Allen is on the Move

Allen left Eagle at 8:45 pm with all 13 dogs. Reports show high winds and heavy snow on the Yukon River. The trail will likely be blown in and hard to see. Allen is no stranger to these conditions! Dallas Seavey left a short time before him. If the trail becomes very difficult, Allen could join with Seavey and take turns breaking trail.

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Allen Leaving Dawson, Biscuit in Lead
By The Yukon Quest
From Official Yukon Quest Flickr Page

The blizzard conditions on American Summit slowed Allen and most of the other teams on their way to Eagle. It looks like only Hugh Neff got through before the weather turned. He had a 10 hour lead over Hans Gatt leaving Eagle. The most notable change in the top 7 is that Ken Anderson is down to only 8 dogs. Breaking so much trail and still having one major summit to climb will be very difficult for him.

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Allen Leaving Dawson
By The Yukon Quest
From Official Yukon Quest Flickr Page

The race has broken into sections after leaving Dawson and heading into the blizzard. Hugh Neff is his own with a 10 hour lead over the 2nd musher. Gatt(2) to Allen (7) is the 2nd group and there is a little over 3 hour of separation. The 3rd group lead by Dan Kaduce is just now arriving in Eagle.

The key now will be keeping the team in good shape and not having to drop many dogs. Although Eagle Summit has been climbed with fewer dogs, a full, strong team makes it a lot easier. There is still so much trail to cover and anything can happen.

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