A top contender in a major dog sled race in Alaska was disqualified on Tuesday evening for carrying an iPod touch. Brent Sass of Eureka was told he violated Rule 35 of the  Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which prohibits cellphones and other two-way communication devices with wireless capability. The 35-year-old musher was running fifth place and a quarter of the way through the 979-mile contest when he was pulled off the course. Scroll down for video . Still smiling: Brent Sass of Eureka (right) was disqualified on Tuesday evening from the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race for carrying an iPod touch . Sass told the Alaska Dispatch News that he had no idea that he was doing anything wrong. 'I didn’t use [the iPod touch] and I had zero intent of using it for a Wi-Fi connection in checkpoints, but I was just completely clueless,' he said. 'I mean I gave my dad my cell phone because I knew you couldn’t have cell phones on this race specifically and I was just ignorant.' Sebastian Schnuelle, a Canadian dog musher and dog sled racer from Whitehorse, Yukon, who is not running in this year's Iditarod described Sass' disqualification as 'disappointment'. The 35-year-old musher was running fifth place and a quarter of the way through the 979-mile contest when he was pulled off the course (Rohn Buser's lead dogs pictured above) Ready, set: People stand near the start area during the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on Monday in Fairbanks . 'He was running a great team,' Schnuelle added. Sass, owner and founder of Wild and Free Mushing, has been racing and training huskies for 12 years. Originally from Excelsior, Minnesota, Sass moved to Alaska in 1998 to 'fulfill a lifelong dream' of living in the state. He attended the University of Alaska Fairbanks where he graduated with a major in geography and started mushing shortly after. Weather impacts: Iditarod mushers began their 1,000-mile trek across Alaska along a new route after poor trail conditions forced organizers to push the race's start north, bypassing a mountain range . Career high: Musher Timothy Hunt waits for his turn near the start area during the Iditarod . Since his first race in 2006, Sass has placed in over 20 races, including several first place finishes. Last month he won 1,000-mile Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race. The Iditarod began Monday in Fairbanks and will finish in Nome. Aliy Zirkle of Two Rivers was in the lead 227 miles into the race Tuesday at the Tanana checkpoint, where Sass is currently resting. The  fastest winning record was set in 2014 by Dallas Seavey with a time of eight days, 13 hours, four minutes, and 19 seconds.
Brent Sass of Eureka was told he violated Rule 35 of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which prohibits cellphones and other two-way communication devices with wireless capability . The 35-year-old musher was running fifth place and a quarter of the way through the 979-mile contest when he was pulled off the course . Sass, owner and founder of Wild and Free Mushing, has been racing and training huskies for 12 years .