A total lack of envy

Where last year's Yukon Quest's weather was unusually mild and fair, this year has been more par for the course - varying degrees of brutal. When I read about Hans Gatt going through the overflow, it sent shivers down my back (and not because it's cold inside). I've seen that situation before, and rarely does it end well for the person who goes through - especially in this weather. Right now, the remaining teams are headed for Eagle Summit.

The thing you need to know about Eagle Summit is that as brutal as the low-laying areas can be - it's -50F in the village of Eagle right now - Eagle Summit is worse. It's got all the cold, plus torrential winds that eat through everything. It's not uncommon for the air to be so thick with blowing snow that you turn into a walking snowman, but there to be so little snow on the trail that your snowgo is bumping and scraping the whole way. I've been caught out in a groundstorm out there before, and really the only thing you can do is hide down behind whatever passes for shelter, and wait it out. Some clever soul described the weather as "Visibility -10 feet:" Visibility is so low you not only don't know where you're going, but you have no idea where you've been.

With all due respect to the Iditarod, the Yukon Quest is the most difficult race to be had.

Dangit, I don't have any of my pictures of Eagle Summit on this computer. But just imagine some sort of winter-hellscape, and you're pretty close.

Yukon Quest Start

The Yukon Quest started on Saturday. Since I'm on the Road Today through Thursday, I figured Tuesday is a good day to fling up some pictures. :)

Or maybe not...

So much for fishing. I remembered that I have a prior obligation. I'll be helping out with the Yukon Quest's event on Sunday, which precludes me being out on the river. Oh well! That'll give me some time to work on the boat. I've got much of the sewing done! And if you have time, swing on by the Midnight Sun celebration!

After this, I've got the American Society of Mammalogists meeting to help set up and co-ordinate (And I'm probably presenting as well), so next week posting might be sporadic. And I probably won't be able to go fishing next weekend either. Boo!

My horse in the race finishes.

FAIRBANKS — Newton Marshall belied his humble Jamaican upbringing by dreaming big. On Thursday morning, he finished the Yukon Quest in lucky 13th place.

Woo! I'm glad he finished. I thought he would, but I'm still glad! I am, however, surprised he placed as high as he did! Not top 10, but definitely not bad for a guy who had never seen snow a few years ago!

Yukon Quest Rules

There's news that Hugh Neff, second place in the Yukon Quest, has been penalized for two hours. Here's the story in the Daily News Miner, but the long and short of it is that he mushed on the road for a number of miles, thus cheating. I agree, mushing on the road is kinda skeezy. He deserves punished. However, the reason why surprised me.

Neff violated the trail procedure rule that states: “All teams must follow the trail as marked or as instructed by the race marshal.”

Well. That seems dumb. Isn't this supposed to be a race of skill, talent, and physical prowess? If people think they can shave time off by going and bushwacking, more power to them. So long as they make it to the checkpoints, and they don't use roads, that's all that should matter. But saying `there's one way between these two points` is silly.

In fact, call me old fashioned, but I wouldn't mind seeing the trail go away. I've got no illusions this'll happen, but in the dim and distant yesteryear, the mushers had to make their own way along. Hard? Sure. But the 'Quest bills itself as the toughest race on earth.

Yukon Quest Rookie

With the home town hero, Lance Mackey, not racing in the Yukon Quest, who are we supposed to root for?
I'm going to root for this guy here.

Gatt said Wednesday that he met Melville at a dinner with Quest officials in Whitehorse, where the businessman invited him to visit Jamaica. Gatt accepted, and once there, “Danny came up with the idea it would be possible to run the Yukon Quest with a Jamaican musher. He needed to find somebody that knew how to do it so he approached me,” Gatt said.

Marshall, 25, is proving to be a quick learner. He placed seventh and won the sportsmanship award at the 2008 Percy DeWolfe Memorial Race. This season, Marshall was 21st among 47 starters at the Sheep Mountain 150 and 13th in an extreme Copper Basin 300 that featured frigid cold, a stretch of open water and sugar-snow conditions. Like any rookie, he’s had accidents but nothing catastrophic.

I love rooting for people with class, like Mackey, or the Wings, and I like people who are good at what they do. But I want this guy to place because it's just such a great story.
Go Marshall!

Mackey to not race the Yukon Quest

ADN is carrying a story saying Lance Mackey won't be going on the Yukon Quest this year. I'm bummed. Mackey is sort of the hometown mushing hero. The Iditarod is... eh. It's not the same. And it doesn't come near here.

Yukon Quest update.

The Yukon Quest is going to be making another bid for the money they need on Monday, but are telling people not to panic - that while they really really need the money, they think they can revert to plan B (Which is, from what I gather, `Scrounge and Beg`).

I'm sure they're good at begging and scrounging. But I'm still hoping the city will do the right thing™.
Which probably means it won't.

Fairbanks City Gov't continues to make asses of themselves.

I was fairly surprised to read that the Yukon Quest is in danger of being cancelled because the city won't pony up money that it normally would. At first I thought it was the DNM getting the story wrong, but with a little poking, I found out that they weren't joking. Why won't they give the grant? Not for any budgetary reason, no. Because they were late with the filing. I want to know this: are they stupid, dumb, or both?

The Yukon Quest brings people in from outside. People with money. Sales turn into tax revenue. That's why they damn well throw money toward the Yukon Quest to begin with, because they get it back! Further, it helps keep good relations with The Yukon. It's a thing we can use to advertise our fair city. It helps maintain our image (Which, in the case of tourism, is important). It's a community activity for crying outloud. We benefit by getting to be involved!