Former Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon champion Erin Aili recaptured the title this morning, pulling up to the Grand Portage reservation along Lake Superior in atypical warm weather. In a battle between the Erins,

GRAND PORTAGE — Erin Aili has won her second John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon. The Ray, Minnesota, musher and her eight-dog team crossed the finish line Tuesday just after 10 a.m. at Grand Portage Lodge & Casino, 275 miles and nearly two full days after starting near Two Harbors. She also won the title in 2021.

Erin Aili takes the top spot in the 40th running of the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon. She is followed by Erin Altemus in second place.

Winners in the 40th running of the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon are expected to cross the finish line in Grand Portage on Tuesday morning. Competitors took off late Sunday morning from a makeshift start north of Two Harbors — an alternate point of entry because of a lack of snowpack at its traditional start at Billy’s Bar on the outskirts of Duluth.

Erin Aili has earned her second John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon title. She finished the 267-mile race Tuesday morning, a shortened course due to a lack of snow between Duluth and Two Harbors. Aili is from Ray, Minn. Her first win came in 2021, when she competed as Erin Letzring.

Deteriorating snow led race organizers to move the start of the race from outside Duluth to north of Two Harbors, Minn., where nearly 40 mushers and their dog teams are set to take off Sunday.

Although the marathon was delayed by five weeks, and the starting point moved from Duluth to Two Harbors, spirits were high as mushers hit the trail Sunday.

Before the elite dogs took to the trails for the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon, the little pups got in on the fun as well. The annual Beargrease Cutest Puppy Contest returned to Fitger’s Saturday,

The annual race, which begins in Duluth and runs more than 300 miles, is a qualifier for the world-famous Iditarod and attracts some of the world's top mushers.