Dervo with his own equipment

On the first stage of Finnmarksløpet Jan Øystein Dervo - who finished 3rd - raced with a sleigh he has made himself. The musher from Tana is very pleased with his invention. The idea was born last fall, but the sleigh was not done until only two weeks before the race. He still managed to train a little with his new sleigh. He has done all the work himself, and he says: - This sleigh is unique and this is the future in dog-sleig racing!

This is a sleigh for long trips which is quite big and heavy. The advantage with this sleigh is that it has no stiff parts underneath the skis, which according to Jan Øystein makes it better in tough conditions. The steering is also different from a normal sleigh. He has got two steeringpoints instead of one, which makes it softer and easier to manoeuvre. Jan Øystein is pleased and says: - I could simply sit still and pass the other teams at high speed. He did not think he would win a lot on this timewise, but his experience was very positive. He chose as planned to switch to a lighter sleigh after the first stage.

Jan Øystein has built sleighs every winter since he started racing, and has built 3 - 4 of them over the years. He says this about his first sleigh: - It was a failure and had to be thrown away. Over time he has learnt more, and his last sleigh is a result of this. He plans to develop it further. First and foremost the weight can be reduced by using a lighter material, but he also wants to enhance the grip on the handles.

The future will show whether other mushers will start using this type of sleigh, and Jan Øystein has nothing against that. We wish him the best of luck with both the sleigh and dog-racing.