John Baker lives in Kotzebue, Alaska which is located on the shores of Alaska’s western coast thirty miles above the Arctic Circle. Baker chooses to live and train his dog team in Arctic Alaska, where the winters are long and the location is remote, perfect for putting that extra competitive edge on him as the dog driver and the dogs he runs with.
Baker entered his first Iditarod Sled Dog Race in 1996. He has completed sixteen Iditarod races with twelve finishes in the Top Ten and two in 3rd place. Team Baker took 1st place in 2011. Recent mid-distance wins include the 2010 Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race and the 2008, 2009 and 2010 Kobuk 440 Sled Dog Race
John shares spotlight with Velvet and Snickers as #1 team into Nome
| Iditarod Statistics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Position | Time | (h:min:s) |
| 1996 | 22nd | 10 days | 23:26:00 |
| 1997 | 11th | 9 days, | 23:09:36 |
| 1998 | 5th | 9 days | 21:43:09 |
| 1999 | 8th | 10 days | 10:10:54 |
| 2000 | 22nd | 10 days | 05:48:29 |
| 2001 | 6th | 10 days | 21:00:30 |
| 2002 | 3rd | 9 days, | 05:46:30 |
| 2003 | 8th | 10 days, | 07:33:07 |
| 2004 | 9th | 10 days | 00:43:00 |
| 2005 | 6th | 9 days, | 21:41:00 |
| 2006 | 5th | 9 days, | 17:37:45 |
| 2007 | 8th | 9 days, | 18:36:22 |
| 2008 | 23rd | 10 days | 10:17:50 |
| 2009 | 3rd | 10 days, | 6:18:51 |
| 2010 | 5th | 9 days | 7:7:54 |
| 2011 | 1st | 8 days | 18:46:39 |
Iditarod Awards Dorothy G. Page Halfway Award 1998 First to arrive at Cripple Regal Alaskan's First Musher to the Yukon Award 1998 First to arrive at Anvik Anchorage Chrysler Dodge presented a 2011 Dodge Ram truck to 2011 Winner City of Nome Lolly Medley Golden Harness Award Winner to Team Baker’s outstanding lead dogs Velvet and Snickers Wells Fargo Bank Alaska Gold Coast Award to the First musher to the “Gold Coast” community of Unalakleet |
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Links to learn more about John's favorite races: Kobuk 440, Kusko 300 and the Iditarod Sled Dog Race.
