Anchorage, AK— A well-known Anchorage attorney, as well as a racer who withdrew from the 2013 Iron Dog snowmachine race, were seriously injured Sunday after a support plane following the race crashed.
According to Alaska State Troopers, Robert Stone, 44, and Jason Wichman, 31, were in a chase plane that went down in Rainy Pass on Sunday afternoon. Stone is an Anchorage attorney, and Wichman had plans to race this year but withdrew because of an injury last week.
Kalei Rupp, spokeswoman with the Alaska Air National Guard, said the plane crashed shortly after 3 p.m. about a mile from the Rainy Pass Lodge.
The owner of the lodge, Steve Perrins, said the single-engine plane had taken off from the airport during windy conditions, and when it tried to turn back around, it stalled and crashed nose first into a frozen lake. Stone was flying the plane and Wichman was a passenger.
Several people in the area rushed to the crash site and pulled the two out of the plane, Perrins said. He added that Wichman was unconscious while waiting for the National Guard's rescue helicopter to arrive.
"We took care of them here the best we could for several hours," Perrins said.
Rupp said the men were flown from Rainy Pass to Providence Hospital in Anchorage and arrived just after 7 p.m. Sunday.
"Our Guardian Angel Pararescue team was able to assess their injuries and provide medical support in the field and from what they reported back we were told that the two were in very critical condition," said Rupp.
According to Iron Dog Executive Director Kevin Kastner, the chase plane was supporting Team 25 racers Aaron Bartel and Brad George. The pilots that fly the chase planes are not officially connected with the race but have a relationship with the snowmachine team.
George was racing in place of Wichman.
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