News release, 02 March 2005
For more information, contact the Alaska Dog Mushers Association, (907) 457-6874.
GCI Open North American Championship Sign Up Opens March 3
FAIRBANKS - The Alaska Dog Mushers Association Board of Directors announced Tuesday the GCI Open North American Championship will be open for entries beginning March 3 and continuing through 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 15. Entry fee for the 60th annual race will be $396. Mushers must be current ADMA racing members, and membership can be purchased at time of entry for an additional $25. The drawing for start positions will be held on Wednesday, March 16, 7 p.m. at Big Daddy’s Barbeque and Banquet Hall (formerly Wickersham Hall), located at 2nd Ave. and Wickersham Dr. This year, with the help of recent title sponsor GCI, the Open North American Championship will feature a $35,000 purse paid through the top fifteen finish positions, and $5,000 of the purse will be awarded to the four fastest teams each day.
The change in the sign up procedure is one of several changes that mark a return to previous ONAC activities in celebration of the race’s 60th continual running. For many years, the ONAC entries were taken at the Co-Op and posted for public display. In recent years, the Open North American Championship sign up had taken place the night of the start position draw.
“Many race fans can remember making daily trips to the Downtown Co-Op to see who were the latest teams to sign up,” said Jonni Roos, ADMA Executive Director. “For our 60th anniversary run, we wanted to return to some of the fun, unique Open traditions, to meld some of the old traditions with the new advances, which is what the Open North American is about. ”
ADMA will be posting the race entries to their website, so Open North American race enthusiasts no longer have to make the trip to Fairbanks to see who is the latest entry. However, the latest entries can still be seen posted at the Fairbanks Downtown Co-Op common area.
The GCI Open North American Championship sled dog race will take place on 2nd Avenue, March 18, 19 and 20. Opening ceremonies begin at 12:30 Friday and racing begins at 1:00 p.m. each day. In addition to the races, this year will feature a reunion of 60 years of Open North American champions. A Meet the Mushers for both past and current Open drivers will be held on Wednesday, March 16 at Big Daddy’s Barbeque following the start draw.
All mushers intending to race the Open North American should contact ADMA at the Mushers Hall on Farmers Loop Road in Fairbanks, or call (907) 457-6874. Information and entry forms will also be available on the web at sleddog.org.
The GCI Open North American Championship (ONAC) is the premiere sled dog sprint race in the world, attracting the top sprint mushers from the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Japan. The three day race is run every year in March from downtown Fairbanks, Alaska, with heats of 20 miles the first two days, and a grueling 30-mile heat on the final day. For more information on the GCI Open North American, please contact ADMA at (907) 457-MUSH or visit their website at sleddog.org.
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GCI (NASDAQ:GNCMA) is the largest telecommunications company in Alaska. A pioneer in bundled services, GCI provides local, wireless, and long distance telephone, cable television, Internet and data communication services throughout Alaska. More information about the company can be found at www.gci.com.
The Alaska Dog Mushers Association, Inc., founded in 1948, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion of the sport of sprint sled dog racing and the proper care, training and treatment of sled dogs. ADMA conducts the annual Open North American Championship, the oldest continuously run dog sled race in the world. ADMA is known for its world-class trails and award-winning races.