Musher Allen Moore begins final leg of Yukon Quest with big lead

Alaskan musher Allen Moore has a five hour lead as he heads out towards Whitehorse on the final leg of the Yukon Quest sled dograce.

He can leave Braeburn Lodge at 7 p.m. after a mandatory eight-hour rest at the lodge.

Moore had all 14 dogs he started the race with when he arrived at the Braeburn checkpoint. It'sunusual for a Quest musher to still have all their dogs this late in the race, and even more so for a front-runner.

Based on previous race times,Moore could arrive at the finish line at Shipyards Park in Whitehorse between 7 a.m. and9 a.m Tuesday. But there's been a significant change to the route this year with the mushers heading into the city on Lake Laberge.

The usual route is too dangerous to use because of icy conditions.

Last year's winner Matt Hall was the second musher into the Braeburn Lodge checkpoint. He arrived at 4:08 p.m., five hours behind Moore.

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