Updates from the Office: Preparing for the 2026 Iron Dog
The Iron Dog office has seen many changes over the past 12 months, including hiring a new Executive Director, Rick Paquette, bringing back former “retired” employee Kelli Cherrier, and adding Zachary Morgan in Operations and Logistics, alongside current Operations and Logistics employee Rayshelle Blackwood.
Iron Dog Board Meeting in January 2026
Rick previously worked in commercial aviation for over 17 years, serving as a Director and General Manager for United Airlines with Pegasus Aviation Services. Kelli brings years of previous Iron Dog experience and is an invaluable asset to the team, with her extensive knowledge of the history of the race and what it takes to put on a successful event. Rayshelle has been with Iron Dog for over a year and works tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure our race is a successful one. If you have ever called the office, you have probably spoken with her and know her positive, can-do attitude toward every challenge she is presented with.
Zachary is new to Iron Dog and our latest hire. Coming on board in late November, he quickly picked up on all things Iron Dog and has been a wonderful addition to the team. Zac’s experience from years in logistics, from Antarctica to the ice fields of Juneau, has proven to be a natural transition into his role helping put on the world’s longest and toughest snowmobile race. Dave McKibben is also back from “retirement” to help with logistics and wherever else he is needed. Dave’s incredible experience and dedication to the race is the reason he is also in the Iron Dog Hall of Fame.
Preparing pallets for checkpoints
It is not just the office staff who make this event happen. Back to handle race timing and GPS tracking this year are our own Board of Directors member Jake Goodall, along with Brice Willbanks of Starfish Enterprise and volunteer Emily Fine. The tracking team has worked extensively in the off-season to streamline the system and reduce the number of keystrokes required for each entry by utilizing updated technology available over the past year. This saves tens of thousands of keystrokes, significantly cutting the time needed to make entries and translating into faster, more accurate timekeeping.
New Team Stats & Race Flow on Team Pages @ track.irondog.org/p/teams
More data is also available to fans this year, including race flow, position changes, and split times compared to averages. This gives fans a clearer picture of how teams are performing and whether they have a shot at the podium.
We are extremely grateful for everyone’s efforts behind the scenes, the weekends lost, and the late nights that are put in to make this incredible event happen!