FL-1000: Quiet after the storm

It is quiet after the storm at cp Levajok. Morten Gjørlihagen and Ådne Røndalsvik Øyen, students of Arctic Outdoor Living at the University of Alta are in the secretariat.

- It has been a long night with lots of wind, Gjørlihagen says. He leads the cp secretariat. - It is harsh and cold outside, so it will be exciting to see if the mushers will try getting the benefit of hard trails and high speed, or if they will wait until it softens up, he says.

DOGS ENJOYING A REST: The dogs enjoy a rest on straw at cp Levajok. Photo: Alexandra Nemeth

There is peace at the checkpoint, and most people and dogs rest. Musher 163 Kent-Gjøran Svendsen has arrived and can tell of an episode that nearly brought his race to an end.

- The dogs nearly parked on the trail in the middle of the storm. The whole team lay down on the trail, and I had to go out and swap them around and put the males up in the lead. It was not fun right there and then, with the storm raging. Svendsen says he struggles with one of the dogs. She is healthy and well, but her joints are rather stiff, he says. He thinks he will have to take her out and let her rest on the sled along the trail, a move he also had to make on his way to Levajok.

DOGS FIRST: Kent-Gjøran Svendsen is tired after a long ride, but needs to attend to the dogs before caring for his own needs. Photo: Alexandra Nemeth