Torlief Bentzen, 17, is an eleventh grader from Fairbanks, Alaska. He first got on the runners at the age of three, thanks to family friend Ellie Mason, and has been running dogs ever since. In 2024, under the mentorship and guidance of ReRen Kennel, Torlief got into racing and ran their dogs in Jr. Iditarod that year. The following year he raced his own dogs in Yukon Qust 80 and T-Dog 100. When not running dogs, Torlief enjoys camping, hunting, and carving. After high school he would like to continue mushing.