Lance Mackey's car racing community gives tribute

It isn't just the mushing community giving tribute to the mushing legend. In the years since his whirlwind dominance of the Iditarod and Quest trails, Lance turned to car racing. He raced on many tracks in Alaska and in the North Western part of the Lower 48. In fact, it was after a roll over accident on a track that Lance was diagnosed with the cancer than would ultimately take his life. Odd how poetic his life had been, he was diagnosed with his first round of cancer back in the early 2000s after he had trouble swallowing/talking while running the Iditarod. 

After his car racing facebook page "Below Zero Racing" posted of his passing, word of course spread quickly and tributes came in. Below are a sampling of the ones shared throughout the week.

When Lance's health made it impossible for him to drive, fellow musher who's now got the car racing bug Nicolas Petit took over driving Lance's car. He will continue to drive in Lance's memory and honor.

More tributes to Lance Mackey

As everyone prepare to say a final farewell to Iditarod and Quest champion Lance Mackey on Saturday, tributes to the mushing legend continue to be posted. Many heartfelt stories and memories shared by those in the community from all over the world. This is, in a way, a part two from last weekend's round up. 

Lance touched so many lives, most likely more than he could have even imagined, and it's easy to "fall down the rabbit hole" following the tributes and reading in the comments others chiming in with similar stories where the champion musher took time out of his life to reach out and encourage those he didn't even know. Like many cancer warriors, Lance responded to many fellow warriors as they reached out to tell of their own battle. Even with all of Lance's hardships, he never thought his problems and his life were above another, and that has never been so evident as this past week as so many shared stories of Lance this week. Saturday should have even more of those moments.

And as a reminder, the family set up a GoFundMe for Lance's two youngest children, if you would like to donate you can click this link.

Don't worry, there's more, just below the cut.

Alpine Creek 200 & 300 is no more

The Alpine Creek Sled Dog 200 & 300 races went on social media earlier today to announce that their races were discontinued. Citing lack of musher interest and concerns for funding, the race informed the mushing world that it had lost another Iditarod & Quest Qualifier.

The race was created to fill a void after a number of mid-distance races in Alaska disbanded. Because so many teams were then without a way to finish their required qualifiers for their Iditarod and Quest runs, the organizers of the Alpine Creek Excursion decided to do a longer mid-distance race to help fill the void.

The Alpine Creek Lodge where the race took place, is a home away from home for many teams during the early winter training months as it is one of the first areas to get good snow pack for sled training. They will, of course, remain open for teams to use them as a jumping off point to trails. 

Mackey memorial service set for Saturday

According to the obituary posted today for Lance Mackey, the memorial service for the 4-time Iditarod and Yukon Quest champion will take place on September 17th at 2pm AKST in Palmer at the Janssen's MatSu Funeral Home.

For those unable to attend in person a Zoom meeting has been set up to broadcast a live feed of the memorial service. If you have issues and it asks for codes/passwords they are:

Meeting ID: 833 3200 7986
Passcode: 333879

Mackey passed way late at night on September 7, 2022 after a lengthy battle with cancer. The 52 year old musher left behind many family and friends including his two youngest children who lost their mother in 2020.

In lieu of flowers the family has set up an account for Atigun and Lozen's future.

Northrim Bank
Account: 3109153682
Routing: 125200934

You may also donate via the GoFundMe Lance's sister Kristin Elieff set up benefiting Atigun and Lozen. 

The family is also requesting stories and photos of Lance be sent to Aunt Kris to share with his young children. You can share them on her facebook post found here.

Mushing Community pays tribute to Lance Mackey

Lance Mackey comes off the sea ice.
Nome, AK. March 15, 2019.

In the past 48 hours or so, social media has been flooded with tributes to legendary musher Lance Mackey following his passing Wednesday night. The four time Iditarod and Yukon Quest Champion (consecutive wins for both with two years of winning both thousand mile races) passed away after a length battle with cancer. Lance was 52 at the time of his passing and leaves behind an adult daughter as well as his young son and daughter with partner Jenne whom they lost in a rollover ATV accident in 2020. 

Below is a sampling of tributes made public by his fellow mushers.

Mushing Legend Lance Mackey has passed away

Iditarod Champion Lance Mackey greets the crowd
at the Re-Start of Iditarod 47. Willow, AK. March 3, 2019.

Around 12:30am on September 8 a simple message appeared from Dick and Cathy Mackey's facebook page "Our son, Lance passed away this evening after a long battle with cancer. More from all the family later." News slowly spread as mushers and fans woke to the news. Lance Mackey passed away on September, he was 52 and leaves behind two young children who just two years ago lost their mother.

Lance Mackey was probably the most famous of one of mushing's "royal dynasties". Lance's father Dick was one of the original trail blazers who helped Joe Redington get the crazy idea of an Iditarod Trail sled dog race off the ground. Dick would go on to win the Iditarod in 1978 beating young buck Rick Swenson by one second. The teams ran down front street together and seemed to finish in a tie - thus making the race marshal to declare that the winning team was the nose of the first dog to cross the finish, and that was Mackey's lead dog. In 1983, it would be Lance's older brother Rick who would win the Iditarod, making history as the first second generation champion.

Lance's story has been well documented through the years. His autobiography is still available for purchase, and the 2013 documentary "The Great Alone" is available on DVD and on several streaming platforms. Mackey's life was hard, admittedly at times by his own doing, and he didn't always make the best choices. Lance was always an open book to those around him - including fans - and that made him one of the most personable mushers in the history of the sport. 

Just as Lance had returned to the sport of mushing, building a kennel seemingly on a whim after moving to Kasilof, Alaska (located on the Kenai Peninsula, and home to the start of the Tustumena 200). He started running the smaller races as he built up his home and his kennel in true Lance style (by the seat of his pants with scraps and throw aways). 

During his rookie run in the Iditarod in 2001, Lance felt a lump in his neck after realizing he was having trouble swallowing. He would soon be diagnosed with throat cancer, and at one point doctors did not expect him to pull through. But by the 2002 Iditarod, Lance was back on the runners with a tube into his stomach for food and sponsorship from his team of doctors. He would scratch in Ophir that year, but he was already solidifying his legend status - and he hadn't won anything yet.

Just three years later Lance would start his run of dominating the sport of long distance mushing. He would go on to win four consecutive Yukon Quests from 2005 to 2008, and four consecutive Iditarod titles from 2007 to 2010, a feat that will most likely never be replicated. Mackey proved that the same team of dogs could win back to back long distance races in the same year, and did so with old school mushing styles and methods. 

Mackey's first Iditarod win reinvigorated the imagination of mushing enthusiasts world wide. Lance was convinced he would win in 2007, especially after he drew lucky bib number thirteen - the same number both his father and brother wore the year they won. Talk about your Disney Fairytale story - he did just that. From there, we had the story of Lance dominating and infuriating his competitors in the Last Great Race. Many will remember the story of Lance sneaking out of the cabin in 2008 while Jeff King slept, solidifying his win against the "winningest musher". The two would be rivals for the next three years before Lance's string ended.

Lance's personal struggles reignited soon after his fourth Iditarod championship with the implosion of his marriage, and a string of financial problems. Like always, Lance was open with it all and didn't try to hide his struggles. After having to scratch from the 2016 race, Lance did not plan to run the race again - but like all of the other failed retirements of the Iditarod greats, he found himself back on the runners in 2019 just to have fun. His personal life was on the upswing again with a new partner Jenne and their two children. While his health was not the best, he just wanted to run the race and have fun. He came in 26th, and at the finisher's banquet won his entry fee into the 2020 race, so he signed up for 2020.

2020 would be a very difficult year for Lance. While he finished top 20 in the Iditarod, he would have it stripped away a couple months later when his drug test at the finish would come back showing he was on illegal drugs while racing. The musher once again was open and honest with fans, promising to get clean again. He would enter rehab and do the work. On his return to Alaska he would have just a brief bit of normalcy before he would lose Jenne in a single person ATV rollover accident. Lance was the one to find her on the trail. He was now a single dad of two little ones.

Lance chose to focus on his kids and in his hobby of car racing after that, and was enjoying racing cars in Alaska and Washington, when in the late summer of 2021 he was once again facing a cancer diagnosis. He chose to once again let the world in on his struggle and vowed to fight with every fiber and beat the cancer. By June of 2022 Lance would be in and out of the hospital and the outcome wasn't looking good. In August of 2022 he would give an interview to Iditarod Insider that gave an update on his condition. As always Lance was not ready to quit and was planning to fight to the end. 

That fight ended in the late hours of September 7 with family and friends at his side. 

And now the mushing world mourns. Tributes poured in all day on Thursday. Fans, photographers, journalists, politicians, and fellow mushers - some the bitterest of rivals - posted throughout the day favorite memories of the dog whisperer. If there was any question that Lance wasn't a beloved member of the mushing community, that can be put to rest now. One can only hope that Lance himself finally understood and accepted how much he meant to not just his fans, but his community.

Lance Mackey gives update on health

The mushing community and fandom heard from one of its greatest legends this past weekend when four-time Iditarod and Yukon Quest champion Lance Mackey spoke with Iditarod Insider's Greg Heister to give an update on the former champion's health. You may remember last year Mackey announced that his cancer had returned, but that didn't seem to slow Mackey down. Lance leased/sold his team to give the dogs a chance to run throughout the winter, and then focused on his health, family, and car racing. 

Fans didn't hear much from the musher himself, though every once in a while a friend posted pictures hanging out with the larger than life personality. Still, not much was being shared outside of his circle and as the mushing season of 2022 got underway many let it slip their mind that Lance was in another fight for his life. 

Rumblings of Lance's condition started to circulate in June as fans gathered at the Iditarod picnic. Whispers saying that Lance was "not doing well" was the worry no one seemed to want to say too loudly for fear of making it true. But true it seems to be as Lance Mackey would tell Greg Heister on August 4, 2022 that he'd been taken to first the MatSu Regional Hospital in Wasilla before being transferred to Providence Hospital in Anchorage right after Memorial Day weekend. 

By the end of June through the first part of August Mackey reported he had been in "hospitals or hospital like environments" sharing that when he wasn't in the hospital he was essentially bed ridden. While the two original "dark shadows" from his original diagnosis have been "taken care of" and are "gone," "other issues" have come up and "progressed rapidly." Lance also confessed that he does not want to know what his prognosis is, and that he feels like he has a lot of life left. He's on oxygen but says he can still walk - though he isn't getting around much right now - and says that he's lost at least thirty pounds and is "a rack of bones."

"I'm not scared of nothin'," Mackey told Heister, "It is what it is, and I ain't any more important than the rest of the people on this planet. When it's my stop, I'll get off the bus." He continued, "I'm more scared for my kids, you know, they've been a little traumatized," referring to the loss of their mother in 2020. Mackey's youngest son and daughter are staying with family while their dad is in the hospital. He's kept them away from most doctor visits, and they've only seen him a couple of times in the hospital. With their being so young he doesn't want them to be scared, and he doesn't want only negative feelings to be associated with doctors and hospitals. 

"It sucks, man, it sucks. I ain't gonna lie to you, it hurts, and it's a little bit emotional. But, it's reality, and you can't change that, ya know."

The interview runs just over 13 minutes with Heister, and the Iditarod chose to share the interview audio in full on their facebook page. You can listen to the full interview here.

After the interview was released, Lance Mackey took to his facebook page to share a condensed update saying much of the same as what the interview shared. 

When asked by Greg Heister if Lance had anything he wished to relay to his fans, Mackey spent a good deal of time apologizing for his "letting his supporters down" after 2020 when he tested positive for meth at the conclusion of the 2020 Iditarod. Lance acknowledged this was the first time he really had time to speak on it as he went from "the embarrassment" to going into rehab on the East Coast, to coming home and losing his partner-the mother of his children-Jenne. From there he was diagnosed with the return of his cancer. He hasn't fully spoken out about how sorry he was for letting everyone down.

Knowing Lances supportive fanbase, however, he need not worry about apologizing. Most who have followed his career know that he's been dealt a far crappier hand than most and they continue to encourage and pull for the king of comebacks. 

The entire mushing community is joining in pulling for Lance to make yet another comeback. 

2022-23 Race Schedule

Race List

Alpine Creek Excursion Sled Dog Race
December 10, 2022
Facebook

Knik 200*
January 7, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

MUSH Synnfjell
January 6, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook

Tahquamenon Country Sled Dog Race
January 7, 2023
Website / Facebook

Gunflint Mail Run
January 7, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook

Copper Basin 300*
January 14, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

Alpine Creek 200/300*
DISCONTINUED
Facebook

Eagle Cap Extreme Sled Dog Race*
January 19, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Willow 300*
It's Complicated
Facebook 

Warm Lake Stage Race
January 25, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Kuskokwim 300*
January 26, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

Pedigree Stage Stop Race
January 27, 2023
Website / Facebook

Idaho Sled Dog Challenge*
January 30, 2023
Website / Facebook 

John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon*
January 29, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

Femundløpet*
February 1, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Caledonia Classic
February 3, 2023
Website / Facebook

Lake Minnetonka Klondike Dog Derby
February 3, 2023
Website / Facebook

Yukon Quest Alaska*
February 4, 2023 
Website / Facebook 

Willow Jr. 100
February 10, 2023
Website / Facebook

Yukon Quest Canada*
February 11, 2023 
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

Goose Bay 150*
February 11, 2023
Facebook

Bergebyløpet N70
February 12, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook

Amundsen Race*
February 23, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Race to the Sky*
February 10, 2023
Website / Facebook 

UP200*
February 16, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Northern Pines Sled Dog Race
February 18, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Canadian Challenge*
February 21, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

WolfTrack Classic Sled Dog Race
February 26, 2023
Website / Facebook

Two Rivers 100/200*
TBA
Website / Facebook 

Junior Iditarod
February 25, 2023
Website / Facebook

CopperDog 150
March 3, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook

Iditarod 51*
March 4, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

Can-Am Crown International*
March 4, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Finnmarksløpet*
March 10, 2023
Website / Facebook 

Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Run*
March 9, 2023
Website / Twitter / Facebook 

Taaqpak 120
March 11, 2023
Website / Facebook

Hudson Bay Quest
March 15, 2023
Website / Facebook

Nome to Council 200*
TBA, March 2023
Facebook 

Kobuk 440*
April 6, 2023
Website / Facebook

Junior Kobuk 440
April 22, 2023
Website / Facebook

*Iditarod/Yukon Quest Qualifying Race

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Iditarod Picnic and Musher Sign Ups

Saturday marked the unofficial start of the race season as volunteers and mushers gathered in Wasilla for the annual Iditarod picnic at the Race Headquarters. Unlike previous years, the picnic was sparsely attended by fans and mushers alike. Normally one could guarantee bumping into the biggest names of North American mushing past and present. Names like Dick Mackey, Raymie Redington, and Dan Seavey were a shoo in for the "old timers" who came to swap stories with each other (almost always the same trail stories they've shared for nearly fifty years), while names like Jeff King, Martin Buser, and Mitch Seavey kept people guessing if the "old dogs" had another win in them.

Instead, only one previous champion signed up Saturday - and did so via the web from a beach somewhere warm. Only 21 teams in total would be on the roster by the end of the day. While those in attendance joked that the low attendance of mushers would give those signing up a greater chance to win their entry fee back, there was a definite air of uncertainty about the event.

Also noticeably absent was Iditarod CEO Rob Urbach. Since joining the Iditarod in 2018, Urbach has attended every public event. The enthusiastic leader often hyped up the next season promising new ways to jump into the 21st century. Yet this year it was once again Chaz St. George as the face of the Iditarod at the event, and he quickly just thanked attendees before breezing through the musher drawings without going through the traditional announcement of number of sign ups and reading down the list.

Discussion of the day was obviously the lack of those signing up. Karin Hendrickson attended the picnic but did not sign up with a sigh suggesting there were too many unknowns for her to be sure she'd race this season. Hendrickson also pointed to financial insecurity being a big reason for a lot of teams. She was overheard saying that she knew of "at least" five kennels "getting out of dogs" because they could not afford to continue to keep up a kennel.

2018 Iditarod Champion Joar Leifseth Ulsom did not attend the picnic, but as the event rolled on those checking Facebook read the announcement the Norwegian made stating he was stepping back from long distance racing to focus on his "beautiful little family" and figuring out the "elusive Kuskokwim 300 win." Both five-time Iditarod Champion Dallas Seavey and Iditafan favorite Aaron Burmeister announced at the end of this year's race they, too, are taking time off for family both having children getting to the age of having their own interests outside of dad running Iditarod.

Iditarod 50 was a huge accomplishment for the race, and while fans felt that the race did not do enough to celebrate the milestone, it feels like this is a new wave for the race as a whole. It may be fitting that so many of the mushers that made the last fifty years memorable are absent at the beginning of the next fifty. It's clear that the race has changed a great deal from when Joe Redington and his merry band of mushing enthusiasts came up with the hairbrained idea that dogs could travel a thousand miles over an overgrown yet historic trail system. Today it's a streamlined machine of a race that travels in almost a blink of an eye.

Even with the quieter picnic, there were still many smiles and reasons to laugh and celebrate. With so few mushers needing their Iditarod picture for their website bios, Official Photographer (who is "retired" but still on hand to help) Jeff Schultz was mobbed several times by race fans asking for autographs to sign his work. Kristy Berington and Andy Pohl rode through the picnic on their tandem bike before returning a little while later with Anna to sign the Seeing Double racing kennel teams up for another go (Andy, of course, was there to take the photos). 

Jason Mackey was so excited to be able to sign up again that he showed up well before sign ups opened at 9:30am. The team that [wo]man the table said he was there before they showed up to set things up. Mackey, of course, is hoping to keep the family tradition of winning the Iditarod alive. Mackey's father Dick won the Iditarod, and then Jason's brothers Rick and Lance are also Iditarod champions. If Mackey draws bib number 13 at the musher's banquet this year you might as well just give him the win (Dick, Rick, and Lance all won their [in Lance's case first] Iditarods with the number).

Matthew Failor and Dan Kaduce both signed up - in part because they won a free entry fee for being the "Most Inspirational" (Matt) and winner of the "Humanitarian Award" (Dan). Liz Failor was on hand to snap photos of husband Matthew as well as give tips to KattiJo Deeter on how to fill out her application. That's right, last year's rookie who got stuck in a terrible storm and ended up scratching, KattiJo (who explained that it's "Katie Jo" but that her mother "was a terrible speller") Deeter is returning for another go at the belt buckle. Deeter proclaimed she would be very jealous if she hit that portion of trail and it was calm as "the first time rookies won't have to go through [what she did]!" Deeter was also having a hard time coming up with an answer for her occupation and her hobbies. There were plenty of peanut gallery members to help her out, however. Husband Jeff was on hand to swipe the credit card. 

At this time, only one team from Black Spruce Kennel will run this coming Iditarod. Jeff noted that the logistics "back home" are just too much with the both of them out on the trail and that when he races KattiJo "takes care of so much". He didn't say 100% absolutely not that he wouldn't run, but did stick to "at this time" there were no plans to run two teams like they did in 2022.

Overall, while the roster is Yukon Quest roster sized, fans should expect it to grow some before the end of the year (when the deadline to sign up is). There should be a lot of excitement as many of the teams that are often knocking on the door to get into the top ten will have a great chance of improving (in some cases drastically). Will Brent Sass be able to hold off the teams ready to make sure he doesn't repeat? Who has the best chance of taking home the prize? Those questions are being asked far too soon. The better question is - who do you think has plans to sign up but wants to keep us guessing for now?

To see all of my photos from the day you can view my facebook album.

Make sure to subscribe to Mushing Radio's podcasts as we'll be talking this week all about the Iditarod picnic and what it all means for the future of The Last Great Race.

Mushing Radio: Who are you, Toni Reitter?