~~Newton's completion of the Yukon Quest~~

Looking great other than a touch of frost bite

Crossing the finish line at 6:26amBeing hugged by Danny Melville
Being congratulated by race marshalls
Steel drum music began to filter over the river bed as the crowd awaited Jamaican musher Newton Marshall. The film crew that has been following him for over a year was on hand as well as a number of other media outlets. Champion musher Hans Gatt who has been training Newton watched the river for the familiar bob of a headlamp and the sound of his dogs. Newton rounded the bend and the crowd cheered and applauded as he came down the chute. When asked how hard his journey had been he stated that many things in life are hard and he was proud. It was an emotional finish for Danny Melville the founder of the team. "I can hardly believe it" he said "he has come so far." Newton shared a long hug and private conversation with Hans. He was smiling and waved as he headed off for the dog yard and a well deserved rest.

Newton valiantly crosses the finish line!!!!!!

****Newton came charging into Fairbanks at 6:26am this morning 11days 19hours and 2minutes after leaving Whitehorse.

This is a huge achievement and we are all elated with his performance. Twenty nine mushers started the race and ten have scratched so far; there are six mushers still out on the trail.****

Newton Marshall places 13th out of 29 in the Yukon Quest!!!!!!!!

Fanatstic news greeted the JDT family today-Newton has completed the Quest, and not only completed but placed 13th out of 29!!!!!!!!
This is a great accomplishment and everyone is soooo proud of Newton.
Who would have thought that the JDT would have soared to such heights? certainly not even the visionary behind it, Danny Melville.
No pictures as yet but will post as soon as possible.
Congrats again Newton this is fantastic news!!!!

A nice pic of Robb at Kearney

Mushers giving rides at Beaverton~contributed by Ken

Robb and some local mushers giving rides to 6 local Mayor's and reporters from Toronto. We had the 2 reporters from the Toronto Star and the Mayors went out with the other teams. Ken

Beaverton/Cannington event~contributed by Ken

Hello....Robb and I went down to Beaverton, Ontario and gave rides on Lake Simcoe. Robb used a 6-dog team and gave 2 reporters from the Toronto Star rides out to the ice fishing houses. There were 4 other teams giving rides at the same time to 6 of the local Mayor's. There was a big turn out. Also 'Live at 5' was there filming most of it and there were some CBC people there. The dog sledding race is just a small part of this particular event. It is in conjunction with a big ice fishing contest and the race in Cannington this coming weekend. We will be there on Friday looking forward to racing there.
Ken.

Newton at the Pelly Crossing~contributed by Danny

Hey,

A sequence of photos of Newton on the trail between McCabe and Pelly Crossing.

Love that Jamaican flagJ

Newton is now sleeping at Pelly and will leave at 3:00am for the most lonely section of this incredible race; 210 miles to Dawson City; no facilities, he must sleep with his dogs on the trail; no roads; no people; only one checkpoint.

One mush
Danny

Haliburton Finals~contributed by Ken Davis

Hello....We had another fantastic weekend. The race organizers were tireless and managed to put on a very good race. Even though it was +9C and raining on Thursday the trail held up so that both days it was a nice hard, fast trail. This trail is very hilly and curvy. It is tough on both dogs and driver because of the high speeds and the sharp curves. There is no falling asleep out there. This is also a very competitive race since it has a $10,000 purse and a good reputation for putting on a great race. I ran the 4-Dog Pro and finished 4th out of 22 after 2 days of racing. (7km each day). Robb ran the 6-dog Pro and was 4th after Saturday's run but had some trouble on Sunday. The team ran very well but it was just -1C and sunny when he went out. By the last 2km of 11km one of the dogs was having problems and the dog went down. Robb hooked down and loaded her in a very fast and safe manner then took off. The dogs is fine, she was a little over heated but recovered quickly. Robb did the right thing and did it so well that he only dropped 1 place. He finished 5th out of 17 teams in a extremely competitive class and after having to load a dog. That's racing! There are no trophies at Haliburton but we both recieved nice payouts. There were a lot of spectators and everybody seemed to enjoy the event. We also went downtown to the water front right after the 6-Dog event to do a meet-and-greet the 'Jamaican Musher'. There was a huge crowd and Robb and the dogs were a big hit. We had so much fun that this is a must do race for us every year. Ken

Robb at JDT Truck in Haliburton

Haliburton Track

Haliburton Saturday~contributed by Ken Davis

Hello Danny....We both had good solid runs. Robb is 4th out of 18 in the 6-Dog Pro and I'm 4th out 22 in the 4-Dog Pro. Since the weather was so warm and raining on Thursday it is amazing that there is such a nice trial. Fast but very nice. It is a very hilly and curvy trail so both dog and driver need to be in their game. There has been quite a turn-out and all seem to be happy. Heard that Newton had a good start and is already doing well. The JDT is making its mark on both ends of Canada. Fantastic! Ken

Yukon Quest Update-contributed by Danny Melville

Guys,

The ‘meet the mushers’ event in Whitehorse saw hundreds of people lining up to have the mushers autograph their Quest posters. It was so cool to see Newton among some of the best in the world; he even signed a poster for me….. J

Photos show Newton signing and me chilling a bottle of wine for laterJ

See link below for a report in the Fairbanks Newsminer today…… several comments at the end…

Be sure to click on the photos to enlarge them and read the captions.

http://www.newsminer.com/news/2009/feb/12/jamaican-musher-prepares-yukon-quest/

Mush Mon
Danny

Kearney 4-Dog 3rd Place Trophy-contributed by Ken

Big Thanks from Kearney~contributed by Lisa Houliston, Kearney Dog Sled Committee

Hi guys,
First I would like to say Danny you have one heck of a team representing Jamaica. Ken and Robb are incrediable and the the town of Kearney welcomes them with open arms. I am sure there heads were swellling as the compliments about these two guys were constant all weekend!!!!
Thank You for putting Kearney on your schedule again!!! They are always welcome and I hope to see them next year!!!! Hey Danny maybe you could come too??????????? This little town may surprise you!!!
.........................................
Again thank you and I wish you all the very best in all your adventures.
Lisa
Kearney Dog Sled Committee

Let me know if it comes through.

Kearney Winterfest Feb 6-8, 2009 contributed by KEN!

Hello....We had another great racing weekend. There was a full crowd there both days. This is a race that the whole community and more comes out to support. We met people from all over Ontario that came just for the dog sled races and some just to see the JDT. Robb is a big attraction and a lot of people really want to spend time and take pictures of the 'Jamaican Musher'. Everybody loved the coffee and the Jamaican caps and bandannas...there are a lot of people coming to JA!!! In the 6-Dog Pro Robb and his team had some interesting runs. Saturday it was +9C and raining...not great conditions for racing sled dogs. Robb came in 5th the first day at 21:33:02, with a good chance to move up. Sunday the trail froze and the trail was dangerously fast. It is a very hard and technical trail to start with and this didn't make it better. Even though Robb 'crashed & burned' a couple of times he stayed with the team and had a blazing time of 18:06:99. He moved up to 4th place out of 14 teams. While he didn't get a trophy this time he did get $189.75...you get paid in the Pro class. We did get to take home a trophy though since I ran the 4-Dog Pro and finished 3rd out of 19...we had the 2nd fastest time on Sunday, 8 seconds from 1st, so the team seems to be running fast again. BTW one of Robb's wheel dogs, Vandal, got under the truck and ripped out a 2 foot section of the main electric lines for the whole truck. The guys from Kearney got the local mechanic to rewire all 40+ wires...in the rain, at +2C, at 8 PM. Wow what a town. Ken

Third place trophies for the marmora 4 dog and 6 dog pro.

Marmora Training

Robb training for the marmora sno-fest

Ice formation close by the training area

Marmora Cup-contributed by Ken

Ambassador Robb at the JDT truck with some kids who couldn't wait to take a picture of him.

Hello....sorry about the slow reporting but my email dilemma may be over forever now. We had a wonderful time at the Marmora Sno-Fest. The whole town was behind the event and there were quite a few spectators both days despite some very nasty weather. Robb and his teams were in racing mode and he came in 3rd in the 4-Dog Pro Saturday and held that position through Sunday with times of 13:23 Saturday and 14:45 Sunday, he missed being 2nd in total time by only 32 seconds! In the 6-Dog it was a different story. Both races have passing and head-on passing. Head-on passing takes very good leaders and a team and driver that are working as a unit. Robb had to pass and head-on pass numerous teams but one team had some trouble and Robb had 3 tangles on Saturday, having to hook down. He finished 5th for the day. Sunday he went out with a good attitude and the team had a very fast and solid run. The trail conditions had worsened on Sunday so every body's time was slower except Robb's. Saturday's was 21:02 and Sunday was 20:10. In the end he moved up to 3rd place. Fantastic. The team received 2 beautiful trophy's and money. I am very proud of Robb and his team as this race was his first head-on race and it is also a very technical trail. On Saturday evening the race had a spaghetti dinner where over 300 people turned out. At the end of the dinner there was supposed to be a panel discussion with some mushers including Robb and myself. It ended up be only Robb and me and we spoke and answered questions for about a 1/2 hour. Apparently it went well as a gentleman named Don McCoen, who has the Guinness World Record for the most dogs hooked to a sled (76), told both of us that he really enjoyed it and learned from us. We actually got a standing ovation afterwards. Wow. We like Marmora and will be back. Ken -- Ken Davis

Elfstone Kennel

Saginaw, MN USA

'Jamaica Dogsled Team'