Editor’s note: Richland Source is posting daily updates on Mansfield native Matthew Failor’s efforts at the 2025 Iditarod Sled Dog Race, which began March 3. Updates post daily at 7 a.m. and may be updated during the day. (UPDATE: Mansfield native Matthew Failor reached the Manley Hot Springs checkpoint Tuesday at 12:48 p.m. (AKST) after […]
Outdoor
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‘Mother Nature will throw her curveball,’ Mansfield musher says of new Iditarod route
FAIRBANKS, Alaska — Some have compared the re-routed 2025 Iditarod trail to a race track, including the first 600 miles on the frozen Yukon River. Some mushers have spoken about listening to audiobooks on the trail to stifle boredom and help keep them awake as the sleds slide easily across hard-packed, wide and icy river […]
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‘Good luck and Godspeed!: Community rallies to support Mansfield’s Iditarod musher
Community cheers on Matthew Failor in his Iditarod quest. Join the support and follow his race to Nome!
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Mansfield’s Matthew Failor taking old friend on one final Iditarod run
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Matthew Failor is taking an old friend with him on the 2025 Iditarod Sled Dog Race across Alaska. The 42-year-old Mansfield native will have the ashes of former Iditarod racer and long-time race judge Jim Davis aboard his Alaskan Husky Adventures sled when the official restart takes place Monday in Fairbanks. The […]
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Column: The dream is an Iditarod win, but Matthew Failor has already won in life
WILLOW, Alaska — Matthew Failor may never win an Iditarod. He may never be the first musher to cross under the famed burled arch in Nome, celebrated as the best dog sled musher in Alaska after racing 1,000 miles across the massive 49th state. But don’t be mistaken. Winning is the Mansfield native’s dream. Under […]
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Mansfield native Matthew Failor ready ‘to pull the hook and go’ at 2025 Iditarod
WILLOW, Alaska — Matt Failor can’t wait for the stress of an 1,100-mile sled Iditarod dog race across Alaska. That’s where the 42-year-old Mansfield native finds his calm after the storm once the race actually begins, launching his 14th journey in what’s been dubbed “The Last Great Race.” “Obviously, there’s pressure during the race, but […]
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Ohio Creativity Trail showcases Malabar Farm
LUCAS — The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) has announced that Malabar Farm State Park and Barkcamp State Park have been selected as featured sites on the newly launched “Ohio Creativity Trail.” This exciting initiative, part of America 250-Ohio’s Trails & Tales program, was unveiled recently at the Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion. The […]
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News Man Weekly bonus episode: Mansfield native talks all things Iditarod
WILLOW, Alaska — It’s a bonus episode of the News Man Weekly podcast — an audio primer to prepare to follow Mansfield native Matthew Failor in the 2025 Iditarod Sled Dog Race across Alaska. Richland Source Deputy Managing Editor Carl Hunnell is joined by Failor on a phone connection from his home in Willow Alaska, […]
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Mansfield musher Matt Failor not convinced Iditarod needed to change route
WILLOW, Alaska — Matthew Failor isn’t convinced the Iditarod needed to change its path across Alaska this year. The Iditarod Trail Committee announced Monday it had made the “difficult but necessary” decision to move the official restart of the 2025 race to Fairbanks, about 290 miles north of the normal restart in Willow, due to […]
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Help Wanted: Report Bald Eagle nests to monitor Ohio’s population
COLUMBUS – The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife is conducting a statewide bald eagle nest census in 2025 and is requesting the public’s help to locate active eagle nests. Observers may report bald eagle nest locations at wildohio.gov until Sunday, March 16. By reporting bald eagle nest locations, wildlife watchers help Division of Wildlife biologists […]