Was out of the office and got real lucky, captured the leaders Palin & Davis coming into Unalakleet, they were in great shape, chatted with Scott Davis a bit, he remembered my son and myslef from my WHite Mountain days, and when he was teamed up with Kirk Hibbert...helped them with some "parts" there when the Firecats were still prototypes... long story... but a good one!
ANy ways
the second team in was Olstad, McKenna One of them was hurt.... gave them a ride to the clinic here even.... that is a pic of him getting off his fire cat. the pic says it all... rib injury, all he said is that " this is some serious *&*^^%$ing pain" I hope he's alright and able to continue.
we shall see.
Full Version: Pics Of IRON DOG from Alaska
More Pics! Team 14 are the dudes in 2nd place. (in the above Pict)
sorry for the double pic post, got my files crossed
sorry for the double pic post, got my files crossed
Keep us posted,,,, snap
CAT has WON again!
No bullshit here, just great riders and people who know how to take care of their shit!
Read Article below from Anchorage Daily News
IRON DOG
Iron Dog comes down to mechanics
SPEEDSTERS SECOND : Davis, Palin kept Arctic Cats moving to cross finish line first.
By TIM MOWRY
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Published: February 18, 2007
Last Modified: February 18, 2007 at 07:14 AM
FAIRBANKS -- The difference between victory and defeat in the world's longest, toughest snowmobile race isn't speed.
It's about who can a turn a wrench better and fix a machine faster. It's about who can avoid accidents and obstacles. It's about who can pick the best trail line at 80 mph, get in and out of checkpoints quickest and fuel their machines fastest.
Little things, like making sure your gas tank is topped off when you fuel up, that make a difference.
That's why the fastest team in this year's 2,000-mile Tesoro Iron Dog Snowmobile Race, young guns Tyler Aklestad and Tyson Johnson of Anchorage, weren't first across the finish line Saturday in Fairbanks.
Instead, the savvy veteran duo of Scott Davis and Todd Palin arrived first on the Chena River at Pike's Landing.
Their green-and-black Arctic Cats glistening in the sun, Davis and Palin coasted across the finish line at 11:52 a.m. with their arms raised as Palin's wife, Gov. Sarah Palin, waved the checkered flag.
"That was awesome," said 42-year-old Todd Palin.
He and Davis completed the race in 38 hours, 7 minutes, 57 seconds, an average speed of about 52 mph, to beat Aklestad and Johnson by 47 minutes, 58 seconds in what boiled down to a two-team race.
Aklestad and Johnson were almost five hours ahead of the third-place team, Shane Barber of Willow and Evan Booth of Nome.
It was a gratifying victory for Davis and Palin, who had finished second in three straight races since teaming up five years ago. In addition to their $28,000 in prize money, it was their first win as a team. The outcome was especially sweet for the 47-year-old Davis, who hadn't won since 1999. He joined John Faeo as the winningest Iron Dog racer in the 24-year history of the competition.
"I was beginning to think it wasn't going to happen again," said Davis, pulling on a new Iron Dog ball cap.
The win didn't come easily, though, with Aklestad, 21, and Johnson, 27, both after their first Iron Dog win, hounding Davis and Palin the last 600 miles on their speedier Ski-Doos.
After leaving Nome almost 45 minutes behind Davis and Palin, Aklestad and Johnson slowly ate away at the lead, gnawing it down to 11 minutes by the time racers reached Ruby on Friday.
But just when it looked like Aklestad and Johnson might overtake Davis and Palin on the 120-mile run from Ruby to Tanana, one of those little things popped up.
Johnson had just pulled within sight of Davis and Palin on the Yukon River when he turned to be sure Aklestad was still behind.
"I looked back and didn't see Tyler," he said.
Johnson reversed himself and backtracked to find Aklestad with a dead Ski-Doo a mile or two behind him. Aklestad told him the machine "just died," but they were able to get it going again after five or 10 minutes of electrical work.
"We unplugged a few things and got it running," Johnson said.
Unfortunately, one of the things they unplugged was the power to the hand-warmers on Aklestad's handlebar grips. Without hand-warmers on one machine, the two riders had to switch from sled to sled to keep their hands warm enough to drive.
They managed to make it to Tanana but instead of gaining time on their rivals, they lost 22 minutes on the 120-mile leg.
Even facing a 28-minute, 26-second deficit leaving Tanana Saturday morning, though, Aklestad and Johnson were confident they could catch Davis and Palin on the final 230-mile leg to Fairbanks on Saturday, but then Aklestad ran out of gas 20 miles from Manley. He speculates that he must not have had a full tank of gas when he and Johnson left Tanana, even though he watched the tank being filled.
"I don't know what happened," a bummed out Aklestad said. "We had some other things going on at that point, and maybe I just wasn't paying enough attention."
Johnson, who had five gallons of fuel left, towed Aklestad into Manley, where they fueled up.
But then a faulty fuse kept them from getting Aklestad's machine started. By the time they remedied that problem, they'd lost 17 minutes to Davis and Palin, a deficit too great to overcome unless the two leaders had a breakdown or crash.
Davis and Palin weren't about to take unnecessary risks. They averaged just over 70 mph on the final 230-mile stretch to Fairbanks, fast enough to preserve their lead but cautious enough to avoid trouble.
For Johnson, the second-place finish was the best of his nine-year career, and it marked the first time in three tries that Aklestad has finished the race. Still, neither felt much like celebrating, even though they won $15,750 of the $75,000 cash purse.
"It's a little bittersweet," said Johnson. "If it wasn't for a few little things we would have had it."
There was no doubt Aklestad and Johnson had the faster machines. They consistently clocked faster times than Palin and Davis between checkpoints, a pattern that continued once they figured out the problem with Aklestad's machine in Manley.
They gained two minutes on Davis and Palin on the 110-mile leg from Manley to Nenana and six minutes on the 52-mile leg from Nenana to Fairbanks.
For Davis and Palin, the race was about perseverance.
"It's 2,000 miles; you just keep plugging away," said Palin, who was greeted at the finish by not only the governor but his 5-year-old daughter, Piper.
The veteran duo encountered several mechanical problems along the trail but managed to deal with them quickly.
"That's always the toughest part of the Iron Dog, to find that sweet spot where you can keep your machines together and go as fast as you can," said Davis, who rode over the roughest section of trail, the 70-mile Farewell Burn, with only one shock absorber.
"These sleds are in as bad a shape as I've ever got to the finish line with, but they got us here," he said, bouncing the front of his machine like a basketball to show the lack of suspension. "We've wrenched more and broke more stuff this year than the last three or four years combined."
The last two days of the race, they dealt with a leaky antifreeze line on Palin's machine, which involved stopping every 50 to 100 miles to fill it with antifreeze, a time-consuming process that required removing bolts and part of the headlight every time.
"They have breakdowns, and they're able to diagnose and fix it quicker than everyone else," Johnson said.
This year's trail took its toll both on riders and machines. Of the 28 teams that started last Sunday in Big Lake, only 12 finished.
TESORO IRON DOG
Finishers in Fairbanks Saturday
1) Todd Palin, Wasilla, and Scott Davis, Kenai, Arctic Cat, 38 hours, 7 minutes, 57 seconds; 2) Tyson Johnson, Anchorage, and Tyler Aklestad, Anchorage, Ski-Doo, 38:55:55; 3) Shane Barber, Willow, and Evan Booth, Nome, Polaris, 43:33:59; 4) Chris Olds, Eagle River, and Matthew Spernak, Anchorage, Polaris, 44:10:42; 5) Curtis Cherrier, Anchorage, and Trevor Lund, Anchorage, Arctic Cat, 48:59:16; 6) Jordan Hartman, Eagle River, and Cole Sullivan, Eagle River, Ski-Doo, 53:34:10; 7) Tyler Huntington, Galena, and Mark Torkelson, Big Lake, Polaris, 54:23:26; 8) Todd Malamute, Fairbanks, and Kyle Malamute, North Pole, Polaris, 56:02:26; 9) Ken Colton, Anchorage, and Dennis Martin, Anchorage, Ski-Doo, 56:54:12; 10) Jeff Dyer, Fairbanks, and Tracy Dyer, Colorado, Ski-Doo, 65:09:15; 11) Daniel Thibault, Anchorage, and Frank Harris, Big Lake, Polaris, 65:32:07; 12) Robbie Muir, Anchorage, and Dan Diggins, Anchorage, Polaris, 68:56:58.
Tesoro Iron Dog
Winningest riders
7 -- Scott Davis (1999, 1998, 1997, 1993, 1989, 1985, 2007)
7 -- John Faeo (1996, 1991, 1990, 1988, 1987, 1986, 1984)
5 -- Dan Zipay (1994, 1992, 1988, 1987, 1986)
4 -- Mark Carr (2004, 1999, 1998, 1997)
3 -- Todd Palin (2002, 2000, 1995); Dusty Van Meter (2004, 2002, 2000), Bob Gilman (1996, 1991, 1990)
2 -- Dwayne Drake (2006, 1995); Evan Booth (1994, 1992)
No bullshit here, just great riders and people who know how to take care of their shit!
Read Article below from Anchorage Daily News
IRON DOG
Iron Dog comes down to mechanics
SPEEDSTERS SECOND : Davis, Palin kept Arctic Cats moving to cross finish line first.
By TIM MOWRY
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Published: February 18, 2007
Last Modified: February 18, 2007 at 07:14 AM
FAIRBANKS -- The difference between victory and defeat in the world's longest, toughest snowmobile race isn't speed.
It's about who can a turn a wrench better and fix a machine faster. It's about who can avoid accidents and obstacles. It's about who can pick the best trail line at 80 mph, get in and out of checkpoints quickest and fuel their machines fastest.
Little things, like making sure your gas tank is topped off when you fuel up, that make a difference.
That's why the fastest team in this year's 2,000-mile Tesoro Iron Dog Snowmobile Race, young guns Tyler Aklestad and Tyson Johnson of Anchorage, weren't first across the finish line Saturday in Fairbanks.
Instead, the savvy veteran duo of Scott Davis and Todd Palin arrived first on the Chena River at Pike's Landing.
Their green-and-black Arctic Cats glistening in the sun, Davis and Palin coasted across the finish line at 11:52 a.m. with their arms raised as Palin's wife, Gov. Sarah Palin, waved the checkered flag.
"That was awesome," said 42-year-old Todd Palin.
He and Davis completed the race in 38 hours, 7 minutes, 57 seconds, an average speed of about 52 mph, to beat Aklestad and Johnson by 47 minutes, 58 seconds in what boiled down to a two-team race.
Aklestad and Johnson were almost five hours ahead of the third-place team, Shane Barber of Willow and Evan Booth of Nome.
It was a gratifying victory for Davis and Palin, who had finished second in three straight races since teaming up five years ago. In addition to their $28,000 in prize money, it was their first win as a team. The outcome was especially sweet for the 47-year-old Davis, who hadn't won since 1999. He joined John Faeo as the winningest Iron Dog racer in the 24-year history of the competition.
"I was beginning to think it wasn't going to happen again," said Davis, pulling on a new Iron Dog ball cap.
The win didn't come easily, though, with Aklestad, 21, and Johnson, 27, both after their first Iron Dog win, hounding Davis and Palin the last 600 miles on their speedier Ski-Doos.
After leaving Nome almost 45 minutes behind Davis and Palin, Aklestad and Johnson slowly ate away at the lead, gnawing it down to 11 minutes by the time racers reached Ruby on Friday.
But just when it looked like Aklestad and Johnson might overtake Davis and Palin on the 120-mile run from Ruby to Tanana, one of those little things popped up.
Johnson had just pulled within sight of Davis and Palin on the Yukon River when he turned to be sure Aklestad was still behind.
"I looked back and didn't see Tyler," he said.
Johnson reversed himself and backtracked to find Aklestad with a dead Ski-Doo a mile or two behind him. Aklestad told him the machine "just died," but they were able to get it going again after five or 10 minutes of electrical work.
"We unplugged a few things and got it running," Johnson said.
Unfortunately, one of the things they unplugged was the power to the hand-warmers on Aklestad's handlebar grips. Without hand-warmers on one machine, the two riders had to switch from sled to sled to keep their hands warm enough to drive.
They managed to make it to Tanana but instead of gaining time on their rivals, they lost 22 minutes on the 120-mile leg.
Even facing a 28-minute, 26-second deficit leaving Tanana Saturday morning, though, Aklestad and Johnson were confident they could catch Davis and Palin on the final 230-mile leg to Fairbanks on Saturday, but then Aklestad ran out of gas 20 miles from Manley. He speculates that he must not have had a full tank of gas when he and Johnson left Tanana, even though he watched the tank being filled.
"I don't know what happened," a bummed out Aklestad said. "We had some other things going on at that point, and maybe I just wasn't paying enough attention."
Johnson, who had five gallons of fuel left, towed Aklestad into Manley, where they fueled up.
But then a faulty fuse kept them from getting Aklestad's machine started. By the time they remedied that problem, they'd lost 17 minutes to Davis and Palin, a deficit too great to overcome unless the two leaders had a breakdown or crash.
Davis and Palin weren't about to take unnecessary risks. They averaged just over 70 mph on the final 230-mile stretch to Fairbanks, fast enough to preserve their lead but cautious enough to avoid trouble.
For Johnson, the second-place finish was the best of his nine-year career, and it marked the first time in three tries that Aklestad has finished the race. Still, neither felt much like celebrating, even though they won $15,750 of the $75,000 cash purse.
"It's a little bittersweet," said Johnson. "If it wasn't for a few little things we would have had it."
There was no doubt Aklestad and Johnson had the faster machines. They consistently clocked faster times than Palin and Davis between checkpoints, a pattern that continued once they figured out the problem with Aklestad's machine in Manley.
They gained two minutes on Davis and Palin on the 110-mile leg from Manley to Nenana and six minutes on the 52-mile leg from Nenana to Fairbanks.
For Davis and Palin, the race was about perseverance.
"It's 2,000 miles; you just keep plugging away," said Palin, who was greeted at the finish by not only the governor but his 5-year-old daughter, Piper.
The veteran duo encountered several mechanical problems along the trail but managed to deal with them quickly.
"That's always the toughest part of the Iron Dog, to find that sweet spot where you can keep your machines together and go as fast as you can," said Davis, who rode over the roughest section of trail, the 70-mile Farewell Burn, with only one shock absorber.
"These sleds are in as bad a shape as I've ever got to the finish line with, but they got us here," he said, bouncing the front of his machine like a basketball to show the lack of suspension. "We've wrenched more and broke more stuff this year than the last three or four years combined."
The last two days of the race, they dealt with a leaky antifreeze line on Palin's machine, which involved stopping every 50 to 100 miles to fill it with antifreeze, a time-consuming process that required removing bolts and part of the headlight every time.
"They have breakdowns, and they're able to diagnose and fix it quicker than everyone else," Johnson said.
This year's trail took its toll both on riders and machines. Of the 28 teams that started last Sunday in Big Lake, only 12 finished.
TESORO IRON DOG
Finishers in Fairbanks Saturday
1) Todd Palin, Wasilla, and Scott Davis, Kenai, Arctic Cat, 38 hours, 7 minutes, 57 seconds; 2) Tyson Johnson, Anchorage, and Tyler Aklestad, Anchorage, Ski-Doo, 38:55:55; 3) Shane Barber, Willow, and Evan Booth, Nome, Polaris, 43:33:59; 4) Chris Olds, Eagle River, and Matthew Spernak, Anchorage, Polaris, 44:10:42; 5) Curtis Cherrier, Anchorage, and Trevor Lund, Anchorage, Arctic Cat, 48:59:16; 6) Jordan Hartman, Eagle River, and Cole Sullivan, Eagle River, Ski-Doo, 53:34:10; 7) Tyler Huntington, Galena, and Mark Torkelson, Big Lake, Polaris, 54:23:26; 8) Todd Malamute, Fairbanks, and Kyle Malamute, North Pole, Polaris, 56:02:26; 9) Ken Colton, Anchorage, and Dennis Martin, Anchorage, Ski-Doo, 56:54:12; 10) Jeff Dyer, Fairbanks, and Tracy Dyer, Colorado, Ski-Doo, 65:09:15; 11) Daniel Thibault, Anchorage, and Frank Harris, Big Lake, Polaris, 65:32:07; 12) Robbie Muir, Anchorage, and Dan Diggins, Anchorage, Polaris, 68:56:58.
Tesoro Iron Dog
Winningest riders
7 -- Scott Davis (1999, 1998, 1997, 1993, 1989, 1985, 2007)
7 -- John Faeo (1996, 1991, 1990, 1988, 1987, 1986, 1984)
5 -- Dan Zipay (1994, 1992, 1988, 1987, 1986)
4 -- Mark Carr (2004, 1999, 1998, 1997)
3 -- Todd Palin (2002, 2000, 1995); Dusty Van Meter (2004, 2002, 2000), Bob Gilman (1996, 1991, 1990)
2 -- Dwayne Drake (2006, 1995); Evan Booth (1994, 1992)
Good to see old school getting it done.....it's not all about 7c wannabe's! 
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.