Ekran is Iditarod rookie of the year

Daily News staff

Published: March 20, 2007
Last Modified: March 20, 2007 at 03:33 AM

While champion Lance Mackey took home the biggest Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race awards -- a $69,000 winners check and a 2007 Dodge Laramie pickup worth nearly $41,000 -- a variety of other honors were handed out Sunday night at the Iditarod banquet in Nome.

While the mushers were being feted, nine of their colleagues were still on the trail working their way toward Nome. One of the nine, Kelly Williams of Two Rivers, crossed the finish line at 12:35 a.m. Monday, just as the banquet wrapped up.

Mushers Jeff Wells and Dan Carter arrived at 5:40 p.m. and 6:36 p.m., respectively, Sunday and were able to attend.

Among the awards handed out:

• Alaska Airlines Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian: Ed Iten won the award voted on by the veterinary staff for his outstanding dog care. Iten wins two round-trip tickets to anywhere Alaska Airlines flies.

• Chevron Most Inspirational Musher: Lance Mackey won an engraved crystal bowl and Chevron fuel cards valued at $1,000.

• GIT Satellite Communications Most Improved Musher: Tollef Monson won satellite phone use for a year and a trophy. Monson finished 10th this year in nine days, 21 hours and 32 minutes. Last year, he was 44th in 11 days, 16 hours, 42 minutes. Monson, a 27-year-old transplanted Minnesotan who trains with Iditarod veteran John Baker, was running the veteran's puppy team, but he led Baker much of the race. Baker finished eighth.

• Fred Meyer Sportsmanship: Monson won a $500 gift certificate.

• Rookie of the Year: Sigrid Ekran of Norway won a trophy and a $1,500 check for her 20th-place finish in 10 days, 13 hours, 21 minutes. Ekran spent all winter training with Louis Nelson, a carpenter who lives 25 miles outside Kotzebue and won the Iditarod rookie of the year award in 2005.

• Nome Kennel Club's Fastest Time From Safety to Nome: Cim Smyth won $500 for his dash of two hours, four minutes over the last 22 miles. Smyth finished 11th overall.

• Lolly Medley Memorial Golden Harness: Lance Mackey's lead dog Larry was awarded an embroidered gold harness.

• Golden Stethoscope Award: Mike Gascoigne won as the most helpful veterinarian on the trail. Gascoigne, a volunteer veterinarian from Brisbane, Australia, was the vet who noticed that the belly of one of Lance Mackey's dogs, Zorro, was bulging under the straw and the dog was having trouble breathing in White Mountain. Gascoigne took Zorro into the warm checkpoint, checked his vitals and watched him as Mackey left for Nome after dropping Zorro. Though Mackey and the vets were worried about Zorro, he was being nursed back to health on Monday.

"To me, that guy deserves an award," Mackey said at the time. "He sat on that chair all night, falling asleep sometimes. He never left (Zorro). It made me feel good that these guys are very adamant about saving dogs' lives."

• Northern Air Cargo Herbie Nayokpuk Memorial Award: Louis Nelson won the award of a baleen dog team on a granite base. The award is presented to the musher who best epitomizes Nayokpuk's spirit and is determined by a vote of checkers along the Bering Sea coastal checkpoints.

• Penair Spirit of Alaska Award: As the first musher to McGrath, Martin Buser won an original spirit mask created by Bristol Bay artist Orville Lind and a $500 Penair credit.

• GCI Dorothy Page Halfway Award: Lance Mackey won the trophy and $3,000 in gold nuggets as the first musher to Iditarod.

• Millennium Hotel First Musher to the Yukon: Martin Buser ate a seven-course dinner in Anvik and took home $3,500.

• Wells Fargo Gold Coast Award: Jeff King took the trophy and $2,500 worth of gold nuggets as the first musher to Unalakleet.

• Cabela's Outfitter Awards: Bruce Milne and Brian Mills won $1,000 gift certificates from Cabela's.

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