Crossing over into the Lance Mackey Zone

You unlock this door with the key to his imagination. Beyond it is another dimension - a dimension of barking, a dimension of snow, a dimension of Gee and Haw, and thirteen hour runs. You're moving into a vast northern land of aurora and substance, of things, ideas, and a 16 dog team with super canine powers. You've just crossed over into the Lance Mackey Zone.

Defending 2-time Iditarod champion Lance Mackey hinted beforehand that he had a surprise in store for the 2009 edition of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. We've become used to his incredible confidence in his chances despite long odds, yet his confidence this year seemed high even by that standard. We were able to gage the strength of his team in the past by watching him race and win the 1000 mile Yukon Quest race beforehand, which he admitted was a key tool in the training of his team, but there was to be no Quest for his team this year. Instead, there was some top secret regimen going on from his Fox Alaska kennel that even his mushing neighbors couldn't decipher.

Early on, Mackey held his cards close to the vest, as if to not clue us in on the rarified air his super canine athletes must have been breathing. His run/rest schedule was similar to the other teams with the exception of 1 or 2 long runs enabling him to move toward the front from his late starting position. he took his required 24 hour layover in Takotna along with most of the other top teams, yet he was still speaking with a level of confidence that was high even for him. While other mushers spoke of trail concerns and sticking to conventional run/rest schedules, that didn't seem to be a factor for him as his conversation revolved around the incredible performance of his team so far, yet the best was yet to come. Coming off the 24, Mackey reeled off a twelve and a half hour run into Iditarod, gave his team a six and a half hour rest, then worked in another 13 hour run into Anvik where he would declare his eight hour layover. In a day and a half of racing he had put five hours on his closest competitors who were still using six to seven hour runs between rests. You might say, he has entered into another dimension - the Lance Mackey Zone.