San Francisco  - Reigning Iditarod champion Lance Mackey won the grueling Alaskan dog sled race Wednesday for a third consecutive year.

Mackey, 38, crossed the finish line in Nome Alaska at 11:38 am Wednesday, 11 days after leaving the starting post in Anchorage some 1,800 kilometers away, and defying some of the worst weather conditions in recent years of the legendary competition.

For his victory Mackey won a 69,000-dollar prize and a Dodge pick- up truck. (dpa)