Attla and his team running the Open North American
Legendary Alaskan dog musher, George Attla Jr. passed away on Sunday. He had been diagnosed with B-cell lymphoma just the previous week. Attla was 81.
Known as the Huslia Hustler, Attla grew up outside the village of Huslia, which is 85 miles upriver from the confluence of the Koyukuk and Yukon Rivers. He raced his first Fur Rondy in 1958 and last mushed a team in Fairbanks over the 2014 Arctic Winter Games’ course. Attla would win the world’s two premiere sprint races: the Fur Rendezvous World Championship in Anchorage and the Open North American in Fairbanks, 18 times.
Photo courtesy of the Daily News-Miner, video courtesy of UAF Film Archives
February 19th, 2015 at 5:55 AM
I was fortunate to meet him once when he was heading up the Elliott to the Yukon river. I am sure his spirit will always remain a large part of the history of Americas Last Frontier.
February 19th, 2015 at 9:24 PM
Thanks for the tribute to George Attla. I appreciate the chance to remember.