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. This exclusive coverage is made possible through the support of St. Peter’s School. (UPDATE: Mansfield native and […]
Matthew Failor
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Mansfield native Matthew Failor & his sled dog team bounce back at Iditarod
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. This exclusive coverage is made possible through the support of St. Peter’s School. (UPDATE: Mansfield native and […]
Posted inOutdoor
Rested and ready: Matthew Failor keeps team intact by choosing 24-hour break
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. This exclusive coverage is made possible through the support of St. Peter’s School. (UPDATE: Iditarod musher and […]
Posted inOutdoor
Man of his word: Matthew Failor carrying old friend’s ashes along Iditarod trail
ON THE IDITAROD TRAIL, Alaska — Jim Davis is back on his beloved Iditarod trail this week, seven months after his death. Mansfield native Matthew Failor took some of his old friend’s ashes with him when the 1,128-mile race began Monday, from Fairbanks to Nome. Davis, 75, is a resident of Fishhook, Alaska. He died […]
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Sand blizzard on the river: Failor, Iditarod mushers suffer winter’s wrath
(Update: Matthew Failor left the Tanana checkpoint Thursday at 2:21 am AKST, having left one dog behind to be transported home. He continued his journey with 15 dogs on his team.) MANSFIELD — No one can say Matthew Failor didn’t warn them about the dangers of racing hundreds of miles along a frozen river in […]
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Following the plan: Mansfield’s Matthew Failor reaches 202-mile mark in Iditarod
TANANA, Alaska — Matthew Failor is sticking to his pre-race plan for the first few days of the 2025 Iditarod. Mush five to six hours. Rest around four hours. Wash. Rinse. Repeat. That strategy had his Alaskan Husky Adventures 17th-Dog team race into the third checkpoint of Tanana on Wednesday at 2:14 a.m. (AKST), a […]
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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 […]