Politics | Todd Palin Todd Palin & Partner Drop Out of Iron Dog Race Partner's Injury, brutal conditions force out former 'First Dude' By Marie Morris Posted Feb 22, 2010 4:40 PM CST Copied Todd Palin drives his wife, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, to the starting line of the Iron Dog snowmobile race before he starts the race in Big Lake, Alaska, Feb. 11, 2007. (AP Photo/Al Grillo, File) Todd Palin won't be picking up his fifth Iron Dog victory in this year's 2,000-mile snowmobile race: Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin's husband has dropped out of the competition because of an injury to his partner. A crash broke the handlebars and springs on Scott Davis's snowmobile and exacerbated a back problem. Conditions on the route from Big Lake to Nome and Fairbanks were brutal, the Anchorage Daily News reports. The weather has been unseasonably warm, resulting in deep ruts and killer bumps, reports the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. "It was as bad as I've ever seen it," said Davis of the race that sees more starters scratch than finish some years. "It's pretty torn up. It's going to be one of those survival years." He added that retirement from the race is a possibility. "We probably could have slugged it out with the kids, but when you're 140 miles behind and a couple of hours down, you wonder if it's worth it." Read These Next We knew Letterman would pipe up about Colbert eventually. The sheriff says he's never seen a worse case of child sex abuse. Journal pulls a controversial paper on arsenic after 15 years. A parent's nightmare, in a white cardboard box. Report an error