Racing across hundreds of miles of Alaskan terrain in sub-zero temperatures, surrounded by wildlife and perilous winter weather conditions, sounds like a recipe for disaster (and a bad case of frostbite), but that stuff is Matthew Failor’s bread and butter. Failor is a well-seasoned sled-dog racer armed with years of racing experience and an Eagle Scout rank to his name to boot.
Failor, along with 10 of his best canine companions, crossed the finish line of the 2015 Iditarod Trail Dog Race on Saturday, March 21 in 41st place after speeding from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska for 11 days and 22 hours.
His nearly 1,000-mile trek required him to travel up to 100 miles each day, only stopping to camp in the remote wilderness of Alaska. And of course, he credits Scouting for preparing him for such an incredible feat of athleticism and courage.
Did you catch Matt’s backstory on the race? Check out how it all started over at Bryan on Scouting, Meet Matthew Failor. And if you still can’t get enough of this Eagle, read more about him in the Winter issue of Eagle’s Call and in the March edition of Boys’ Life.
