Lance Mackey and His Dogs Win Iditarod XXXVIII!
Today at 2:59pm Alaska time, three time Iditarod champ Lance Mackey glided across the finish line in Nome, Alaska to do what no musher has done before. He became the race’s only four-time consecutive winner, and he even did it sober this time.
The Iditarod champ, a throat cancer survivor whose body has been wracked by the disease and the radiation treatment, has a medical marijuana permit card and has openly used it during past races. So why the fuss this year?
But here’s the thing — Mackey is very, very good at racing sled dogs. In fact he might be the best there has ever been. Over the last six years he has won three Iditarods (in a row, and easily) and four Yukon Quests (the only other 1,000-mile sled dog race in the world). Two years in a row he won the Quest one month then the Iditarod the next, a mushing feat never previously accomplished.
That kind of success breeds resentment and jealousy. It seems that powerful, but petty, emotions have led the Iditarod rules committee to declare that this year they would enforce — for the first time — a 26-year-old rule banning marijuana use by mushers. It’s worth noting that growing dope for personal use is legal in Alaska. So what’s the issue here?
When asked if this enforcement was directly related to Mackey’s success — after all, Mackey has openly admitted to smoking on the trail — Iditarod officials responded that it would be “hard to deny.” They further added that it was at the urging of Mackey’s competitors that they took action.
But even the killjoys couldn’t sabotage Mackey’s unbeatable winning streak. Fifty one seconds short of 9 days exactly, he crossed the finish line to cheering crowds who stood in Nome waiting to greet the man who has done what no one else has ever done, and may never do again. And, of course, mushers can only claim part of the victory. The dogs do the real work. Mackey finished up the race with 11 of the sixteen he started with.
Under a bluebird sky, Mackey’s dogs trotted down Front Street while the big afternoon crowd surged forward, narrowing the slot of snow through which he could pass.
“I drew the right (bib) number, 49, representing the whole state of Alaska and the people who believed in me,” he said. “It was an amazing welcome as usual. People were cheering as if it was my first one.”
Two of Mackey’s stalwart dogs, Rev, who’s missing his left ear tip, and Maple, sat with Mackey under the burled arch, adorned with collars of yellow roses. Mackey draped his arms around them and planted a kiss on their fur.
“They may not be the fastest team in this race,” Mackey said. “But they’ve got the biggest hearts.”
Hans Gatt pulled in at 4:04pm to take the #2 spot.
But just because we have a winner, that doesn’t mean the race is over. Not by a long shot. Many teams are yet to arrive, each running their own race. For the rookies, just finishing is a win. For the veterans, it’s a personal best.
Awesome race, Lance!!
Yip Yip Yarooooooo!!!!!
Yeah! Way to go. Great race, and many left to go until the red lantern.
This is wonderful news. $ in a row is amazing.
Ooops…4 in a row.
Congratulations to Lance!
This is the first year that I’ve watched the race and that is thanks to the mudflat team whether it be AKM with her wonderful posts, or the coldfootfilm twitter updates, all have made it a great experience.
The stories of each musher and their animals have all been very positive and inspiring. Sometimes heart wrenching. I worried for days about the missing dog (found) of one musher.
Congratulations, team #49!
congrats to Lance…but my best congrats is to Whitey-Lance, the sled dog who went missing for four days and was found….and his rookie musher who scratched the race when Whitey-Lance went missing and NEVER gave up looking for his missing dog
THAT’S the great Iditarod story for me this year.
This race always gives me the chills – it’s just such an incredible trip to make, with so many variables from year to year. Lance and his team deserve every single atom of praise they are given, and more.
I hope we get lots of the stories of the rest of the pack – there is all kinds of stuff going on back there!
I love having Lance do the race spokesperson thing that the winners do for the next year – he’s so down to earth, and so good with his dogs!
And he deserves to light up a “fattie” now. When will they ever learn that throwing a “can’t be done” in front of Lance is the very thing that helps him to win. He actually quit the herb for 2 months before the race because “someone” said he couldn’t win without it. I guess he showed them. Sorry to be snarky but he’s my friend and I have seen what he goes through in terms of pain. He is the toughest guy I know. And he loves his dogs. So there.
Somehow missed your installment lovemydogs! I LOVE it! Will post it soon with added pictures.
AKM
Hi AKM: I was going to ask but thought you might be saving it or something….
Joseph spent the day in Unalakleet and left a post on his blog that is deserving of a cross post to Anonymous Bloggers. Look at http://rogueskennel.com and go to his blog. There are also some beautiful pictures of Colleen and her team coming into Unalakleet.
AKM: Can I print out your picture of Emilie and the dogs and give it to her before she goes back to France?
great race…wonderful commentary by AKM and Love My Dogs and Martha Uys.
waiting for more pics and stories. thanks to all the people who love and care for dogs, cats, hamsters and all the animals who make our lives so happy.
How are you feeling today bubbles? I was so glad to read that you woke up without pain the other day. Hope my next post can help too…although I must say that first one was more inspired than most of what I write.
To the dogs I do not think there is any such thing as heroism
They are dedicated solely and completely to living
They live to run
They will suffer to run
They will endure
And when they are done
They will sleep the sleep of the pure
And just and true
Because they have no soul
And are therfore incapable of deceit
@15–I beg to differ. My dogs have very real and very old souls.
Congrats to all mushers and their dogs! And that is a great story Justa, I hope for all the sled dogs to have such loyal owners watching out for their well being.
It is not the soul which knows deceit, it is the ego. My dogs have souls, too but I still love to read your posts, Krubozumo Nyankoye!
lovemydogs,
Joseph’s post was a fun read! I had to chuckle when I read that he had received an email from Colleen up ahead on the trail – boy that’s something that didn’t happen in early or mid days for the race. What a neat thing to get a first hand point of view or report without having to be at every, or most every checkpoint. That’s cool!
I just got back from a week Outside and the first thing I asked when I touched down last night was, “Who’s in the lead?” and did a happy dance when I heard it was Lance. I postponed errands this afternoon so I could watch him cross the line on KTUU.
Support Cannibis legalization!
He finished up with “11 of the 16 dogs” he started with?
Uh… what happened to other 5 dogs?
@21 squee:
The “dropped dogs” have a fascinating story of their own. Dogs are “dropped” due to injuries, illness, fatigue, lack of enthusiasm or sometimes a female in heat can cause such a disruption in the team that they need to be dropped. There are numerous reasons and the dogs are always dropped for the good of the dog. When a dog is “dropped” it is looked over carefully by the trail veterinarian at the checkpoint and then flown to a major checkpoint (like McGrath or Unalakleet). There are “handlers” all along the way who make sure that dogs are fed, given any medical care that they need and then they are flown back to Anchorage. People at home, wherever that may be, (or personal handlers in Anchorage-for foreign mushers) are called to come and get the dog as soon as possible. They will generally hold the dog in Anchorage for 12 hours. If no one can get there by then, they go to the women’s prison in Eagle River. There they are cared for by prisoners who have special priviliges (sp?) and training until the handler can come and get them. There are dog trucks driving back and forth to Anchorage from where I live (150 miles away) almost every day now to pick up the dogs and get them home as fast as possible. They try to dog pool with other mushers so not everyone has to drive every day. Colleen’s dropped dog, Arrow, came home with Bill Pinkham’s other half, as she was up there getting some of his dropped dogs.
Does that help?
Very Happy to be an Alaskan today – Yeah Lance and best of wishes to everyone still on the trail.
Congratulations, Lance and dogs!
Hope the guy with his kilt flapping in the breeze makes it to the finish line….Och, aye!!
22 lovemydogs
How totally cool! I have been entranced learning about all of this, and have called my oh-so-sweet FIL daily with updates. Both inlaws are in a nursing facility, and my incredible mother Miss Suzie is doing her own thing at home still. All three of them are so interested!
I have been printing off reams daily for my mother, and we read and have a great time.
Himself (the DH of magnificent fortitude) is in KY this week dealing with aged parents who are needing more than maybe the earth can give them. But, his daddy and I have great talks everyday about this race.
This past month has been hell for Himself and I. All three of our surviving parents have decided that now is the time to just fall apart. Himself and I are dealing, and the neatest thing is the stone fact that they are interested in the incredible bonding that we read of daily.
Thank you for your posts. I am a person who loves to learn. And, I have!
Congrats to Lance! Can’t believe the story of the race folks outlawing his medical weed. Jerks!
@ lovemydogs
Dog drops would make a wonderful children’s book, looking at all the adventures and activity behind the scenes. Or… a short story for the Alaska Airlines magazine.
In Alaska it is legal both to own and grow marijuana. Alaskans can legally carry up to an ounce of marijuana for personal use. Alaskans are also allowed to grow up to 24 plants at home for personal use. If you ask around, most people will say about 80% of Alaskans smoke marijuana. This is a good example of how Alaska can be so conservative that it starts to actually become liberal. You’ve probably heard about Palin’s 90% approval ratings in Alaska. Just realize about 80% of Alaskans were stoned whenever they were polled. And the other 20% were probably drunk, or drunk and stoned.
http://alaskanexposure.wordpress.com/2008/09/07/marijuana-is-legal-in-alaska/
Too funny, mommom, thanks for the explanation of Palin’s approval ratings and the good laugh.
Colleen and team are across the sea ice. Into Koyuk. With 14 dogs still. No one ahead of her still has this many dogs. A testament to her team and her care of them.
Whitey-Lance is from Snowhook Kennel. They have a blog that describes how he’s been doing since he’s been home. Very heartwarming. I highly recommend reading it.
Not to ruin this beautiful moment as the mushers and dog teams come in safely, but I thought I’d share this letter our friend sent today to the Iditarod Race Committee. She insisted that I post this to AKM for all to see.
(quote)
Hello Stan –
Great race! We enjoyed watching the live feed from KTUU this afternoon on our computers here in Southern California, as Lance Mackey came in. We will continue to monitor your website as the other mushers arrive. In this arduous race, no one is a loser. Well done! We’re particularly happy that the dog lost for 5 days was found safe and sound.
We wrote to you approximately 10 days ago, as representatives of 29 of us here who make the annual trek to Alaska for the Iditarod race. In our message, we told you that all of us were boycotting this year because of your use of Sarah Palin as a ‘spokesmodel’.
We indeed, held our ground. Our plans were changed at the last moment, costing unbelieveable penalty fees. We’ve just returned from our group trip to Hawaii, where we followed the race via the Internet, for free. Shame…we spent about $7,000-$10,000 each during our trip to Hawaii. This money could have gone to support the tourism industry in Alaska. In other words, to put it bluntly, your local businesses lost about a quarter of a million dollars because we didn’t show up. And you have Sarah Palin to thank for that. She breeds fury and angst among intelligent, honest, educated Americans. Please remove her Botoxed, wig-wearing, gum-snapping, lying, child-endangering visage from your future advertisements.
We don’t know what else to tell you…we could beg perhaps. Please do not associate the toxic Sarah and Todd Palin with your beautiful and historic race in the future. And don’t put a blasted snowmobile in the background of an ad for your dog sled race. We of the “lower 48″ are sick of her and her lying, baby-swapping, non property-tax paying ways. She is the ultimate grifter. Only a select few snake-oil-believing people here in the Lower 48 actually pay to listen to her screech her hate-mongering, while she rakes in untold unmerited $$’s.
Thank you for reading our rant here – We represent 29 fine people who are sick that we had to miss seeing the race in person in Anchorage and Nome because of your unfortunate decision. We missed seeing the warm Alaskan people. God bless the mushers and their intrepid dogs.
We hope that in the future, you will rise above this fray. In your next-year’s ads, especially those soliciting money, perhaps you can utilize a better role-model. Say, any one of your magnificent dog teams or brave mushers. You know, “real people”, who live life honestly. (end quote)
How about that? Think it might hit home?
Congratulation to the Winner
Great letter Heidi 1 (32)! Thanks for sharing. I would certainly hope that Stan & the committee take it seriously, unless they’re all “Bots” – then there’s no hope.
Loved the letter! Especially the blasted snow machine part.
That REALLY got to me too.
Kudos to the winning team. I’ve so enjoyed reading and learning more about dog sledding and the wonderful and amazing dogs who make it all possible!
Brava Heidi 1 – Awesome letter. I hope it makes the Iditarod Race Committee sit up and take notice!
Great letter Heidi! Who in their right mind would plunk a gas guzzling snowmachine in an ad for the Iditarod? Much less a pic of a quitter? Their dogs and mushers don’t QUIT for silly reasons, no matter how harsh the conditions.
AKM, thanks for all the interesting posts on the Iditarod. I never paid any attention to this race until this year and can now understand how people get so excited about it. I probably will be next year.
Heidi, your letter is great and should get some attention from the Committee. It’s hard to believe they would have an ad with the Quitter, and no beautiful dogs! Well, I guess some have called the Quitter a dog, but they certainly weren’t comparing her to the beautiful ones in the race. The snowmachine seems almost as offensive as Quitter, and I seem to recall it had the name of a Chavez company on it. Why would the Iditarod Committee allow that?
I’m so happy for Lance Mackey & his wonderful dogs!! Happy dance & Irish jig going on here.
Take that you pitiful anti pot whiners.
Thanks for sharing the letter Hedi. Well said.
Congratulations to Lance Mackey! Great letter Heidi.
@lovemydogs
Thanks so much for the explanation! When I saw that he came in with only 11 of 16 dogs, well… I just had all these horrible thoughts run through my head. I’m very happy to learn that they are alright and well cared for. Now I can enjoy reading all the other tales from the trail! Thanks again!
Lance is Alaska’s SuperMan and I’m very proud of him big time. Way to go Lance. I knew you could do it.
Serious congrats to Lance, what a man!
And…how many other racers were “ordered off their medicines” for the race? I’ll bet anyone and everyone that had Pharmaceuticals took them regularly with no hesitation. I’d even wager that some had that great AK meth that Wasilla is famous for.
This damn damning of marijuana is pure hypocritical ignorance and needs to STOP.
Dog racing versus snow machine racing is such a dramatic difference, one you can be in utter awe of and the other you can consider just another polluting past-time of rich elite that love to waste resources and “take in” monies from gullible sponsors.
I would take issue with the theory that MJ helped him win. MJ is a relaxant, a euphoric and mild soporific. That is why it has some medicinal value as a pain and stress reliever.
If it has any effect relative to the race it would blunt his drive to win not enhance it.
Just in case your want to know, I do not smoke anything or use MJ in any form any time. I adamantly do not want it legalized. I lived for some time, while I was going back to college, with an apartment neighbor who smoked so heavily that on multiple occasions I passed out from it. For some one with asthma that could literally be lethal.
I stunk of it. My car even stunk of it. I hate the effing stuff with the same disgust that I hate cigarettes and their stink and trash and other offensive effects..
Its use as a prescription ingested medication as a relaxant and for pain control has my full support.
Thank you, one and all. I’m glad you found merit in the letter I posted. #36 “Kath the Scrappy” brought up a good point which I had left out. Worse than the g-danged snowmobile in the advertisement, was the fact that “Quitter” was speaking, er..lisping.
This being pretty much the end of the topic at hand, maybe no one will read this. I have so much to say, and nowhere to end. We here in Southern California are sick to tears that SSarah ‘seems’ to be thriving. (Please tell me differently.) We’ve just pre-ordered “The Lies of Sarah Palin” by Geoffrey Dunn on Amazon. But he may have to expand it into Volume 2, 3, etc. Each day chez Palin brings a new lie, subterfuge, side-step, or “Huh??”
Above all, I wish to thank all of you who have provided us with a “boots on the ground” recounting of the rigors and joys of the Iditarod trail. Our sincere appreciation to “Love My Dogs” for the excellent articles.
Marnie: YOU read my mind. Exactly how I feel about pot. Could be tossed out the window for all I care too, also. Lance’s motivation and skills are not enhanced by pot and to think his dogs are racing doen the trail on pots’ fumes is absurb also. Maybe the impetus by the Committee to enforce this test also had to do with the Jamaican Black man tutored by Lance and running his dogs-after all, look at the racist motives that drive so much of the Teabaggers and pro-Palin folks on various attacks on White House. Heidi 1 thanks for posting that letter, I plan to share on other blogs. Let’s all get the desperate to balance the books Iditarod race Committee to no grab onto Palin clan coattails-the desperation in that move is a bad call. The Mystik sponsored Sno-go in the background was PITIFUL. Reddington would roll around in his grave-sled dog use declined when thosr gas guzzlers started to come into the villages, along with other means of travel like snowshoes. Shame on the Committee for selecting her. Why not Olympic Alaskan athletes instead?