Soldotna’s Scott Davis, riding with Anchorage’s Aaron Bartel, had the lead in the Iron Dog on Monday night.
Davis, a seven-time champion, and Bartel were the first racers to Galena, where they declared their eight-hour layover at 5:56 p.m. The next team was just four minutes behind.
McGrath is 585 miles into the 2,031-mile race.
Cory Davis, who is Scott’s son, and Ryan Simons, of Canmore, Alberta, were in sixth place, reaching McGrath at 7:38 p.m. and also declaring their layover.
Also from the Peninsula, Soldotna’s Ashley Wood and Anchorage’s Rachel Kidwell were in 24th place and Soldotna’s Mark Carr and Willow’s Micah Huss were in 25th place.