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Among the Iron Dog Ambassador team, three white-haired racers stood out — 75-year-old Paul Dick, 72-year-old Rex Hibbert and 68-year-old Rob Hallstrom, better known as the “3 Old Guys”.
When it comes to rugged snowmachine expeditions, this wasn’t their first rodeo. Nor was it Dick or Hibbert’s first time on the Iron Dog trail — their team placed third overall in 1994, when the race was still went by its original name, the Gold Rush Classic.
Together, the 3 Old Guys have rode thousands of miles across North America, including a nearly 5,000 mile, 38-day journey from Grand Rapids, Minn. to Circle, Alaska in 2023. When the chance to join the Iron Dog’s non-competitive Ambassador Team came, Hallstrom said the trio didn’t hesitate.
“I think all of us thought we were a little too old for adventure racing, but we liked the riding,” Hallstrom said. “When we got the opportunity to come here, we couldn't pass it up.”
Before they left their homes in the Lower 48, the group decided amongst themselves this would be their last ride together as the 3 Old Guys. But what they thought would be a “leisure ride” – compared to their previous cross-country adventures – turned into something far more difficult.
This year’s Iron Dog was marked by a series of storms that swept through the region, with shifting sea ice forcing teams to take a less-travelled inland route. Outside of Elim, nearly two dozen racers from both competitive and non-competitive teams, were caught in deep snow, reported to be “up to your chin” at times.
While the conditions proved challenging, Hallstrom said it didn’t phase the 3 Old Guys.
“We've got a lot of miles in together. So we know what needs to be done,” Hallstrom explained. “It’s just not getting any easier.”
After encountering the deep snow, the 3 Old Guys took on a final 16-hour push to Nome as thousands of fans tracked their journey on social media. Hallstrom said the group's Facebook page started as a way to keep their families up to date on their adventures, but has since grown to over 50,000 followers.
“That Facebook thing [was] just for our family, and now we got all these people riding along, which is fun, and it's been really helpful. It's amazing. We get into little communities, and they kind of know who we are, and they just bend over backwards to help us,” Hallstrom said.
Though the trio said this was their final ride, they’re not ruling out future adventures.
“We kind of decided before we left that this would be the last run for the 3 Old Guys,” Hallstrom explained. “But we'll see.”
Dick said it might take a “divorce” to break them up.
“It won't be a muddy one, but it'll be a divorce."
