Emily Robinson

Emily grew up with a dog team in her yard. From the age of 3 she was learning how to drive a sled with guidance from her dad, Wally. Wally built Emily a small sled and took the time to teach her how to handle it and care for the sled dogs the family owned. At 12 Emily got curious about what it would be like to race with the dogs. This was the beginning of her astounding career. At 13 Emily raced her first distance race the Willow Jr 100. She placed 6th. In 2022 she and Wally ran two teams in the ACE race and she placed 6th again. She then placed 2nd in the 2023 Willow Jr 100 and won her first Jr Iditarod in 2023 as a rookie. This was a great season of learning but Emily wanted to improve her mushing skills.

In the 2023/24 season she shocked the mushing world when she won the ACE race by 12 minutes against some of the best teams in the world. She then went on to win the Willow 150 as a rookie and the first female to win. The next win was the Yukon Quest 80, followed by the Willow JR 100 and then her second Jr Iditarod win. She won an impressive 5 races that season!

In 2024 Emily was second in the ACE race, won the Knik 100 as a rookie and then stunned everyone, including her family, when she pulled off a win in the Knik 200! It was an amazing display of grit, determination and patience. Emily was the first Jr musher to win a 200 mile adult race, she was a rookie, and the first female to win the Knik 200. She was awarded the Joe Redington Sr award for inspirational mushing, which she was honored to receive. Emily finished off the season winning the Willow Jr 100 for a second time and the Jr Iditarod for a 3rd time. She is the first female to win the Jr Iditarod more than once and only the second person to ever win 3 times in the 47 year history of the race. Emily was also honored with the Trajan Langdon Female Youth Athlete of the Year for 2024 from the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame.

Emily started the 2025 season off by defending her win in the Knik 100! The next race was the Knik 200 and she ran a great race and managed to hold off the competition and win her second Knik 200! Emily then flew to Bethel, AK to compete in her first 300 mile race. The K300 is very competitive and run at a fast pace. Over the 300 mile course there are only 10 hours of rest and most of those are caring for the dogs. Emily was the only female entered in the 2025 K300 and the only rookie. Most of the other mushers had many years of race experience as well as Iditarod finishes. Emily and her dogs managed to finish this tough event in 6th place which was an amazing accomplishment for a rookie musher. She was very happy with her finish and how her dogs managed their longest race. After the Kusko 300 Emily was challenged with her 4th Jr Iditarod run. She had the pressure of setting a new record for being the first person to win the race all four years running. Emily had a great race and her and her team made history when she crossed the finish line as the first 4 time champion. It was an amazing feat and a great way to end her junior mushing career!

Emily will be racing the 2026 season as an adult in the adult races. She will defend her championships in the Knik 100 and 200 against very strong competition and then will race the Kusko 300 for her second time. Join us for another exciting season of racing!