For 30 of the Iron Dog's 42 races, Todd Palin has heaved a snowmachine around trees and tundra in some of the most remote parts of Alaska. After three decades traversing the course, the 61-year-old commercial fisherman and former Alaska First Gentleman said it's time to hang up his helmet.
“I probably should have wrapped it up a few years ago, it’s run its course. It’s still fun and everything,” Palin said. "I’m still competitive, it’s not like I’m rolling in the rear. That's why I keep going, it’s been fun.”
Palin and his partner, Klint VanWingerden are team 49 on the course this year. The veteran duo rolled into Nome’s checkpoint just after 9 p.m. Wednesday night, where after a one-day weather hold in Kotzebue and grueling trail conditions between the checkpoints, Subway sandwiches and the warmth of the Nome City Garage awaited them.
As of the Nome checkpoint, Palin’s team was in seventh position in the Iron Dog race.
“I've been on a trail all day. It's just good to be here,” Palin said moments after pulling into the garage. “Nome is a special place. And we're going to get some rest.”
On the way to Nome Wednesday, a mix of 11 Pro Class, Expedition Class and Ambassador teams got stuck in chest-deep snow along the coast. Palin spent over five hours inching along with the rest of the group. Palin said he and VanWingerden took turns packing down the powdery snow until it was passable.
“When it's, you know, blowing mach one, you can't see anything. So that's always testing your ability. And I'm glad everybody's making it to the destination safely,” Palin said.
Palin said the trail varies year-to-year, and while Wednesday’s trek to Nome was slow and grueling, they made up time in other sections where the conditions were better than usual.
“Other parts of the trail I've never seen so good, like the South Fork and the Kuskokwim, and lots of snow up here, and not much snow towards Kotz,” Palin said. “Parts of the trail are good, parts of the trails are bad. It always kind of equals out.”
Palin said he’s been driving snowmachines since he was a kid. The Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and former oil production operator is from the southwest Alaska city of Dillingham, where he said his family owned a Polaris dealership. Palin said that gave him access to the sport early on.
“We were lucky as kids to drive our snow machines to school every day, you know, have your beaver hat. But just as kids we'd start them and we would take them and just bomb around,” Palin said.
In 1993 Palin competed in his first Iron Dog at the age of 29. He went on to win the race four times, first in 1995 with teammate Dwayne Drake, then again in 2000, 2002, and 2007.
Palin said the race has changed since he first started competing. For one, snowmachines have become much more advanced, and the offseason training has become more intense.
“We had legends in the day, Scott Davis, John Faeo, Dan Zipay, those guys had to go out and break trail and then go back and build the sleds, and race the following weekend. What we have is easy compared to what they used to do,” Palin said.
Though he said he probably should have stopped competing years ago, Palin was drawn back to the race year after year for both its intensity and community. He said the locals and volunteers are the lifeline of the course.
“Iron Dog, it's just one of those things that kind of grabs you and it challenges you. And just the Iron Dog family is probably one of the biggest reasons I just keep coming back and seeing my friends along the trail in the villages. It's always a special treat for me.”
After a rest in Nome, Palin will continue on for the 831 mile journey to the finish in Fairbanks, where, despite the delays, race officials expect teams to arrive sometime Saturday. Teams will leave Nome Friday morning.
