| Aliy Zirkle | |
| Birth Place: | New Hampshire |
| Occupation: | Sled dog musher |
| Nationality: | American |
| Spouse: | Allen Moore |
Aliy Zirkle (born 1970 in New Hampshire) is an American champion of sled dog racing.[1]
Aliy Zirkle moved to Bettles, Alaska at age twenty and began mushing due to the remote nature of the town. She adopted six sled dogs and began learning how to race and train dogs. Aliy raced her first Yukon Quest in 1998 and her first Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 2001. In 2000, she became the first woman to win the Yukon Quest, finishing the race with a time of 10 days, 22 hours and 57 minutes.[2] Aliy has been the runner-up in the Iditarod three consecutive years, 2012, 2013, and 2014. Her best time in the Iditarod came in 2014, when she finished the race with a time of 8 days, 13 hours, 6 minutes and 41 seconds.[3] Aliy has finished the Iditarod 14 times and the Yukon Quest 3 times. She has completed either the Yukon Quest or the Iditarod every year since 1998. Aliy also regularly competes in shorter dog sled races, such as the Two Rivers 100, the Copper Basin 300, and the Yukon Quest 300.
Aliy has received various awards throughout her mushing career, some of which were awarded to her by her fellow mushers. These awards include the Yukon Quest Challenge of the North award, given to the musher who "most exemplifies the spirit of the Yukon Quest, a spirit that compels one to challenge the country and win", and the Iditarod Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award for exemplary care of her dogs.
Aliy met fellow musher Allen Moore in 1998 and the two were married in 2005. Aliy has two step-daughters, Brigett and Jennifer, through Allen. Together Aliy and Allen run Skunk's Place (SP) Kennel in Two Rivers, Alaska. The kennel is named for Skunk, one of the six dogs Aliy adopted when she first moved to Alaska and began mushing.
During the 2016 Iditarod race, Zirkle and fellow competitor Jeff King were intentionally hit by a man on a snowmobile. He killed one of King's dogs.[4]
She had announced that the 2021 Iditarod would be her 21st and last Iditarod race. Her husband, who had been the oldest musher to ever win the Yukon Quest, had retired a year earlier.[5] In 2021, due to COVID-19 and weather conditions, the course was shortened. When Zirkle arrived at the Rohn checkpoint, she fell and had to be airlifted to Anchorage for a concussion and upper torso injuries, though suffered no broken bones.[6]
Yukon Quest Results
| Year | Finishing Place | Time | Prize winnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 17 | 13d 21h 40m | -- |
| 1999 | 4 | 11d 19h 17m | $12,000 |
| 2000 | 1 | 10d 22h 57m | $30,000 |
Iditarod Results
| Year | Finishing Place | Time | Prize winnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 33 | 12d 17h 53m 33s | $1,049 |
| 2002 | 29 | 10d 28h 1m 45s | $1,571 |
| 2003 | 14 | 10d 17h 17m 38s | $14,857 |
| 2004 | 34 | 11d 2h 4m 44s | $1,049 |
| 2005 | 11 | 10d 1h 46m 30s | $26,111 |
| 2006 | 14 | 10d 0h 36m 50s | $25,000 |
| 2007 | 28 | 10d 19h 57m 7s | $3,600 |
| 2008 | 21 | 10d 7h 10m 21s | $15,000 |
| 2009 | 17 | 11d 2h 28m 45s | $10,800 |
| 2010 | 16 | 9d 18h 5m 10s | $14,100 |
| 2011 | 11 | 9d 10h 22m 31s | $20,600 |
| 2012 | 2 | 9d 5h 29m 10s | $46,500 |
| 2013 | 2 | 9d 8h 3m 35s | $47,100 |
| 2014 | 2 | 8d 13h 6m 41s | $47,600 |
| 2015 | 5 | 9d 4h 44m 25s | $44,300 |
| 2016 | 3 | 8d 18h 42m 36s | $57,750 |
| 2017 | 8 | 8d 22h 49m 42s | $33,700 |
| 2018 | 15 | 10d 6h 42m 22s | $14,912 |
| 2019 | 4 | 10d 2h 26m 56s | $35,843 |
| 2020 | 18 | 10d 7h 28m 30s | $12,661 |
| 2021 | Scratched, Rohn |
| Check Points | Position in | Date | Time in |
| Layover (24)(8) | Date out | Time out |
| Dropped dogs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage | 9 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 3/1 | 10:17pm | 12 | -- | |
| Willow | 9 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 3/2 | 2:16pm | 16 | -- | |
| Yenta | 5 | 3/2 | 6:04pm | 16 | -- | -- | 3/2 | 6:07pm | 16 | -- | |
| Skwenta | 16 | 3/2 | 9:09pm | 16 | -- | -- | 3/3 | 1:50am | 15 | 1 | |
| Finger Lake | 5 | 3/3 | 5:04am | 15 | -- | -- | 3/3 | 5:06am | 15 | -- | |
| Rainy Pass | 7 | 3/3 | 8:23am | 15 | -- | -- | 3/3 | 1:32pm | 15 | -- | |
| Rohn | 2 | 3/3 | 5:12pm | 15 | -- | -- | 3/3 | 5:22pm | 15 | -- | |
| Nikola | 3 | 3/4 | 7:34am | 15 | -- | -- | 3/4 | 11:22am | 15 | -- | |
| Mcgrath | 1 | 3/4 | 4:53pm | 15 | -- | -- | 3/4 | 4:54pm | 15 | -- | |
| Takotna | 1 | 3/4 | 7:06pm | 15 | 24 | -- | 3/5 | 9:06pm | 15 | -- | |
| Ophir | 9 | 3/5 | 11:06pm | 15 | -- | -- | 3/5 | 11:23pm | 15 | -- | |
| Cripple | 4 | 3/6 | 11:45am | 15 | -- | -- | 3/6 | 11:56am | 15 | -- | |
| Ruby | 1 | 3/7 | 12:09am | 15 | -- | 8 | 3/7 | 12:18am | 14 | 1 | |
| Galena | 3 | 3/7 | 6:10am | 14 | -- | -- | 3/7 | 2:16pm | 14 | -- | |
| Nulato | 2 | 3/7 | 5:38pm | 14 | -- | -- | 3/7 | 9:34pm | 12 | 2 | |
| Kaltag | 1 | 3/8 | 3:11am | 12 | -- | -- | 3/8 | 3:18am | 11 | 1 | |
| Unalakeet | 1 | 3/8 | 4:34pm | 11 | -- | -- | 3/8 | 8:48pm | 11 | -- | |
| Sharktoolik | 1 | 3/9 | 3:51am | 11 | -- | -- | 3/9 | 7:12am | 11 | -- | |
| Koyuk | 1 | 3/9 | 2:07pm | 11 | -- | -- | 3/9 | 5:51pm | 11 | -- | |
| Elim | 2 | 3/9 | 11:47pm | 11 | -- | -- | 3/10 | 1:01am | 11 | -- | |
| White Mountain | 2 | 3/10 | 7:59am | 11 | -- | -- | 3/10 | 4:00pm | 11 | -- | |
| Safety | 2 | 3/10 | 10:57pm | 11 | -- | -- | 3/11 | 1:01am | 10 | 1 | |
| Nome | 2 | 3/11 | 4:06am | 10 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Year | Award | Associated Race |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Spirit of the North | Yukon Quest |
| 2005 | Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian | Iditarod |
| 2011 | Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian | Iditarod |
| 2012 | Spirit of Alaska | Iditarod |
| 2012 | Alaska Gold Coast | Iditarod |
| 2014 | Fish First | Iditarod |
| 2014 | Alaska Gold Coast | Iditarod |
| 2016 | Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian | Iditarod |
| 2018 | Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian | Iditarod |
| 2019 | GCI Dorothy G. Page Halfway | Iditarod |
| 2019 | Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian | Iditarod |