Willy, Levi, and Gus.

She would like to thank her husband David Bogart for all his support.
Gwen feels so lucky and grateful for what she has accomplished with her dogs!

Welcome to the CopperDog and Good Luck!!

We at the CopperDog are calling-trail for a friend that this past January started a brand-new race. Exactly one year ago at the last CopperDog, Frank Moe mushed down our same snow-road wearing bib number eight. He finished 15th in the 2021 CD150.

And the 2022 race will be no different; Frank will depart our chute like the breeze at 7:16:00 PM on Friday the 4th of March. We will be holding space for him and his team, as we ride shotgun with them into the ether.

He became not only the best of friends but also a staple in our neck of the woods by being present in 11 of the 12 previous CopperDog 150s. In his words about 2021; "We know what a huge effort it was for everyone involved with the race to pull off the CopperDog this year. We just want to thank you for that effort. It's so important that we persevere and have sled dog races. It's who we are."

Honest, caring, outspoken; he lived every minute with purpose – and that’s who Frank was, and will always be! He will be deeply missed! Once a CopperDogger, always a CopperDogger.

And because love begets love in the CopperDog community, we make room so that a grieving process can bravely follow a negentropic path to the hereafter. Frank's wife Sherri will be present at our event with one of Frank's leaders; 11-year-old Duke. In case you wondered what the definition of courage was…

Sherri, we'll do whatever in our power to see you through this – count on us! And Frank, rest easy dear friend... we'll see you on the flip-side soon enough. Mush on.

JR Anderson, from River Rock Kennel in Cook, MN, is back for another CopperDog. His leads are Cocoa and Blackhawk.

He's got a few crazy mushing stories, but too crazy to list here!

JR's wife and daughter are both racing again this year too, in the CD25!

Good luck to the whole family!

Joann, from Gaylord, MI and mushing out of Coyote Run Kennel, is back for the CD150. Between her and her husband, Larry, they've raced every single year! Her leaders are Solo, Finn, Swift, and Raven.

Joann has been racing sled-dogs for 21 years. Larry, her husband, got involved when she was pregnant with their daughter Ana and then got addicted to the sport too. Joann is very thankful to have him to train and race with. They have had so many awesome adventures in this sport over the years.

One of her craziest memories was racing the Midnight Run during the blizzard of 2015; 72 mph winds were coming off of Lake Superior. When they were right next to the lake, she and her entire team of eight dogs kept getting blown off the trail. She said it was pretty scary. She couldn't see anything and was very relieved to reach the finish line!

Her sponsors are Northwood Land Company and UpNorth Land Company.

Good luck, Joann!

Jennifer Freking is running her first CopperDog 150. She's joining us from Finland, MN with lead dogs Gabi and Todd.

Jennifer has been mushing for 33 years. Her family owns Manitou Crossing Kennels and they enjoy mushing together with Siberian Huskies. She is a veteran of the Beargrease Marathon, UP200, Iditarod, Can-Am Crown 250, Hudson Bay Quest, and other events. They're looking forward to enjoying their first CopperDog!

When asked about a crazy mushing story she said years ago, she dropped her fairly new iPhone somewhere along five miles of trail in six inches of fresh powder and it would have been run over by five teams and a snowmobile after she dropped it. The weather was turning warm and rainy the next day when she returned home after work, armed with a rented metal detector, she hooked up a 3-dog team to her little sprint sled and traveled the trail scanning it behind her runners. They have a lot of metallic rocks and railroad ties on their road so she had to learn how to tell which beeps might be significant, plus her own runners could set it off. She was sure those three dogs were really wondering what she was up to! She was just finishing her second trip over the five miles scanning the metal detector back and forth behind her and was deciding if she should turn around and try once more, when she found it - buried several inches below the surface!!

She would like to thank her sponsor, Wintergreen Northern Wear.

Good luck in your first CD150, Jennifer!!

Ryan Anderson is back for a fourth CopperDog from Saint Croix Falls, WI. His lead dogs, Gable and Muskie, along with Quincy and Grout, run out of Ryan's AnderTier Racing kennel.

Ryan's got a busy life with racing and training and two children now, 16 month old Connor and three-and-half-year old Alivia. He's a seasonal carpenter and dog musher in the winter!

Ryan has also placed second twice in the CD150 in back-to-back years!

Welcome back to the CopperDog Ryan and good luck!!

Laura Neese, from McMillian, MI and calling-trail out of Nature's Kennel is running her second CopperDog with lead dogs Elmer, Ace, Razor, Envy, and Fusion.

When asked about any crazy mushing stories her reply was, "four days and nights of -40°F to -60°F temps on the Yukon River during the Yukon Quest removed any doubt in my mind that I am indeed, crazy." [Laura, you -ARE- crazy! But we -LOVE- crazy people.]

Laura has competed in the Yukon Quest, Iditarod, Percy DeWolfe, Canadian Challenge, Eagle Cap Extreme, Idaho Sled Dog Challenge, UP200, Can-Am Crown 250, Beargrease Marathon, Gunflint Mail Run, and the Wyoming Stage Stop Race.

She is excited to be opening her business, MI DOG Summer Sled Dog Center, in Newberry this spring!

She would like to thank Eukanuba and all of her individual dog sponsors!

Good luck, Laura!

Blake Freking is a veteran of the Iditarod, Yukon Quest, Hudson Bay Quest, UP200, Can-Am Crown 250, Race to the Sky, Beargrease Marathon, and others.

Blake and Jennifer Freking [whom is also racing the CD150] own Manitou Crossing Kennels near Finland, MN, where they raise and train their Siberian Huskies for competition in long-distance sled dog races. He has been mushing since 1998.

Blake has also been training a team of Alaskan Huskies for Nature’s Kennel of McMillan, MI for the last couple of seasons. Their daughters, Elena and Nicole, share their passion for sled dogs and enjoy training, racing, and caring for their dogs. Blake is an Engineer and Air Tanker Base Manager for the United States Forest Service.

Great to have the Freking family experiencing their first CopperDog! Best of luck!!!