January 27th, 2014
17:00 – 18:00 Hand-Out of the rental gear, Coast High Country Inn. If you can’t be there during that time please leave a message for me at the front desk of the hotel or contact me beforehand and we will arrange for a different time.

January 28th, 2014
13:30 – 16:00 First part of the YAU training course (indoor) – for signed up athletes only, Coast High Country Inn
18:00 – 21:00 Second part of the YAU training course, trails near Whitehorse, meeting point in front of the Coast High Country Inn; again, only for athletes who signed up for the training course

January 29th, 2014
08:00 – 09:00 De-brief of the training course, Coast High Country Inn
09:00 – 10:30 Official trail briefing and hand-out of SPOT units for ALL athletes, Coast High Country Inn
11:30 – 14:00 Gear check for all participants who did not participate in the training course, hand-in of any missing paper work, hand-out of maps, race bibs, Coast High Country Inn
15:00 – 16:00 Briefing for volunteers, Coast High Country inn
from 17:00 Pre-race dinner for all athletes and volunteers, Coast High Country Inn

January 30th, 2014
10:30 Start of the Yukon Arctic Ultra 2104, Shipyard’s Park, Whitehorse

Important: Hand-in of all forms of the Application & Waiver

In past years we have always had a few athletes who did not bring along all their forms. Needless to say that this caused a lot of last minute stress for both sides. That is why for 2014 I would like to try something new. All athletes please send all paperwork (originals) by January 15th, 2014 at the latest to Robert Pollhammer, Rathausplatz 14, 82467 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. Yukon residents can hand-in their paperwork to Shelley Gellatly. Since it is possible that something gets lost in the mail, please make yourself a copy of your filled in forms and bring these along to Whitehorse.

Important Info on SPOT units

The SPOT units are delivered by Trackleaders.com WITHOUT batteries. So, if you rent a SPOT please bring along 3x AAA Energizer Lithium batteries. And it is important that you get specifically these batteries. Due to the cold temperatures regular batteries won’t last long enough.

As alread mentioned in the news update from November 25th, we will be using SPOT tracking devices again. For the 300 the SPOTs are mandatory. For the 100 miles the SPOTs are optional. You can bring your own SPOT or you rent one from us. If you bring your own there is a charge of EUR 20.00 to include you in the system. If you rent the charge is EUR 50.00 all inclusive.

All 300 milers please let me know by December 20th, what option you want to go for (rental or using your own)? Any 100 milers intersted in using a SPOT, please let me know by the same date. If I don’t hear from you I will be assuming you don’t want/have a SPOT and are not interested in using one.

Total North comes on board as official YAU communications sponsor

We have been renting satellite phones from Total North pretty much from the beginning of our race. And always have we had perfect equipment and the best possible service. Therefore, I am very happy that for the YAU 2014 this local communication services specialst will be supportung our event. If you want to rent a satellite phone for the YAU yourself or find out more about this company, please check out their website.

YAU Training Course

100 and 300 milers please don’t forget that you need to participate in our training course if you do not have prior experience with the extreme cold. If you have not already done so, please send an email to info@thegreatoutdoors.de when you want to sign up.

20% Discount on rental cars from Driving Force

If you participate in the YAU and want to travel before and after the race by rental car Driving Force has got an interesting deal. They have offered YAU athletes and accompanying family members a 20% discount on rental fees. If you are interested please send an email and we will direct it to the right contact.

There are currently many interesting discussions on our facebook group, e.g. regarding the right type of shoes, flights, etc. If you have signed up for the race and are interested in input from others, please join us there. If you already did the YAU and want to share your experience with others, feel free to do so.

You will find the link to the YAU facebook group on our website in the top right corner. If you have signed up and can’t access the group please let me know and I will look into it.

Montane products for YAU athletes

This is just a quick reminder to all athletes who signed up for the YAU 2014 that you get a 20% discount on any Montane clothing bought from Racelite.com. If you do not find the product you are looking for contact us and we will organise it for you.

Montane has got a lot of product which is great for the Yukon. That is why we sell it in our store and why we are so happy to have them involved in the race. Their stuff is very high quality, extremely functional and has got a fair price.

For winter 13/14 they have got some exciting new pieces. One of these is the Deep Cold Down Jacket.

Other favorites which have been tried and tested in the Yukon are:

• Flux Jacket (also available as women’s)
• Extreme Smock (also available as women’s)
• Prism Pants
• Fireball Smock

And there are many more. If you need any advise please just let me know.

Crew, checkpoints and trail

A large part of the organisational work has been done already. Our checkpoints are confirmed and most of the crew is on board, too. All people with plenty of YAU experience. So, you are in the best possible hands.

Regarding the trail I will update you a bit closer to the race. As always trail conditions will depend on the weather during the trail breaking phase (especially the first 20 miles) and the weather just before race start. I keep my fingers crossed.

SPOT tracking

Once again we will use SPOT units to track the 300 mile athletes. For this distance the SPOTs are mandatory. We rent the units out and I will soon give some more details on this. 100 milers can also use a SPOT if they want to. Again rental is possible. Just contact me if you want to do that.

You can also use your own SPOT. I will just need the URL of your shared link page and the ESN number in the battery compartment of your unit. Your tracking service needs to be active. There is a small fee to link you to our set-up.

If you have a SPOT we, your family, friends and collegues can follow your progress during the race via a link on our website which leads to Trackleaders.com.

Other advantages are that you can push a “help” button which will make us come out to rescue you. If you are in an absolutely life threatening situation you can also push a “911” button. This will initiate an official search & rescue mission by the local authorties in which we will assist. Beware that such a mission can cause a lot of cost to the athlete if not properly insured.

Here is what our tracking in 2013 looked like: http://trackleaders.com/yukonultra13.

Finally, it’s done. The new YAU website is up and running. I would like to say a big thank you to Gerina AG who have done all the design and programming work.

The content of the website as such has not changed much. Some sections have been updated and a few new features have been added. I think it’s still all pretty straight forward, though. A more modern and emotional look but simple enough to find all information required without having to search for long. If you come across something that does not work or if you think we should improve something somewhere, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Together with the new website you will notice a new logo. There still may be some changes to it but I think this version is already very nice. Thank you Montane for the support to get this done.

Once again the Coast High Country Inn will be supporting the YAU. It means we get space for handing out race bibs, maps, rental gear, etc. and YAU athletes get better room rates. Please check our Travel Section for the rates and the group booking number.

Everything else is also going according to plan and could be summarzied as “no major changes expected”. You will see the same experienced crew. Jessica and Mike will take care of Dog Grave Lake checkpoint. Gary will head our ski-doo crew and Diane will be in charge of volunteer co-ordination and the medical side of things. With my next newsletter I should have some more familiar names for you. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions before or after signing up.

At the moment a lot of work is going to a re-design of our YAU website. After more than 10 years it is about time … At the same time we willl feature a new logo design, too.

Signing up before end of August

If you know for sure you want to participate in the YAU 2014, I recommend you sign up before end of August after that entry fees will go up again. If you have any doubts or questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Welcome to all athletes on the race roster so far

It looks like we are going to have a strong field of entrants for the 100 miles next year! However, I am sure we will soon also see some more 300 milers. In any case I want to welcome you all and hope you have a good time preparing.

As you may have already seen on our “Welcome” page next year’s start date has been confirmed. The YAU 2014 will take place from January 30th to February 7th. All those of you keen on signing up please email me and I will send you the Application & Waiver.

How and where do you get information about the YAU?

There are many things you can do to be up to date.

• There is our website with our section.
• You can read Jessica Simon‘s crime thriller “From Ice to Ashes” based on the Yukon Arctic Ultra – I think we are the only ultra race in the world which has ever been the setting for such a book. It’s fun to read and you learn a bit about the race. I have 8 signed copies here if you want to order one (CAD 20.00 plus shipment). Otherwise, please try Amazon or similar.
• Another must read book is Mark Hines book on the Yukon Arctic Ultra. If you search Mark’s name on Amazon you will get to the book. This one is not fiction. It’s a detailed story about how Mark has experienced the YAU and very informative.
• You can watch Scott Gilmour’s documentary of the YAU 2011 free of charge and online see right on our website or if you follow this link: http://vimeo.com/30287934
• Join us on facebook to ask questions any time; see link on our website or go to: http://www.facebook.com/groups/40662499911/
• And of course ask any questions any time via phone or email (see Contact details)