When Glenn and Spencer went in to Ken Lake to bring out Stefan and Jorgen, they saw Tim. Initially he said he would try to continue. But the hills were too much pain and when the guides went past him again, he did want to be brought out. Jorgen and Stefan are in Carmacks now. Glenn went back to bring Tim. With Jorgen it indeed is his back and Stefan has got too many bad blisters on his feet.

Johnny is in McCabe now. Just does not want to stop. Maybe he trains with Casper?! I need to ask … Gary went on the trail with his snowmachine to check the trail to Pelly and they will also improvise a checkpoint there for him if needed.

Brian is very close to Carmacks now. It will be good to see him and I hope he is fine. Judging by his speed, he should be.

Unfortunately, this afternoon three athletes had to scratch. Linda Pomeroy asked guides Glenn and Spencer to bring her out as she had a bad cough and stomach problems. Her team mate Ali is still out there and he will try to get to Carmacks in time. Linda is resting now and will likley stay with the crew to the end of the race. About 45 minutes ago we were told by Ken Lake that Jorgen Thorsted and Stefan Zahlten also need to be evacuated. Since transportation by ski-doo is not a problem, it’s nothing serious. With Stefan it could be his blisters and Jorgen may have a sore back. Glenn and Spencer have left to bring them back. They took along some extra clothes as the ride out on the back of a ski-doo can be pretty cold.

After a good ret Torben looked a lot better and he left Carmacks. Johnny is very fast as the trail is hard packed. He continues to have shin splints and it’s almost like he wants to be faster to get rid of the pain. As I write this Gary and Josh are reaching him. They will also ask if he plans on having a rest at McCabe. I hope so. That way we can slow down a bit, too 😉

Pictures of day 1 and 2 are now online in our gallery. Sorry it took a bit longer. More pictures hopefully later today.

The rest of the volunteer crew just arrived with me in Carmacks. Now we can help Nic who did a great job welcoming Johnny and Torben upon their arrival. Athletes love this place as they can actually have a shower. To be honest with you the support crew loves it for the same reason …

Torben is doing okay but the speed he is going at is taken its toll. He does have shin splints on one leg and problem with a tendong. He was awake a few minutes ago and will think a bit about when to continue.

As temperatures drop, we will now also check more for frostbite. The athletes have been briefed that if they do get frostbite we have to take them off the race course. For their own safety. Often it happens to the fast guys. So, I hope Johnny is carful.

Ken Lake is busy but I am sure everyone enjoys the experience because Marta, Graham and Bernard who are there to support the athletes are a true dream team!

It is – 28 degrees C right now. Slowly warming up. Looks like it will be another incredibly sunny day. That should give all remaining athletes lots of energy.

Everyone is fine. Johnny is on his way to McCabe. Torben is in Carmacks. Brian is on his way to Carmacks. Robert, James, Stefan, Eliot and John are at Ken Lake. Tim is approaching Ken Lake and Bernard will check on him shortly.

Gabriela and Pietro, Ali and Linda left from Braeburn early. That’s great because if they keep moving well they should make the 4 days and 12 hours cut-off in Carmacks.

Jim Moonie and Roger Norris were the last 100 mile athletes to reach Braeburn. They were in very good shape and said they really enjoyed the experience. Diane gave them a ride back to Whitehorse.

300 milers Ali, Linda, Gabriela and Pietro also arrived in Braeburn. They are now resting and hopefully leave again soon. Not that we don’t want them here but they have the 4 days and 12 hours deadline in Carmacks coming up.

Johnny is racing towards Carmacks as I write this. And Torben is not too far behind him. Why are these Danish always in such a hurry?!

Brian Bell from Ireland is currently our number 3. Then followed by a group that is fairly close together.

The trail is very icy and the lakes are wind blown. It’s a good thing they all have spikes.

Temperatures may go down to -36 next week. That will be a challenge. Luckily by then they all will get used to it a bit.

Johnny Wulff Andersen from Denmark arrived at Ken Lake at 12:25 and left exactly one hour later. He surprised the crew there as his SPOT is not working. They tried a reset but it still is not sending. We will give him a replacement unit in Carmacks. He does have shin splints but otherwise he is fine.

Davide Ugolini decided not to continue his 300 mile race. It was not easy for him to decide that because he trained hard for the YAU and otherwise he was perfectly fine. But it probably was the right decision because to do another 200 miles with a sports injury will not make things better. We all hope he recovers well and comes back next year.

We have also seen more 100 mile finishers. Congratulations to you all. For the times please see the results table.

I also want to congratulate our female 100 mile finisers. Maren Kraft from Germany (arrival 31st/21:39) places 1st. Mandy Miller (USA) and Mary Betts (Canada) place 2nd (arrival 31st/23:30). Mei Zhou from China arrives this morning at 07:24 and thus ranks 4th. Well done you all!

In 12 years of organising this race we have never had zero scratches at Dog Grave Lake. So, the trail is in pretty good shape and so are the athletes. I am really happy!

Yesterday was a busy day. I did write an update but when I then pushed the delete  rather than the safe button I decided it was best if I sleep a bit … I am back in action now and will try to catch up as best as I can.

First of all an update on photos. I am having problems with the upload onto our website. Facebook worked. So, there are plenty of pictures in our group there. At same point later today I will give it another go in the gallery here.

Local runner Karl McEwan wins the 100 mile foot category

Karl looked strong when I saw him at Takhini Hot Springs and he did not slow down very much. He arrived in Braeburn yesterday at 09:58 and I am told he sprinted the last few miles.

Rank 2 goes to Michael Stashin, also from Canada, who arrived at 11:55. Michael secret weappons were an amazingly positive attitude to everything and everyone. AND some serious tobogganing down the many hills. He did break his sled doing it but made it to the finish line no problem.

Simon Donato came in before Michael at 10:04. Which means he placed 3rd overall and 1st in the xc-ski category. This makes him also the first xc-skier ever to reach the 100 mile finish on the first attempt.

Peter Mild from Sweden arrived at 18:30 ranking 3rd in the foot category. Congratulations!

On to the MTB category. Tim Sommers from the US got in at 14:44 and placed second. Andrew Gregory from England checked-in at 16:10 being the 3rd athlete on bike.

They all got their transfers back to Whitehorse yesterday.

We had more athletes arriving and the results table is pretty up to date. Whoever is not at the 100 mile finish yet, will make it in time for the cut-off.

Torben Jensen from Denmark is currently the leading 300 miler. Our crew at Ken Lake is waiting for him and happy to get something to do. Then there is a gap to Johnny Wulff Andersen and Brian Bell. As I left Braeburn Logde a little while ago others were getting ready to leave. Some are still resting. Davide Ugoli from Italy who had been first is still debating whether to go on or not. He had an inury about 3 months ago and it is hurting again. Tim Wilks also was in pain but he said “I do not give up easily” and will give it a go.

The sun is out and it is beautiful here. It will hopefully give all 300 milers the energy they need. Sue at Pelly Farm is waiting with Lasagne guys!!!

Everybody who finished last night or this morning will get a shuttle back to Whitehorse around noon.

Day 1 was busy at the Takhini Hotsprings. The crew did a wonderfull job helping everyone at the checkpoint and it was a great location for us to be in. Very friendly help from the staff of the Hot Springs and great support also from the Café balsam. Thank you for that!

After having mentioned some highlights I want to just give you a general overview before I hopefully get a chance to update the results table.

The trail was fast but there was one stretch that was a bit softer. Not easy of course if you know you need to go over it twice … Markings were very good but coming back three marathoners were not paying attention at crucial turn off and went the wrong way. They realised they were wrong as there were no more markers but it did take them a while to get back on track.

All those who did not scratch were in good spirits. Most SPOTs are working with currently 2 exceptions – Peter Mild and Johnny Wulff Andersen. We will try to get the message through to Dog Grave Lake in the morning and hopefully we can get their tracker to work. Both were doing really good. So, no reason to worry.

More news and hopefully some photos later today.