Iron Dog racers arrive in Unalakleet after near flawless day of riding
Sleds are staged in the Galena parking area for their Sunday morning departure. By Sunday evening, the front-runners had arrived in Unalakleet. Courtesy Shirley Cleaver
Weather may have complicated the start of Iron Dog 2022, but on Day 2 of racing on Sunday, plentiful snow and favorable trail conditions greeted racers as they left McGrath on the trail to Nome. As of Sunday evening, only five minutes separated the top two teams — 2020 Iron Dog champion Team 7, Tyler Aklestad and Nick Olstad pulled into Unalakleet at 5 p.m., with Team 14, Casey Boylan and Bryan Leslie, hot on their heels at 5:05 p.m.
“The trail is fast, it’s like record-breaking fast,” said Roger Brown, Iron Dog board president and Pro Class veteran who is part of an all-star Ambassador Team that until Sunday was riding ahead of the Pro Class. “I don’t even know how to describe it without making it sound like I’m exaggerating.”
Team 7 arrives in Ruby. Team 7 are the current leaders as of Sunday evening. Courtesy Melissa Captain
Areas of trail that can sometimes be challenging were postcard perfect, he said.
“The Kaltag portage is like Sunday driving, and the river from Galena to Kaltag is super, super smooth,” he added. Team 77 is part of the Expedition Class of riders who are traveling at a more leisurely pace. Until Sunday, they were riding ahead of the Pro Class, but the pros, traveling at much higher speeds, began catching up by Sunday evening.
Team 7, for example, cruised at between 36 mph and 53 mph from McGrath to Poorman, but from there they averaged 68 mph to 74 mph coming into Kaltag. They took the 85-mile run from Kaltag to Unalakleet a bit slower, as winds and snow blowing into the area reduced visibility, delivering the only challenging conditions of the day.
“Actually at this point in the race last year, the teams were about 15 minutes faster than they are this year if you average the top three or four teams,” said Jake Goodell, Iron Dog board member who manages timing. However, he said, although conditions like flat light might be limiting speed, better trail condition is resulting in fewer broken sleds.
“The takeaway is although the average speed is a little lower, it actually feels like you’re not getting kicked around as in past years,” he said.
Aklestad noted the smoother conditions as well – but knows that could be temporary.
“The trail is great, it’s crazy how much snow there is,” said Aklestad, as he and Olstad rested at the Unalakleet checkpoint Sunday evening. However, the trail is well traveled and after all the pro teams pass through, it could be pretty torn up.
“It’s going to be an interesting race going home,” he said of the return route over the same trails.
Aklestad said there is heavy snow in parts of Ophir, Poorman, and even Unalakleet.
“I’ve never seen snow so good there,” said Aklestad, who’s raced 17 previous Iron Dogs and is a two-time champion. If not for the ground storm, he said he and Olstad may have pushed on to Nome.
“We contemplated going all the way, but it’s supposed to be better tomorrow,” he said. “We are going to make the last push at daybreak and hopefully be into Nome by noon.”
Casey Boylan of Team 14, had a similar experience with teammate Bryan Leslie, although he said visibility was challenging at times.
“We had pretty good conditions over to Poorman, but on the Yukon, there was flat light and the ice fog was crummy,” he said.
Boylan said it started snowing about five miles out of Kaltag, which smoothed the trail a bit, and coming into Unalakleet – despite the blowing snow – was better than past years.
Team 14 fueling up in Ruby. They currently stand in second place. Courtesy Melissa Captain
“Coming into Unalakleet, usually there’s one goat trail that you don’t dare go off,” he said of one 30- to 35-mile section. “But there was enough snow, you could go anywhere.”
Like Team 7, Team 14 will be laying over in Unalakleet – they are taking a 16-hour break – and will push on to Nome first thing in the morning.
As of publication time, two of the 28 teams entered in this year’s Iron Dog have scratched. Team 28, West Anchorage High principal Sven Gustafson and his son Steven, scratched in Puntilla on Saturday. Team 8, Chad Gueco and Cody Moen, scratched Sunday in Skwentna after struggling with mechanical issues.
Brown, of Team 77, said if Monday’s weather cooperates, it’s going to be another good day of racing. Teams will stay in Nome for the halfway banquet, work in the garage and leave in scheduled increments.
Media Contact: Bob Menne, Executive Director, Iron Dog Inc., (907) 854-0097 or (907) 563-4414, director@irondog.org
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