An "incredible" performance by Lance Mackey has seen the Fairbanks man take his fourth Iditarod in a row.

The veteran arrived in Nome with his dog harnesses in tow last night (March 16th 2010) over an hour ahead of his nearest challenger Hans Gatt.

Mackey, who is the first sled dog racer to achieve the feat of winning four Last Great Races in a row, has already set his sights on winning a fifth next year.

He endured a nervous end to the Iditarod, with 2010 Yukon Quest winner Gatt gaining ground and pushing him all the way on the final straight.

However, Mackey has thanked his sled dogs – in particular three-year-old female Maple – for powering him to a finish within nine days.

Some 14 other mushers have completed the race, including Jeff King in third, Ken Anderson in fourth and fifth-placed John Baker.

Mushing fans will now look towards the rest of the field, with a further 42 of the 71 teams which started on March 6th 2010 still due to cross the finish line.