2024 Iron Dog – Day 9 Highlights

With anything possible on the Iron Dog trail, the race remains wide open even at this late stage. The top five teams (6, 9, 10, 14, 39) have been trading places since the Kotzebue checkpoint, which was over 1,000 miles ago. The fact that there is only 1 hour and 43 minutes separating the top five teams after racing more than 2,400 miles speaks volumes about their consistency. It’s truly remarkable.

Team 39 surged out of the Whiskey Bravo checkpoint at 10:00 AM with a slim 8-minute lead over Team 14, eager for their first victory. Fans trailing behind Brett Lapham and Cody Barber of Team 39 were on the lookout for any weaknesses on the trail, but the duo benefited from excellent weather, clear skies, and impressive visibility, allowing them to push their sleds as fast as possible toward Big Lake.

Larry Levine captured some stunning aerial footage of the race between Skwentna and Big Lake from his helicopter, as seen below.

Showing no signs of slowing down, Team 39 raced toward the finish line, increasing their lead over Team 14, and crossed the line 13 minutes ahead to claim the 2024 championship. They might have finished even faster had one of them not run out of gas on Big Lake, forcing them to tow their sled across the finish line to secure the win.

Shane Barber, the father of this year’s racing brothers Cody and Evan Barber, first participated in the race in 2000. One enthusiastic fan noted that this could be the family’s first victory, while another stated, “It is indeed the Barber family’s first Iron Dog win. Shane, Tammy, Cody, Evan, and Shana’s husband Brett have all raced; they have even made some podium finishes. An extraordinary family of fantastic racers!”

Casey Boylan and Bryan Leslie, seasoned contenders for the Iron Dog podium, secured another second-place finish to add to their race stats. Since 2019, either racer has consistently proven to be a strong competitor, and we are likely to see them again next year, striving for the top prize.

To give you an idea of Team 14’s speed, they reportedly set a new split-time record between Skwentna and Big Lake, covering the 80-mile stretch in just 1:03, averaging 75 mph.

In regard to yesterday’s events involving Teams 15 and 22, both teams have unfortunately been forced to withdraw from the race at Tatina. A racer from each team sank their sleds in the South Fork of the Kuskokwim River, and they are now figuring out how to recover their machines and bring them back to civilization.

Fortunately, all riders are safe and uninjured, but recovering their equipment will be a significant challenge. Race fans have come together to provide financial support to the teams, as they are not local to Alaska, making the situation more complicated.

To complete the story on Team 33’s withdrawal yesterday, we received a photo revealing the equipment issues they faced. Significant damage to the right side of their Ski-Doo MXZ XRS could have led to further structural problems along with difficulties sourcing necessary parts to get back on the trail.

Completing the podium, Mike Morgan and Bradley Kishbaugh took the third place, riding Polaris. Impressively, all seven teams that finished the race were on Polaris equipment, while the Dohrn brothers from Team 17 were the top riders for Ski-Doo.

Newcomers Gossett/Gugel are expected to finish in seventh place, marking an impressive achievement for a rookie team. Their clean racing this year indicates they will likely return next year.

Congratulations to all the finishers this year and especially to all the volunteers who made this event possible. This race requires the dedication of countless individuals who willingly devote their time across various parts of Alaska to uphold this cherished tradition. Your contributions are greatly appreciated! We look forward to the 2025 race!