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Saturday's 240-kilometre Kluane Chilkat bike relay came down to a sprint to the finish line in Haines, Alaska and was decided by half a wheel.

Whitehorse cyclist David Gonda and defending solo champion Brett Boniface raced neck-and-neck to the finish, with the Yukoner squeaking out victory by less than a second, with an overall time of 5:57:21.

Gonda paired with Jonah Clark to form team Icycle in the two-man category. It took Gonda about 40 km to catch Boniface, who was biking solo, and the two rode together until the end to record the closest finish in the race's 21-year history.

The two were just off the course record of 5:55:55, set in 2002.

Finishing third overall in 6:03:04 was a four-person Whitehorse-based team known as Retired Calves.

"David beat me by half a wheel,鈥� Boniface told the Star. "We had a good sprint and he took it. It was fair and I couldn't have lost to a better guy. He did an amazing job because I was on my own off the front from about the 80-km mark, and about 160, he came across a three-minute gap and then we worked together for the last little bit.鈥�

Gonda said Boniface showed his strength by being unshakable late.

"I tried to attack a couple of times before the finish, but he was just right there every time,鈥� Gonda said. "Then we started sprinting and I luckily was able to get there first. We came into the finishing chute really fast. I don't think they were expecting us to come in sprinting.

"After 200 km, to keep riding that fast? Brett was definitely riding really strong,鈥� the 25-year-old continued. "It was just the two of us after the border, so we worked together and tried to hold our gap. It's different because he rode the whole thing by himself, and I only rode the second half. But I would like to do it solo one year.鈥�

Boniface and Gonda have raced each other before on the B.C. circuit. This is the second straight year Boniface, a Cloverdale, B.C. resident, has competed in the KCIBR.

"It was different weather than last year, and a completely different race,鈥� the 33-year-old Boniface said. "It couldn't get any worse from last year's conditions.鈥�

Last year, Boniface was tops among solo riders with a time of 7:40:37. He called the annual race "unreal鈥� thanks to its wide open roads and epic conditions.

"The one thing I was saying to my support crew today was just 鈥榯ake a look around. There's no houses. There's nothing around. You're seeing glacier peaks.' So just even being around for that, I see why all 1,200 people come out and do it,鈥� he said.

Boniface said the change to a mass start made the race quicker, as cyclists were able to employ strategy early in the race.

"There was a lot more aggression at the beginning,鈥� he said. "We knew once we got to the halfway point we were having a good day because of the way the winds were. We got down to the valley and there was definitely a head wind at the end, so it took a lot out of us, but we were pushing.鈥�

Gonda said the event is a special one, because it includes all types of cyclists.

"It's such a good event because it's a combination of fast riders and recreational riders, but everyone still has a really good time,鈥� he said. "It's pretty unique that way.鈥�

KCIBR board president Rob Welton said 277 teams took part in the event, including 41 solo riders. The international race featured cyclists from across North America.

Warm conditions, including a favourable tailwind, helped improve times drastically over last year.