Wednesday, June 24, 2026

It is billed as “the world’s longest and toughest snowmachine race”. Next year, the Iron Dog Race plans to add three checkpoints to its over 2,000-mile course. As KOTZ’s Desiree Hagen reports, a new race route, announced earlier this month, has been several years in the making and crosses through two national wildlife refuges. The new route adds the communities of Huslia, Shungnak, and Ambler. Rick Paquette is the executive director of the Iron Dog. He says it will not add miles, but would traverse through new terrain. He says the race has been working on permitting for the route for a while. “This isn’t something like overnight that happened, you know what I mean. This was over seven years in the making, this is a really big deal, and we’re super excited to do this.” Why did it take so long? The proposed race route passes through federally protected land, more than 100 miles of it (79 miles on Koukuk, 34 miles on Selawik) through the Koyukuk and Selawik National Wildlife Refuges. Both refuges rejected the initial request, citing similar reasons: the race would be a public safety problem, require more budget and staff than available, and not align with the refuges’ purpose or mission. A letter from Selawik Wildlife Refuge said that a portion of the proposed route would also violate the Wilderness Act and the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (ANILCA) through 1.3 miles of trail. The managers of the refuges were unavailable for comment. Iron Dog also submitted a special use permit through Kobuk Valley National Park, but changed their race route to a section of the Kobuk River that does not fall under park service authority, according to a representative from the Western Arctic Parklands. Race organizers appealed the rejections in June 2025 and reached out to the office of U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK). A press release from the senator said he and his team played a “key role” in advancing the new route and drafted an appeal that “highlighted inconsistencies” preventing the route’s expansion. “Obviously anytime you have a bunch of different organizations that you’re trying to collaborate with and get one final answer on, it’s extremely difficult. I think, new administrations, and definitely, Sen. Sullivan’s office really helped push this over and help us get to the goal line on this.” Paquette says Sullivan’s office helped with letters of support, and with multiple organizations, including the Bureau of Land Management. And it paid off. In December, Sara Boario, Regional Director of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, overturned the previous denials, allowing for the new race routes. Boario’s office did not respond to questions from KOTZ news. Paquette says there are challenges with a race this large, which passes through 23 mostly remote checkpoints. “It’s a beast to put on this race logistically, and there’s always struggles with fuel and getting equipment out, and getting, you know, resources out there.” Both Ambler and Shungnak have experienced prolonged fuel shortages in the last several years, often in winter when storms can ground fuel planes. Still, Paquette says Iron Dog is prepared for those challenges. “We do our best to make sure we get all the resources for the communities that we need to put a strong race.” Paquette says Iron Dog has several programs that the new race communities will benefit from, including free helmets and free life jackets for local youth. Last year, Iron Dog established the Iron Pup program, which fosters young racers. Iron Dog also founded the Make it Run program that partners with schools and engineers to encourage technical and mechanical training. Paquette says there is also economic benefits to the new communities. “There’s gonna be publicity, there’s gonna be people going through these areas, you know. We send resources up there, spending money, and, you know, giving a chance for these folks to see this incredible race.” The Iron Dog race typically begins in early February. A date has not been set for next year’s race.     Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Wednesday, June 24, 2026 — Affordable housing progress misses Native priorities