Peter Kaiser (musher)


Peter Kaiser is an American dog musher who won the 2019 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Kaiser is the first Yup’ik musher and the fifth Alaska Native to win an Iditarod championship. He is from Bethel, Alaska.
Kaiser graduated from Bethel High School in 2005. He works in construction, and fishes and hunts. He is married and has two children.

Career

Kaiser finished 28th in the 2010 Iditarod, his rookie year in the event, then finished eighth in 2011 and fifth in 2012. He has six top 10 finishes in 10 Iditarods.
Kaiser also won the Kuskokwim 300 championship four consecutive times.
The Kuskokwim 300, a highly regarded mid-distance race, figured prominently in his decision to become a competitive musher. “Our family has always had dogs, and I’ve been mushing since I was a kid," he said on his Iditarod bio. "Watching the Kuskokwim 300 every January sparked my interest in long distance racing, and a few years ago, I decided that I would give the Iditarod a try."

Career summary

Kaiser and his dog teams have finished fifth or better in 18 sled dog races since 2005. Here's a list of his first-place finishes: