The Yukon Quest, "the toughest sled dog race in the world," just goes on getting tougher -- on the backs of the dogs, as always. Although this editor is a committed Yukoner (and all good Yukoners are expected to support the Quest), this is where I'm getting off the bandwagon. Whatever the consequences, this Quest is the one that impels me to say that this is one of the most inhumane of sleddog races I know, and I think that dogsled sport, not to mention the dogs themselves, would be better off if it were quietly terminated permanently.
The Quest has strayed a long way from the days when it was first conceived as a fun event for distance mushers who couldn't afford to compete in the expensive Iditarod Trail race, an "extended camping trip" for local Yukon dog drivers. Money, as it always does, has spoilt the fun for everybody; winning has become everything, and winning happens on the backs of the dogs.
For example: REST is vital to long-distance sleddogs. Like getting enough calories, or receiving meticulous foot care, they can't thrive on the long trail without enough rest. But the trouble is, once competition passes a certain level (and this happened years ago in this instance), there is really only one strategy for winning -- and that is to play fast and loose with the rest/recovery cycle of your team, cutting their resting time JUST to the irreducible minimum. Nobody can be sure exactly where that lies, but when you go beyond it, the entire team quits on you. Without enough rest, the driver says "let's go" and the dogs reply "stuff it."
So guess who's the latest smug player of that game? If your guess is the adrenaline-rush freak, the guy who said that out-of-control wild descent from Eagle Summit was "what we look for" -- Lance Mackey -- then you are right on the money. Mackey's strategic master-stroke is described by the Fairbanks News-Miner as follows: "Mushers usually break the trail from Eagle into three runs, with two rests. His dogs had just one long rest on the trail from Eagle. That allowed him to complete the run in 23 hours, 12 minutes, about five hours faster than previous record runs." The whole story of his arrival in Dawson City is worth reading:
http://newsminerextra.com/quest06/news/2006/02/17/mackey-kleedehn-steam-into-dawson/That's not the worst of it all, either. It turns out the trail from Carmacks to Whitehorse has so little snow it's unusable. Race officials have known about this for weeks. Canadian Rangers (who groom the trail on the Canadian side) told them that these are the worst trail conditions ever seen. Race Marshal Mike McCowan stated on Friday that contingency plans have been in place for two and a half weeks. It has been stated that changes have to happen, for the welfare of the dogs. So what's the Quest's "canine welfare" response? You would never guess. The mushers will leave Dawson City as usual, follow the trail 200 miles to Pelly Crossing -- and then turn around, go back through the Black Hills again and return to Dawson City! And that involves traversing King Solomon's Dome twice! I've found no mention in the online stories of the difficulties with teams that are bound to occur on the backtrail -- especially once the dogs realise they are retracing the Dome!
It would make sense to end the race in Pelly Crossing where the good trail runs out. But oh, no! That would blow some drivers' precious race strategies! So the irresponsible faction wins again. Despite the loss of 250 miles of the trail, the Quest will manage a total of 950 miles, everybody's "strategy" will remain reasonably intact, and those who really have a good right to complain, can't talk. I hope Lance Mackey's team quits him cold in the middle of the Black Hills.
This year's Yukon Quest has been such a chaotic mess that they are seriously worried about next year's entry! In my humble opinion, they should use those reasonable fears as an excuse to announce the honourable termination of the Yukon Quest -- before the authorities finally wake up and shut the whole show down on humane grounds, dealing dogsled sport a crippling blow.
Posted by ditkoofseppala at February 18, 2006 11:27 PMThere is really not much more to say, other than: Power Units. Some of these drivers running their dog teams in the Quest have definately proven that these dogs are being used for merely nothing more than units of power with one objection in mind and that is to win--money, money, money.
A lot does lay within the hands of the media, I believe. With comments like those of Lance Mackey; to be glorified by the media and then build up the contender's quotes by making his efforts to the finnish seem more strategic only because he chose to rest his dogs less than what should be desired--this is absurd. When certain events and moments like these pop up, we really have no reason for complaint projected against those damn animal activists when they raise such a hot fuss over race tactics and animal wellbeing/morals as these facing this season's Yukon Quest mushers. Lets hope he damn well does cash in his gold winnings and buys dog food,
because after all: "The dogs are the ones who earned it".
Thanks for this series on the Yukon Quest. I was under the (apparently mistaken) impression that the Quest was still the less competetively driven race of years past.
Someone in the media should be offering a kind word for those who withdrew or accepted evacuation by air, too. There is no shame in choosing not to risk your wellbeing, or that of your teammates (the dogs), in the name of sport...even old soldiers say it's sometimes better to live to fight another day.
Posted by: Jack at February 21, 2006 07:00 PM