Neff is the quarry in Yukon Quest RESTED AND ON THE RUN: Done with his 36-hour layover, leader leaves Dawson with Gatt chasing.

The hunt was on Thursday for Yukon Quest leader Hugh Neff as mushers began to leave Dawson City.

Neff was the first out, leaving the historic Yukon gold rush town at 2:35 a.m. Alaska time after a mandatory 36-hour layover. He was followed by defending champion Hans Gatt of Whitehose at 5:16 a.m. and Ken Anderson of Fox at 7:33 a.m.

A veteran racer from Tok, Neff boasts eight Quest finishes and three top-three showings but no victories. He's been close the last two races, finishing third last year and second in 2009.

Just before he left Dawson, Neff was serenaded by Cindy Godbey, an entertainer who goes by the name Dawson Dolly. She sang to Neff while dressed in a Gold Rush-era costume:

"Saint Peter don't ya call me cause I don't have time,

Cause I'm on my way to the finish line."

Eureka musher Brent Sass left Dawson just after 9 a.m., preceding a pack of mushers that included 2009 champion Sebastian Schnuelle and rookies Allen Moore, Wade Marrs and Dallas Seavey.

Most mushers were still in Dawson Thursday evening. The checkpoint is the only place on the trail where mushers can receive outside assistance with their dog care and repairing equipment.

Once mushers leave Dawson, they face a 147-mile stretch before Eagle, the next checkpoint in the race and the first on the American side of the border. There's a dog drop 48 miles into the stretch at Fortymile River.

Rookie Christine Roalofs, a pediatric dentist from Anchorage, was the only musher still on the trail to Dawson as of early Thursday night. Satellite tracking showed Roalofs taking a five-mile detour off the trail near Eureka Dome. By 6 p.m. the tracker showed her back on the trail, nearing King Solomon's Dome, the final summit before Dawson.

Officials said trail conditions were good, despite some bare parts due to winds of up to 30 miles per hour last week.

Mike Reitz, Alaska trail coordinator, gave an overview of trail conditions at a musher meeting in Dawson on Wednesday. He said both Rosebud and Eagle summits have good snow, and although there is some ice jumble on the rivers, there are no major concerns.

But snow is starting to fall between Dawson and Eagle, officials said, and trail conditions could change dramatically as a result.

Temperatures were relatively warm in Eagle, with a high of 10 degrees above zero Thursday. That's not expected to last. The forecast predicts temperatures between minus-35 to minus-45 below in Circle and Central over the weekend.

The mushers have a four-hour layover in Eagle -- to give ample time to deal with border paperwork -- before continuing down the Alaska side of the trail towards the finish in Fairbanks.


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