John Thompson
Northern News Services

Clyde River (May 30/05) - Markosie Audlakiak has known the smell of engine grease and the feel of metal tools in his hands since he was a very young man.

The Qikiqtarjuaq elder travelled to Victoria, B.C., to train as a mechanic when he was 18-years-old. Ever since, he's been among the most experienced mechanics in his corner of Baffin Island.

Markosie Audlakiak repaired the Clyde River generator for several months during his long career as a mechanic.

Now 77, he recently rode his snowmachine to Clyde River, to visit one of the communities where he used to repair generators.

When he arrived, Peter Iqalukjuak recognized him immediately. When he was a young boy and Clyde River was little more than about 20 shacks he calls "matchbox buildings," Audlakiak serviced the community's generator for several months.

"He still looks the same," Iqalukjuak said. "He looks like a young man."

Audlakiak credits all the heavy lifting he's done over the years with a chuckle.

Iqalukjuak recalls how when too many residents decided to wash their clothes at the same time, the community's generator would blow, and Audlakiak would get busy.

Only recently has Audlakiak laid down his tools. He lets his children do most of the repairs now, although they still ask him for advice all the time.

"I was really happy to be a mechanic," he said, translated by Iqalukjuak.

During his training in Victoria, when he wasn't busy wrenching apart pieces of army vehicles and putting them back together, he'd race around the coast in a canoe with a fellow Inuk. Besides the mechanics course, he also took classes in safety and firefighting.

"At that time, there weren't many people who could do that in our community," he said.