EAGLE LAKE – The defending champion of this town’s 100-mile sled dog race won’t be at the competition later this month, but fierce competition is expected among the mushers from six states and two Canadian provinces.

Among the top competitors in the Irving Woodlands Eagle Lake 100, which starts Jan. 26, are Martin Massicotte, a three-time champion at the Can Am Crown International Sled Dog Race; Andre Longchamps and Normand Cassavant, both of Quebec; Al Ricalton of New York and local favorite Larry Murphy of Fort Kent. Lindy Howe of New Sweden is a northern Maine woman in the run.

The Eagle Lake 100 is going for its fourth competition hoping for good weather for the first time. In the first three years, it was hit by extremely cold weather, two inches of rain the second year and harsh winds last year.

Early snow this season and rain, sun and warm weather last week have packed down the trails setting them up for some fast runs. The race is done in two 50-mile stages from Eagle Lake to Fish Lake and back to the Eagle Lake waterfront.

“While we are looking at a little smaller field, 19, it will be an interesting race,” Tenley Bennett, president of the Irving Woodlands Eagle Lake 100 committee, said Tuesday. “It’s anyone’s guess as to who will win because we have quite a few good mushers.

“The trail is packed, we have plenty of snow and a final grooming will be done the week of the race. We are also encouraging mushers to bring friends, and we will be taking entries until the mushers’ meeting the night before the race.”

While no musher gives another a break, according to their sled dog racing record, Massicotte could be labeled the favorite in the race with his former showings here and his veteran status. The Quebec landscaper has already won three 250-mile races at Fort Kent and is an annual contender in the top five when he does not make the top spot. He is also a veteran of the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race, where he was Rookie of the Year in 2003.

He has placed fourth and fifth in previous races at Eagle Lake.

Matt Carstens of New Hampshire, two-time winner of the Eagle Lake run, and Stephane Duplissee of St. Zenon, Quebec, were just one minute apart at the finish in the 2007 race. The two mushers passed each other four times in the final 50 miles of the race, but Carstens hung on after passing Duplissee four miles from the finish line.

Neither is on the roster for 2008.

The fastest overall time for the three races held – 13 hours, four minutes – is held by Wilson during the first race. That time included a six-hour layover. The course that year was flash frozen and incredibly fast. The actual seven-hour running time saw Boyd’s team averaging nearly 7.5 miles per hour for the 100-mile course.

That came about because the Eagle Lake race was pushed back one week and is held on the same weekend as the Beargrease Sled Dog Race in Minnesota. The Minnesota race is larger in terms of the finishers’ purse.

Irving Woodlands LLC has donated the $5,000 purse for the Eagle Lake race again this year. The top musher receives $1,200 for the first-place finish. The remaining $3,800 is split by the other nine mushers who finish in the top 10.

The race starts at 11 a.m. from the town’s public beach near the Old Mill Marina. Mushers start at two-minute intervals heading for Moose Point Camps at Fish Lake. There is a four-hour layover at the camps, where Sen. John L. Martin, D-Eagle Lake will be host and the chef.

Race Marshall John Kaleta said the race effort is assisted greatly by a good veterinary staff that includes Jeremy Bither, Nick Pesut, both with years of experience with the Can Am Crown International Sled Dog Race, and Turner Lewis, a veteran of Alaska’s Iditarod Sled Dog Race.

They are also backed by volunteers from SAD 27’s Community High School Key Club, the Eagle Lake Volunteer Fire Department and townspeople.

The event can be followed on their Web site at geiweb.com/irvingel100.