Quest musher kicked out of the race

A 23-year-old Alaskan musher has been "involuntarily withdrawn" from the 1,600-kilometre Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race by race officials because he did not have a handler.

J.T. Hessert arrived in Dawson City at 5 a.m. Thursday near the back of the pack of the 26 teams remaining in the race from Whitehorse to Fairbanks, Alaska.

The rookie musher said he does not understand why he has been kicked out because there is no rule a musher has to have a handler.

"It does not really make any sense," he told CBC News. "I'm conservatively running my dogs at the back of the pack. I'm just camping up the trail giving my dogs experience. I'm not pushing competitively. The dogs are in great condition."

Although Hessert was getting help from another musher's handler, race marshal Mike McCowan says that's not good enough.

"He has no truck here with gear and supplies on it other than what he shipped forward,"McCowan said.

"It's a shame, but at the same time I think that if you're going to enter a race like this I think you have to put a little bit more planning and preparation into it."

Quest rules say a team may be "involuntarily withdrawn" by the race marshal to protect the dogs, the driver or even the event itself but that"does not imply deliberate misconduct or rule violations."

Mushers can also be disqualified for failing to comply with the race rules.