EVENING UPDATE: Team 21 Hale brothers first into Nome, but Team 6 takes the lead

Team 6, Robby Schachle and Brad George, were the second team to reach Nome, but the fastest. They will be rewarded $5,000 for that accomplishment and are currently in first place. Teams will work on their sleds on Tuesday and then tackle the return route to Big Lake.

NOME, AK (Feb. 15, 2021, 6:20 p.m.) – In 1925, a diptheria outbreak in Nome nearly turned into an epidemic, but a gutsy relay of dog teams traveling across the state with an antitoxin rescued the village just in time. 

 Flash forward nearly a century later: A worldwide pandemic is on the loose, and Alaskans are not immune. Yet still, gutsy performances continue – this time by the 18 remaining Iron Dog Pro Class teams that began arriving in Nome this afternoon. 

The first team to arrive was Team 21,  Joseph and Israel Hale, a pair of brothers who completed the Trail Class race last year, finishing first in that non-competitive division. Israel Hale is a double amputee who is proving his mettle this year, hanging with the fastest teams on the trail. Team 6, Robby Schachle and Brad George, came in just a few minutes later, at about 2:30 p.m.

“We’re going to have a team come in first that’s not truly in first place,” said race marshal Brian Webb before the racers began to arrive. “That’s part of the race this year.” 

The fastest team to Nome will receive a $5,000 bonus, compliments of the Nome Lion’s Club. While the Hales were indeed the first team to arrive, adjustments for layovers still needed to be configured, and Team 6 had the lead. 

Once in Nome, Pro Class teams headed straight for the garage, where they were being COVID-tested for the second time since leaving Big Lake. Later, they will have time to work on their sleds. In past years, the Nome Garage has bustled with activity, with spectators lining a cordoned-off section of the garage to watch the teams in action. 

Not so this year, Webb said.

 “Usually, Nome is bustling at this point with family members and fans, and it’s kind of quiet right now,” he said. “The streets are bare, the hotel rooms are kind of empty; unfortunately, it’s a necessary evil.”

There still will be a livestream during the garage work, thanks to continued support from South Anchorage High School’s media team. But don’t expect a repeat of past years’ action, Webb added. 

“So, the restrictions here are pretty strict,” Webb said. “We have no public allowed in the garage at all, no volunteers, and we’ve all been tested just to add a layer of security.”

Past Iron Dogs have also allowed racers up to two people to provide outside assistance, but that won’t be happening this year either. 

“It will just be the racers helping out each other,” Webb said. “So they will have to be choosing if they are helping their competition. That will play into their strategy.”  

Mike Vasser, Iron Dog’s interim executive director, said Nome is part of Iron Dog’s identity, so being able to let the racers layover there is fitting – despite the pandemic. 

“We’re appreciative of them for allowing Iron Dog into Nome,” Vasser said. “They have been very welcoming and we look forward to being clean there and the racers leaving out of there to complete the southbound part of the race.”

“Nome relies on us as an organization, and fans and businesses too, so any help that we can give them, we will,” Webb added.   

Racers will stay in Nome and have all day Tuesday to work on their sleds, at scheduled times. Although Nome is called the “halfway point,” they still have more trail ahead of them than they do behind them. On the return to Big Lake, racers will take the Kotzebue Loop, adding approximately 375 additional miles to the return course. Racers are expected back to Big Lake sometime Saturday, Feb. 20. 

Media Contact: Mike Vasser, Interim  Executive Director, Iron Dog Inc., (907) 563-4414  •  director@irondog.org