Woolx is honored to congratulate #WoolxinAction sponsored musher Matthew Failor on his top 20 finish in the 2019 Iditarod!
A #WoolxinAction sponsored athlete since 2015, Matthew has been rocking Woolx merino wool as his base and midlayer of choice for several years now. He's just finished out an incredible mushing season up north, taking 18th place in this year's Iditarod, after winning the Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog race in record time!
We are incredibly proud to support Matthew while he trains and races in Alaska's brutal winter conditions, and punishingly cold temps. We were super fortunate to get some amazing behind-the-scenes footage of Matthew at the Shageluk checkpoint during this year's Iditarod (huge thanks to Kevin Bodhi for this great video)!
Originally from Mansfield, Ohio, and a graduate of The Ohio State University, Matthew is now located in Willow, Alaska, where he owns a kennel of 30+ dogs; 17th-Dog/Team Matthew Failor.
Matthew's love for the outdoors and canines is perfectly blended in his career as a mid and long distance musher. In the summer you will find him and his dogs living on the Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, Alaska; taking tourists on sled rides over the glacier. In the fall and winter, Matthew is back home in Willow training for either the Iditarod, Yukon Quest, or both!
Matthew has finished every Iditarod he's entered, including his first race in 2012 where he ran a team of young dogs for veteran musher Martin Buser. Matthew has also completed several other mid and long distance races along the way, including the Yukon Quest and Kuskokwim 300. In 2013 Matthew opened his own kennel and hasn't looked back!
Mushing has a long and treasured history in Alaska, sled dogs have been instrumental partners in survival for rural communities in the Arctic for hundreds of years. Now an incredibly popular sporting event in the state, The modern Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is an annual long-distance sled dog race run in March from Anchorage to Nome. The 1000 mile trail has teams racing through blizzards, whiteouts, sub-zero temperatures and gale-force winds where wind chill temperatures can reach −100 °F! We certainly couldn't ask for a more intense proving ground for our ultra-warm merino wool layers!
You can read Matthew's personal account of this years race, and learn more about his amazing dogs, on the 17th Dog Team Facebook page. We look forward to another season of following along with his racing and training next year!
