The Slice from PBS North.

(Barking) Today we are going to kick off the 41st running of the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon.

My name is Mike Keyport.

I am the current president of the board of directors.

I also very fortunately and proudly, am also a, great grandson of John Beargrease himself.

The longest sled dog race in the lower 48 contiguous United States.

We know today the temperatures are very cold.

So it's going to be hard, hard pack, which usually means faster.

Three.

Two.

One.

Good luck on the course.

Hey, My name is Scott Edgett.

I've been in mushing for about 30 years.

I started hey, I had a, Alaskan malamute when I was eight years old.

My parents got it, and, my uncles actually raised him, and it pulled me around in a big wheel.

and then I used to, take the dog out and get rocks and stuff, and he'd pull back and then years later, in my early 30s, I, told my wife that I wanted to get a husky, and, well, there's where it ended.

I had one, and I had three, then I had eight, then I had 20.

And you get hooked on it.

You love them and you got to care for them.

They count on you and you count on them, Next, the 120 races.

The handlers are a big part of this race.

I got my daughter and my wife and my son in law that handle for me.

They don't like the cold, and yet they still come out here and that's pretty, pretty impressive.

Its Scott Edgett from Babbitt, Minnesota, our second competitor in the 120 Mid-distance race.

Sometimes you get emotional.

You're out of here.

But, ultimately, it's.

I'm counting on them to get me somewhere, and they're counting on me to make sure I take good care of them.

The Slice from PBS North, presented by the Teberg Fund.