NOON UPDATE: Team 6 Iron Dog leaders stay realistic about the race

Team 6, Brad George and Robby Schachle, fist-bump at the start of Iron Dog 38. The pair holds a narrow lead at the halfway point. Photo: Megan Rolinger

(NOME, Alaska, Feb. 16, 12 p.m.) – Team 6, Robby Schachle and Brad George, arrived into Nome on Monday with a razor-thin lead in Iron Dog 38. Less than 10 minutes separate them from the next two teams. 

The pair knows first hand, though, how quickly things can change in the World’s Longest, Toughest Snowmobile Race. 

 Just 150 miles from the finish line during last year’s Iron Dog, George and his teammate Tyson Johnson were solidly in second place. They could taste the podium. 

One minute they were flying over the trail, and the next George was through the ice, sled and all. 

“I ran that trail 100 times practicing,” said George from Nome, where he and Schachle were resting up on Tuesday and holding onto the race lead. “In the race, it just fell out from under me. So until you cross the finish line, nothing’s a sure thing.”

The leaders are determined by their overall course time at the same location. After layovers were accounted for and all remaining teams had settled into Nome on Monday, Team 6’s course time of 19 hours, 48 minutes and 50 seconds is just minutes ahead of second place Team 5, Brett Lapham and Zack Weisz (19:50:10). Rounding out the current Top 3 is Team 10, Chris Olds and Mike Morgan, the 2018 and 2019 Iron Dog champions, with a course time of 19:58:21. Racers will begin leaving Nome Wednesday morning for the roughly 1,600-mile return to Big Lake. They will have to veer north in Koyuk and navigate the 375-mile Kotzebue Loop before circling back to Koyuk and backtracking to Big Lake. 

Mike Vasser, Iron Dog’s interim executive director, said the talent in this year’s race is unparalleled. 

“The top six teams are separated by less than three hours,” he said. Furthermore, he added, there have only been three scratches so far. Each year’s scratch count varies depending on the course layout, weather conditions and other unexpected factors such as crashes or mechanical issues, but three scratches is impressive, he said. By comparison, in the 2020 race, 13 had scratched before Nome; in 2019, eight were out by the halfway point.  

“The last thing that I’m happy with is we have executed our fourth phase of our COVID mitigation plan, so all racers are 100-percent negative,” Vasser said.  “The racers had two COVID tests prior to the race, one in Galena and one in Nome. They all came back negative. They are done testing, and the racing can continue.”

Back in Nome, Schachle and George took advantage of the down time, watching TV and resting before tomorrow’s re-start. This is the fourth year they have raced together, and Schachle said that familiarity helps them on the trail. 

“Brad and I are like brothers,” he said. “We haven’t had an argument yet, and you hear about that happening. We just joke and laugh even when we are riding.” 

Knowing they still have more than half the race to finish, he said the two are just trying to stay realistic. 

“We went into this race running our own pace, riding our own ride,” Schachle said. “We are not going to feed off of anyone else. We are playing it safe and riding how we know how to ride.”

George said it’s way too early to do any celebrating. 

“It’s exciting for sure, but we are not going to freak out and make any irrational decisions,” he said. “We are not even halfway there. If somebody wants to pass us, they pass us. We are not going to do anything out of our ordinary.”

“Racing your own race” is a mantra George said he has heard from the top racers for years, but this is the first year he’s actually executed that advice. 

“It’s funny; this is my 10th Iron Dog and this is the first time I’ve not planned on being in Nome first,” he said. “And look how things turned out.” 

The pair agreed: Team 6, rested and refueled, will continue to do their thing, knowing that at any time, the race can turn. 

“The race isn’t over yet,” George said. “Whoever is five hours behind could still win this race. We are well aware.” 

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