Ski-Doo X-Team racers Aklestad and Johnson win Iron Dog race in record time

The duo won in record fashion, shattering the existing time for the 3268 km (2,031 mile) race through the Alaskan bush by five minutes.

Tyler Aklestad and Tyson Johnson, winners of the 2016 Iron Dog Race.
Triumphant at the finish line, Tyler Aklestad and Tyson Johnson shattered the old Iron Dog race record by five minutes. Photo courtesy brp.com

Valcourt, QC February 29, 2016 – BRP (TSX:DOO) Ski-Doo X-Team racers Tyler Aklestad and Tyson Johnson won the 2016 Iron Dog race in Alaska Saturday. The duo won in record fashion, shattering the existing time for the 3268 km (2,031 mile) race through the Alaskan bush by five minutes. The Ski-Doo team of Brad George and Robby Schachle took third.

The multi-day race is the ultimate test of snowmobile durability and performance as it runs over several days from Anchorage to Nome to Fairbanks – just 23 of the 41 teams starting the race made it to the end. At the finish, teams on Ski-Doo snowmobiles placed in 6 of the top 10 spots, and Ski-Doo had the highest percentage of finishing racers with 84% (vs. 53%, 50% and 25% for competitive brands).

This was Johnson’s 18th and Aklestad’s 13th Iron Dog races, and despite running near the front almost every event, this was finally the year they broke through for a win. And in impressive fashion, averaging 57 miles per hour and finishing a full 37 minutes ahead of the second place team. At the finish line, both the racers and their Ski-Doo MXZ sleds looked fresh and almost new.

For more information on Ski-Doo snowmobiles visit www.ski-doo.com, or the On Track blog site for racing specific information.

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