Yukon quest

This year, I missed seeing the top finishers of the 1000 mile Yukon Quest, which this year started in Whitehorse and finished here in Fairbanks. But, I did go out today to see the fourteenth team finish, of Luc Tweddell. Amazing. What separates him from the top finishers (besides two days on the trail) is an average speed of 5.4 mph instead of 5.9 mph for the top finishers. I could do that speed, but only for an hour or two, not hours on end. It was pretty cool to watch the dogs run smoothly towards the finish, another half mile or so further. And (in the video below) I am wrong: it was not the 10th team, but the 14th team that finished. I just had not kept up with things.


[Luc Tweddell nearly finished - 2009 Yukon Quest]

To remember in summertime how it is to skijor, here is a video for myself: skijoring on Chena with Cooper and Saphira.


[skijoring]

As I am writing this, the wind is howling in the trees outside. Very unusual for Fairbanks. This place just does not have very much wind. There was a weather warning forecast for Steese Hwy, if I remember correctly. Some of the Yukon Quest teams are still out there, and have to cross Rosebud Dome, which sounds like it's very exposed. I hope they will be doing well. Iris wood is one of them. I think she is the daughter of Ann Wood, who used to be a wonderful librarian at the GI. Based on the Yukon quest web site profile of Iris, all of her dogs are from somewhere - the dog pound, or unwanted dogs from other mushers. That is cool that she is making a team and doing the quest with it.

Martin also pointed out the hilarious Profile of Sebastian Schnulle, who won the Quest. One funny character!