Iditarod champion Butcher dies at 51

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Four-time Iditarod champion Susan Butcher died Saturday in a Seattle hospital of a reoccurrence of leukemia after a recent stem-cell transplant, her doctor said. She was 51.

Butcher dominated the 1,100-mile sled-dog race from Anchorage to Nome in the late 1980s. In 1986, she became the second woman to win the grueling race. She added victories in 1987, ‘88 and ‘90, and finished in the top four through 1993.

“What she did is brought this race to an audience that had never been aware of it before simply because of her personality,” Iditarod spokesman Chas St. George said. Dr. Jan Abkowitz said that after a stem-cell transplant May 16, Butcher developed graft-versus-host-disease, in which transplanted cells attacked her digestive system. After that, Abkowitz said, the leukemia returned.

In 1979, Butcher helped drive the first sled-dog team to the 20,320-foot summit of Mount McKinley, the highest peak in North America.

Butcher ran her last Iditarod in 1994 when she decided to have children. She had two daughters, Tekla and Chisana, with her husband, attorney and musher David Monson. Three years ago, when she was considering a comeback, doctors found Butcher had polycythemia vera, a rare disease that causes the bone marrow to produce excess blood.

Butcher planned to compete in a 300-mile race last winter but was unable after she was diagnosed with leukemia in early December.

During her chemotherapy treatments, Butcher daydreamed about land in the White Mountains she and her husband bought last fall. They planned to build a bigger cabin on the land that comes with 300 miles of groomed trails.

“I got the cutest, lovingest group of well-trained females. They are easy to handle, and I just enjoy them,” she said. “They will be waiting for me.”