Last year, Jessie Holmes reached the peak of his chosen sport: winner of the Iditarod.
Now, the Sylacauga native is seeking to hold onto his crown as reigning champion of the storied 1,000-mile sled dog race that runs from Anchorage, Alaska to Nome, Alaska.
The race, which first began in 1973, kicked off Saturday and is expected to run between one to two weeks. As of Monday night, Holmes was in third place.
In a profile with CBS 42 in 2024, Holmes spoke about his love for dogsledding, as well as the many dogs he cares for at his makeshift home in the bush of Brushkana.
“When you’re dealing with live animals, your life revolves around taking care of them,” Holmes said. “It’s a lot like being a farmer, you’re married to your land, you’re married to your animals.”
Lew Freedman, a sports writer and author who has covered the Iditarod for decades, said the race has become a way of life in Alaska and Holmes has been a rising star in the sport ever since he competed in his first race in 2018.
“He’s made an impact and he’s very determined to be a guy who wins it,” Freedman said. “That’s what he said.”
Outside of the Iditarod, Holmes is best known for the eight seasons he appeared on National Geographic’s “Life Below Zero,” where his extreme subsistence lifestyle was highlighted.
“That allowed me to be able to make an income, not by building houses, not doing yard work, but just living my life,” Holmes told CBS 42. “I took all that income and pursued my dreams.”
On March 14, 2025, Holmes finally won the race, marking the longest race in Iditarod history at 1,128 miles due to heavy snow that changed the routes. Holmes finished the race in 10 days, 14 hours, 55 minutes and 41 seconds.
“There’s a lot of things that can happen in your life once you win the Iditarod,” Holmes told The Associated Press in an interview before this year’s race. “You could become a real big deal, or you could just go back out in the bush and get right back to work, you know? And that’s what I did.”
Some predict the race could be done by March 17.
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