March 12, 2024
Ben Townsend, News Director
Dallas Seavey entered the history books with a dominant performance in the 2024 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, claiming a record sixth victory. Seavey emerged as the front-runner early in the race and maintained his lead throughout the second half of the competition.
Seavey, who celebrated his 37th birthday with his dog team on the trail, crossed the finish line in Nome at approximately 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12. Following a near-1,000 mile journey completed in just over nine days, Seavey was greeted by Nome residents and visitors as he crossed the historic burled arch at the end of Front Street.
Seavey’s victory marks his sixth win in the Iditarod, making him the winningest musher in the race’s history. He previously won the race in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2021.
Seavey’s journey from Anchorage to Nome made headlines when he encountered a moose just before 2 a.m. on the second day of the race while en route from Finger Lake to Skwentna. Seavey dispatched the moose during the incident that left one dog, Faloo, injured. Faloo was flown to Anchorage for surgery and has since returned home for recovery.
Following the incident, Seavey was handed a two-hour time penalty by Iditarod Race Marshall Warren Palfrey for not sufficiently gutting the moose. This two hour time penalty was added on to Seavey’s mandatory 24-hour layover.
Seavey, a resident of Talkeetna, comes from a family with a long history of mushing. His father, Mitch Seavey, is also a champion musher who has won the Iditarod three times. Mitch Seavey most recently won the Iditarod in 2017, becoming the oldest musher to claim first place in race history at age 57.
Seavey received a check for $55,600 at the finish line, the largest portion of the $574,000 raised for this year’s prize purse along with awards from a variety of sponsors.
