(McGRATH, Alaska, 9 p.m.) – The blistering pace that has been set since the beginning of Iron Dog 38 started to show some cracks today — on racers, and their machines.
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(GALENA, Alaska, Feb. 18, 4 p.m.) – A collision on the trail rattled two of the top three teams today, but by 3 p.m. everyone was settled into Galena, eating food and cracking jokes.
As Doug Dixon, Iron Dog board of directors vice president said, this is just part of racing.
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KOTZEBUE, Alaska Feb. 18, 9 a.m. — Iron Dog release times for teams departing Kotzebue today.
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(KOTZEBUE, Alaska, 9:30 p.m.) – As the evening hours waned, two teams were still on the Kotzebue Loop north of Selawik, and one beleaguered team called it quits in Koyuk. Team 2, Jacob Dahle and Dustin Dohrn of Minnesota, left the White Mountain checkpoint at 12:41 p.m. and did not arrive into Koyuk until 7:04 p.m., a roughly 100-mile section that took the front-runners just an hour and a half to cover. Unofficial reports blame mechanical problems – a reality in this race that can put racers from first to finished in a matter of seconds.
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(KOTZEBUE, Alaska, 4:15 p.m.) – It was another exciting day of racing on Wednesday as teams 5 and 6 duked it out on Kobuk Lake to see who would arrive in Kotzebue first. Local volunteer and radio announcer Paulette Scheurch gave the blow-by-blow to excited KOTZ radio listeners as at 3:07:56 p.m. Team 6 pulled into the checkpoint. Team 6 Brad George and Robby Schachle got there with the narrowest of leads. Team 5, Brett Lapham and Zack Weisz clocked in at 3:08:54, just 58 seconds behind their competitors.
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(NOME, Alaska, Feb. 17, 12:15 p.m.) – As the last eight Iron Dog teams were being released from Nome on Wednesday for the race back to Big Lake, the front of the pack had already reached Koyuk and were entering the Kotzebue Loop.
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(NOME, Alaska, REVISED 5 a.m. Feb 17 to reflect updated start order Feb. 16, 8 p.m.) – Eighteen Iron Dog teams spent the day in Nome on Tuesday, prepping their sleds for the roughly 1,600 miles separating them from the finish line.
After all the wrenching was done, and the on-the-clock garage times added to each team’s course totals, Team 5, Brett Lapham and Zack Weisz skipped ahead of Team 6, Brad George and Robby Schachle. Still, the two teams are running neck and neck, with just 6 minutes and 30 seconds separating them. Team 10, Chris Olds and Mike Morgan, with six wins between them, remain in third. All are Iron Dog veterans and some of the top racers in the field.
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(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.
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NOME, AK (Feb. 15, 2021, 6:30 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.
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UNALAKLEET, AK (February 15, 2021, 1:30 p.m.) – Reigning Iron Dog champions Tyler Aklestad and Nick Olstad, Team 7, have scratched from Iron Dog 38.
Read MoreGALENA, AK (February 14, 2021, 6:45 p.m.) – Iron Dog teams began arriving in Galena by 3 p.m. Sunday, again traveling in a tight and competitive group that leaves race fans wondering, “Who are this year’s top dogs going to be?”
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McGrath, AK (February 14, 2021, 10:30 a.m.) – Pro Class racers rested up at the layover checkpoint in McGrath on Saturday evening and began making their way back on the trail today, another bluebird day for racing. The clear and cold conditions mean racers will be able to amp the throttle to take advantage of ideal visibility and a fast trail.
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McGrath, AK (February 13, 2021, 8:05 p.m.) – Pro Class racers launched from Big Lake this morning in what appears to be a very fast start to Iron Dog 38. Twenty-one teams left in two-minute intervals under a crystal clear sky and a conga line of small celebratory parties spaced out along the trail in socially distanced bubbles.
Read MoreThe World’s Longest, Toughest Snowmobile Race is schedule is set and racer bios are live!
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Iron Dog is all over the map this year. The latest to register for the 2021 Iron Dog is Seth Kroenke of Shawano, Wisconsin. The Expedition Class rider joins 12 others who collect their mail outside of Alaska.
Read MoreThree more Pro Class teams and an additional Expedition Class rider signed up today to bring the total number of Iron Dog 2021 racers and riders to 53.
Read MoreLooks like the Expedition Class is going to fill up every checkpoint they roll into. Another two Expedition riders signed up today to bring the total number of Iron Dog 2021 racers and riders to 46.
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The men from Manitoba are back for Iron Dog 2021. Team 37’s Mark Fosty and Ben Hildebrand rounded out the top-15 seed today for the World’s Longest, Toughest Snowmobile Race.
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The loop has always had board support, and now it has even more support as sponsors start to get behind the region – and most notably, the enthusiastic fans – from Buckland, Selawik, Kiana, Noorvik and Kotzebue. Supporters were out at all hours of the night cheering on our teams last year, and we are looking forward to hearing even more noise from those fine fans in 2021.
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