ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Four-time champion Jeff King is leading Alaska’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.
King, who last won in 2006, was first to reach Ruby - the first checkpoint on the frozen Yukon River - arriving at 6:41 a.m. Thursday after a 70-mile run from the Cripple checkpoint. The Iditarod website says King plans to take a mandatory 24-hour layover in the Athabascan village, 480 miles from the finish line in Nome on Alaska’s western coast.
Race veteran Sonny Lindner was second to Ruby, clocking in one hour behind King.
The nearly 1,000-mile race began Sunday with 69 teams. A noncompetitive ceremonial start was held Saturday in Anchorage.
As of Thursday morning, 12 mushers have scratched and one was withdrawn. That leaves 56 teams on the trail.
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