In Alaska, a day of mourning.

Far from her Alaska home and the dogs she loved so much, four-time Iditarod champion Susan Butcher died Saturday in a Seattle hospital.

She was 51 years old and the mother of two young daughters. She had been waging a battle against leukemia for a year and a half, but sometimes not even the toughest warriors can win.

Susan probably did more to make the Iditarod more humane to the dogs then any other competitor. She absolutely loved her dogs and treated them like family. That compassion was reflected in her success. Those dogs ran their hearts out for her.

See for yourself:

Iditarod legacy
Susan Butcher was a four-time Iditarod champion who finished in the top 10 in all but two of her 17 races. Her fastest time was 10 days, 22 hours, 3 minutes in 1993.
1978 19th
1979 9th
1980 5th
1981 5th
1982 2nd
1983 9th
1984 2nd
1985 Scratch
1986 1st
1987 1st
1988 1st
1989 2nd
1990 1st
1991 3rd
1992 2nd
1993 4th
1994 10th