Lifestyle and Leisure
The Yukon Quest
One thousand miles of ice, mountains and minus 40°C wouldn’t sound like fun to most, but the Yukon Quest mushers would probably disagree!
On Saturday 11th February 2006 a very special event will be making the news in Fairbanks, Alaska. It will involve 29 very gutsy people and enough dogs to keep Cruela de Ville in coats for a lifetime, writes Ben Lewis.
It is, of course, the start of the 2006 Yukon Quest, the world's most challenging and most famous sled dog race. For those who have no idea what I am talking about the Yukon Quest is an annual event in which competitors from all over the world attempt to negotiate a 1,000-mile trail on sleds drawn by 14 dogs. The event takes place in the sub zero conditions of the Yukon-Alaskan interior, starting in Fairbanks in Alaska and finishing in Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory. For those lucky enough to finish, the ordeal will take them approximately two weeks and take them over frozen rivers, four mountain ranges and numerous isolated northern villages. They will come up against 100 mile-an-hour winds, 40 degrees below zero temperatures, unstable ice and open waters.
The sled drivers, or mushers as they are known, will only carry with them the mandatory equipment, food and supplies set out by the race rules and must not accept help from anyone along the route. It is a race of pure endurance that is designed to promote the spirit that compels people to live in what Canadians call 'The Great North Land' and commemorate the historic dependence of man on his sled dogs for survival in its harsh environment. The race was dreamt up by four mushers in 1983 who were looking to start the first international sled dog race and wanted it to follow a historic trail. They came up with the idea of following the path along Yukon river that prospectors had taken in the 1898 gold rush to the Alaskan Interior.
In February 1984 the first race got underway with 26 teams competing. Over the 16 days that followed only 20 teams made it to the finish line with the winner, Sonny Linder, completing the trail in 12 days. This year's race has been entered by 29 teams consisting of men and women from of many different races and nationalities. German-born Sebastian Schnuelle and his Blue Kennel dog team are one of the competitors hoping for a top placed finish in the event. Schnuelle had to relocate to the Paxson area of Alaska from the Yukon in order to put himself and his dogs through the rigorous training that is needed to be successful in the event. "We had really good snow (in the Yukon) in November. I was on my sled early in that month but then we had ten days of above freezing weather and it melted all of our snow. It was like a skating rink on the trail, just ice. This caused problems and if I could not put quality miles on my dogs I would not expect them to race." This will not be the first time Schnuelle will have attempted the epic journey, in fact he was one of the finishers in the 2005 event. "I finished the last Yukon Quest with 12 of the 14 dogs I brought to the starting line of the race. Eight of these dogs form the core of my race team for this year's race."
So what about his chances in this year's Quest? "There are so many ifs and whens, should haves and could haves over 1,000 miles. Sure my team can always do well while training on the same trail, but in a race there are so many unforeseen factors, from trail conditions or starting positions to plain and simple luck. I used to train quite slow, but I am trying a different approach this winter. I keep most of my training runs below 50 miles and also train faster than before with more loping." With all the financial burdens and organisational issues that arise from racing dogs and making sure supplies are placed along the trail, when asked what the biggest challenge in the race was, in typical musher style Schnuelle answered. "Frankly, I think the biggest challenge is just getting to the starting line."
For further information:
The Yukon Quest
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