IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1189 

Commending Lance Mackey on winning a record 4th straight Iditarod Trail 

Sled Dog Race. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 17, 2010 

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska submitted the following resolution; which was referred 

to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

RESOLUTION 

Commending Lance Mackey on winning a record 4th straight 

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. 

Whereas Lance Mackey was born and raised in Alaska and 

currently resides in Fairbanks, Alaska; 

Whereas Lance Mackey comes from a long line of successful 

mushers, including his father Dick and his brother Rick, 

each of whom has won the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race; 

Whereas Lance Mackey is married to his high school sweetheart Tonya, who is also a musher, and has three children: Amanda, Brittney, and Cain and one new grandchild, born on the seventh day of the nine-plus-day 

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race; 

Whereas Lance Mackey and his family run the Comeback 

Kennel in Fairbanks, Alaska; 

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Whereas Lance Mackey was diagnosed with throat cancer in 

2001, took a year off from sled-dog racing to recover 

from the disease, and is now cancer-free; 

Whereas the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which has been 

called the ‘‘Last Great Race on Earth’’, is a grueling 

1,150-mile sled dog race across Alaska’s jagged mountain 

ranges, frozen rivers, dense forests, and windswept tundra; 

Whereas running the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is a yearlong commitment to training and caring for one’s sled 

dogs; 

Whereas the Yukon Quest is an equally grueling 1,000-mile 

sled dog race from Fairbanks, Alaska, to Whitehorse, 

Yukon; 

Whereas Lance Mackey is the only 4-time consecutive 

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion, the only 4-time 

Yukon Quest Race Champion and the only man to win 

both the Yukon Quest and Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Races 

in the same year, which he did in both 2007 and 2008; 

Whereas Lance Mackey, guided by his two lead dogs ‘‘Maple’’ 

and ‘‘Rev’’, mushed his team of Alaskan Huskies along 

the path of the 38th Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race from 

its start in Anchorage to the finish line in Nome in just 

8 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 9 seconds; 

Whereas both ‘‘Maple’’ and ‘‘Rev’’ exemplify all the essential 

qualities for good lead dogs, including intelligence, initiative, common sense, and the ability to find a trail in bad 

conditions; 

Whereas Lance Mackey, who despite retiring ‘‘Larry’’, the 

lead dog with whom Mackey won his first three Iditarod 

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Trail Sled Dog Races, was still able to convincingly win 

his 4th consecutive Iditarod; 

Whereas the Iditarod Trail, a National Historic Trail, is 

staffed by thousands of volunteers who monitor and assist all competitors; and 

Whereas each checkpoint along the Iditarod Trail has coordinators, health care professionals, and licensed veterinarians who carefully monitor the health and safety of all 

dogs and mushers: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) commends Lance Mackey on his record3 breaking 4th consecutive Iditarod victory during the 

4 2010 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race; 

5 (2) applauds each and every musher who was 

6 courageous enough to compete in the 2010 Iditarod 

7 Trail Sled Dog Race; and 

8 (3) expresses appreciation to all volunteers and 

9 staff who help make this great Alaskan race possible 

10 each and every year. 

Æ 

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