The Iron Dog got started Sunday in Big Lake, with 41 Pro Class teams starting the race to Nome, and then eventually on to Anchorage.
With racers encountering wet snow and temperatures in the high 30s, the race was just starting to shake out as racers were taking different layovers in different locations.
Cody Barber of Willow and Brett Lapham were the leaders late Sunday night, checking out of Nikolai at 9:17 p.m. and having taken no layover hours.
From the Kenai Peninsula, Kasilof’s Dusty VanMeter and Wasilla’s Chad Gueco were in 39th place, checking out of Puntilla at 9:38 p.m. The pair has already taken six layover hours. VanMeter won the race in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2012 and 2013.
Soldotna’s Cory Davis and Ryan Simons of Canmore, Alberta, were in 34th place, checking out of Shell Lake at 12:56 p.m. They had not taken their layover.
