Ben Harper left Yentna Station two-minutes behind the lead musher and finished in second place by the same margin of time. Out of Yentna, Ben passed the leader more than once on the sixty-two mile return trip to Happy Trails but needed one more pass for the Championship. For his excellent and spirited run to the runner-up position, Lynden awarded Harper a $4,000 scholarship. More to Harper’s surprise was when the Humanitarian Award was announced. Veterinarians, Phil Meyer and Jayne Hempstead chose to honor Ben for his excellence in dog care. Asking Harper about the award later, he replied that it was completely unexpected. Inside he might have been saying it was an award that meant as much to him as winning the race would have. Ben works with and runs dogs from the kennel of Ray Redington Jr. His mentor was very proud of Ben’s performance as well as the Humanitarian Award. For the award, Ben received a $2,000 scholarship from Lynden and the Wasilla Vet Clinic presented him with a bronze trophy in the likeness of a musher and dog fashion by sculptor, Sandy May, wife of Iditarod champion, Joe May.

Born to Run,

Sanka