no sleep 'til brooklyn... errr... whitehorse?

did i mention in my last post that i recently spent 10 days traveling through nicaragua? and the tan that i somehow managed to pull off (considering i usually have the most transparent irish ivory skin) is quickly fading under these arctic conditions i now face... alas, a girl needs her adventures...

so, as i was writing yesterday -- basically i was offered this job as media relations on the yukon quest (a 1,000 mile sled dog race, goes from alaska to yukon usually with the leader coming in to the finish in roughly 9 days)... seeing as i've been living in the yukon for just about three years now, i figured it couldn't hurt to have quite possibly one of the most unique experiences of my life by taking this gig... after a contract signed here, some office work there, i am now in the middle of nowhere with an internet connection following mushers like there's no tomorrow...

i've met so many interesting people so far, as to be expected... from the german judges that make me laugh on a daily basis and take the piss out of me all the time... to the elderly woman cooking up a storm in circle city, alaska... to the english father who is watching his 19-year-old son progress through the toughest race he's ever faced... and so many more to come... i can't believe it's only day three -- well, day four when the clock hits 11:00 am...

i'm following the middle and the back of the pack, which means i'm usually lingering at the last checkpoint waiting for the final mushers to come in... often times they're out there in the wilderness with nothing but their dogs, a headlamp, sleeping bag and some gear for hours upon hours... they roll up to the checkpoints frosted from head to toe, dogs barking and take time to eat, sleep and then do it all over again until the 1,000 miles are through...

the more i see them arrive in what looks to be a completely frozen state, the more i wonder just how they do it... it's pitch black out there, not a soul around... they're being tugged along by over a dozen dogs through mountains, ice, snow... there is no outside assistance allowed... the word endurance almost doesn't seem like it's strong enough to describe this...

i keep wanting to capture more photos, but it feels like there's only so many hours of daylight and i end up spending most of them in front of the computer updating, writing and keeping tabs on many tasks... oh and not freezing, although it is rather warm compared to quests gone by...

up next: a long drive from central, alaska to whitehorse, yukon... hopefully a few winks in whitehorse to rejuvenate and then on to dawson city, yukon for a mandatory 36 hour stop...