Bailey Vitello

Bib Number: 32
Hometown: Nenana, Alaska
Website:


Biography

What was supposed to be a one-year adventure for this team from the small town of Milan, NH, has now evolved into a four-year escapade running The Last Great Race and living as a full-time resident of Nenana, AK. You could say I’m addicted or have some frostbite on the brain that omits the not-so-fun parts of the trail and just remembers the good ones. After deciding to run last year’s Iditarod on a whim and a gut feeling, it turned out to be the best decision we could have made as a team. It was a challenging race that my veteran team took with stride and that almost made me lose it mentally (curse you Yukon River!), but after Kaltag 2 when I thought my world was falling apart and I decided to leave my main leader behind, my team and I worked our butts off and my magic carpet ride up the coast of the Iditarod trail began. Patience and persistence were our friends, and man, did it pay off. A top 5 finish with a veteran team that almost didn’t race and completely blew my socks off. Now that most of that team has retired or taken on training up the yearlings, it’s time to break out the new guard and see what they can do. I may be biased, but these two-year-olds are a gifted group. The strength, power, control and focus are unmatched by any dog team I have been behind before, and I am beyond excited to see what they can do. With a few of our experienced crew sprinkled in there to guide the way, set an example and lean on from time to time, I really think we are building an incredible and unstoppable team.

This year’s team is a culmination of our targeted breeding program with the assistance of Aaron Burmeister and both of our lineages. His assistance in coaching the team has been an invaluable resource and I couldn’t thank him enough for all that he has done to help our team see their full potential. I also wouldn’t be here without the help and support from my friends, family (thank you, mom and dad!), fans, sponsors, handlers, dog sitter (you’re the best, Sharron!) and my loving and supportive wife who is full speed ahead on this dream no matter how crazy it seems at times. We may have started to make our mark on this great race, but I am ready to make Iditarod History.

SPONSORS:

ManMat
Northern Air Cargo
Rockingham Brewing Company
Northern Exposure Foundation
Dog Sponsors
Lead Dog Landscaping LLC


2024 Standings

Checkpoint Time In Dogs In Time Out Dogs Out Rest Time Previous Layover Status Distance
Enroute Time Speed (mph) 8hr 24hr
Willow 3/03 15:00:00 16
Yentna 3/03 19:11:00 16 3/03 19:16:00 16 0h 5m 4h 11m 10.04 42
Skwentna 3/04 02:23:00 16 3/04 02:31:00 16 0h 8m 7h 7m 4.22 30
Finger Lake 3/04 08:10:00 16 3/04 11:46:00 15 3h 36m 5h 39m 7.08 40
Rainy Pass 3/04 15:42:00 15 3/04 19:51:00 15 4h 9m 3h 56m 7.63 30
Rohn 3/05 00:38:00 15 3/05 04:36:00 15 3h 58m 4h 47m 7.32 35
Nikolai 3/05 15:11:00 15 3/06 00:15:00 15 9h 4m 10h 35m 7.09 75
McGrath 3/06 07:03:00 15 3/06 07:16:00 15 0h 13m 6h 48m 7.06 48
Takotna 3/06 09:52:00 15 3/07 10:06:00 15 24h 14m 2h 36m 6.92 ✔ 18
Ophir 3/07 12:47:00 15 3/07 12:51:00 15 0h 4m 2h 41m 8.57 ✔ 23
Cripple 3/08 02:06:00 15 3/08 06:08:00 15 4h 2m 13h 15m 5.51 ✔ 73
Ruby 3/08 21:38:00 15 3/09 03:22:00 15 5h 44m 15h 30m 4.52 ✔ 70
Galena 3/09 10:04:00 15 3/09 18:04:00 14 8h 0m 6h 42m 7.46 ✔ ✔ 50
Nulato 3/10 00:48:00 14 3/10 05:28:00 14 3h 40m 6h 44m 5.50 ✔ ✔ 37
Kaltag 3/10 10:05:00 14 3/10 19:39:00 14 9h 34m 4h 37m 10.18 ✔ ✔ 47
Unalakleet 3/11 12:14:00 14 3/11 16:06:00 14 3h 52m 16h 35m 5.13 ✔ ✔ 85
Shaktoolik 3/11 22:02:00 14 3/12 07:29:00 14 9h 27m 5h 56m 6.74 ✔ ✔ 40
Koyuk 3/12 12:56:00 14 3/12 16:46:00 14 3h 50m 5h 27m 9.17 ✔ ✔ 50
Elim 3/12 22:34:00 14 3/13 01:22:00 14 2h 48m 5h 48m 8.28 ✔ ✔ 48
White Mountain 3/13 07:29:00 14 3/13 15:29:00 12 8h 0m 6h 7m 7.52 ✔ ✔ 46
Safety 3/13 21:45:00 12 3/13 21:48:00 12 0h 3m 6h 16m 8.78 ✔ ✔ 55
Nome 3/14 01:02:16 12 3h 14m 6.80 ✔ ✔ 22