The world‘s coldest and toughest race starts on Feb. 11th in Whitehorse!

65 athletes from 13 different nations have signed up for the 4th edition of the Yukon Arctic Ultra. This is a record for this extremely difficult race with a marathon, 100 and 320 mile distances.

Once again runners, xc-skiers and mountain bikers will be part of the race. And even the first skijorer will take up the challenge with his team of dogs. With more than 90% the runners are by far the strongest contingent.

With 23 athletes, England is the strongest nation as far as the number of entries is concerned. It is followed by Canada (10 entries) and Germany (5 entries). For the first time there will also be participants from Belgium, Slovenia and Denmark.

“To me each participant is a hero”, says organiser Robert Pollhammer from Mittenwald, Germany. “People need to be prepared very well. You need excellent gear and the perfect training. Otherwise you will not get to the finish line“, adds Pollhammer. „However, it also needs to be said that you don‘t need to run in order to succeed. People who can go a steady pace for a long distance actually are in a good position. They suffer less, have a great time on the trail and get there in time.“

The special challenge of the Yukon Arctic Ultra is the non-stop race mode, i.e. there are no daily stages. Between the start and the respective finish lines there are the athletes, some checkpoints and the beautiful Yukon wilderness. In order to arrive athletes need to cover ground at night, too. „The participants of the 320 mile race are on their feet an average 20 hours per day and 4 hours they rest. That is not only difficult physically but also psychologically“, knows Pollhammer.

The arrival of winter has been delayed in the Yukon but now it is there. Temperatures down to minus 40 degrees currently freeze all the rivers and lakes. That is perfect timing as the Yukon Arctic Ultra takes place on the trail of the famous Yukon Quest sled dog race. The latter is the world’s toughest race for mushers and their Huskies. Its race course consists of land trails and water surfaces. So, the Yukon Arctic Ultra adventure can begin …

Robert Polhammer