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Dog days of yore return

Derek Neary
Northern News Services
Monday, April 02, 2007

KIMMIRUT - Mushers in the inaugural Qimualaniq Quest dog team race pulled into Kimmirut on Thursday, a sight that sparked memories of yesteryear.

There are a few dog teams left in the community, but they're not as common as they used to be.

NNSL Photo/Graphic

Qimualaniq Quest leader Paul Crowley is hoisted into the air on his sled by spectators just after arriving in Kimmirut on Thursday. The prize money totals $12,000 with $5,000 going to the winner. - photo courtesy of Billy Akavak

"I grew up with dog teams around," said Moonie Lyta, the race director. "I hope it (the race) goes on every year."

Tommy Akavak, another Kimmirut resident, expressed the same hope.

"It'll help bring back the eskimo dog," he said

Akavak has his own team of dogs and he tries to take them out any chance he gets, most often on weekends, he said. He thought better of entering this first edition of the race, however.

"Seeing how the dogs do on the trail, I knew I'd have to train (my) dogs more," said Akavak, who was a member of the support team for the first half of the race, which ran 160 kilometres from Iqaluit through Katannilik territorial park.

Race leader Paul Crowley of Iqaluit, who covered the first three legs in 13 hours and 46 minutes, said the race presented some extremely challenging conditions due to the unforgiving rocky slopes.

"I think this is probably the hardest race in terms of terrain that anyone does, period," he said. "It's hard for the dogs, it's hard for the humans."

Lending credence to his assessment, two of the five teams withdrew from the event at the end of the first day. They needed snowmobile assistance to make it to the checkpoint.

Musher Siu-Ling Han, also of Iqaluit, encountered a daunting obstacle in a steep hill along the route, one that cost her at least a half-hour, she estimated.

All sleds are loaded with two 40-kilogram bags of flour to replicate the old days when dog teams carried supplies or meat.

After a number of unsuccessful attempts to scale the hill - and watching her dogs slide back down and get discouraged - Han realized she had to divide her load and make two trips.

"The hardest part is giving up and deciding to unpack your sled," she said.

At the midway point, Han trailed Crowley by close to 10 hours. The other remaining team, consisting of Matty McNair (who introduced Crowley to dog sledding) and Amy Elgersma, posted a time of 19 hours and 21 minutes at the halfway mark.

The participants departed from Iqaluit in mild weather on March 26 but then encountered a blizzard, forcing them to stand down Tuesday and part of Wednesday.

Gusty conditions caused a delay in their departure from Kimmirut on Friday.

While in the community, the racers were welcomed at a community feast on Thursday evening. Elders Simonie Aqapik and Josephie Padluq regaled the audience with stories of dog sledding from decades ago. Aqapik invited Crowley up to share with the crowd the high-pitched calls he uses to guide his dogs along the trails.

Crowley spoke of his admiration for the elders' experience, seeing as they drove dog teams frequently in an urgent quest for food many years ago.

"There's so much knowledge that these folks have about running dogs, I'll never understand," he said. "They have forgotten more than I'll ever know."