Ramey Smyth made a career high finish when he took third place in the 2008 Iditraod. What makes this feat even more impressive is the fact that he beat out three other top competitors.

Self-described as an "animal" when it comes to finishing hard, Smyth narrowly missed being apart of one of the most exciting finishes in Iditarod history. Smyth crossed the finish line shortly before 10:00 AM, with a runtime of 9 days, 18 hours and 52 minutes, just 6 hours behind Jeff King and 20 minutes ahead of the Ken Anderson Martin Buser finish. Buser and Martin finished a mere 44 seconds apart, gasping and sweaty.

Battling three other talented mushers such as Anderson a skilled stage racer, Buser, a four-time Iditarod champion and Hans Gatt, who dominated the Yukon Quest in recent years. All four mushers epitomize the word "animals" as used by Smyth.

What's even more remarkable about Smyth's victory was that he was able to gain so much ground on Anderson and Buser even after stopping in Safety to pack one of his dogs. Of course Smyth typically posts one of the fasted run times from Safety to Nome, dominating the Nome Knnel Club prize. He finished the Safety to Nome leg in three hours, although he's been known to do it in roughly two hours.

At the finish line, Smyth uttered few words, expect to say that this year's race was a slog through soft snow. "It was a long, hard trudge," he said, and in order to finish this high he had to just keep working no matter how hard it got.

Smyth, the son of Iditarod mushers Bud Smyth and Lolly Medley, keeps a small kennel and runs on a tight budget, using older sleds and no frills equipment. However what he lacks in technical advantages, he makes up for with a lifetime of experience, just as his brother Cim does.

Babe, Smyth's main lead dog, is 10-years-old and going on 11, but still managed to finish another Iditarod in the lead. At that stage in a dogs career, they are typically slowing down and heading up puppy teams.