Finnmark Sløpet

[Bushmiller]

The Finnmarksløpet 1200 is the longest sled dog race in Europe and is held in the North of Norway starting at Alta which is well above the arctic circle. It travels West to Kirkenes before turning back towards Alta again. It takes the mushers and their dogs a week over arduous conditions for both the dogs and their handler.

There are longer races but not in Europe. There is a controversial race that is much longer again held in Alaska and is notorious for animal fatality.

The 1200 was run during our last week in Norway and we had just gone for our sled ride at the Villmarksenter a couple of days earlier so I was all enthusiastic about following the race via the net. The winner was the Finnish musher Petter Karlsson. I think he may have won on three occasions previously. Run at a similar time are the Finnmarksløpet 600 and the Junior race, which is over 200Km. All these distances are approximate. The 1200 this year was 1243Km for example. There is a very strict assessment of animal condition before the race and at checkpoints. Also the rules prohibit animals that develop injuries continuing. A team that arrives at a check point with a dog limping is automatically disqualified. If a dog sustains an injury, it has to be placed in the sled and delivered to the next checkpoint where the support handler can collect it.

In the 1200 the team initially comprises 14 dogs. The minimum is 6 dogs. end up with less than 6 dogs and you are out. There are mandatory rests imposed for the benefit of dogs and mushers alike. The majority of the dogs used in the teams are Alaskan Huskies. They are a cross bred that has become a breed in their own right and were selected for speed and endurance. They are typically better suited than Huskies and Malamut, which are both slower. The dogs are teamed up in pairs with the first pair being "lead" dogs, the second pair being "swing" dogs and the last pair (closest to the sled) being the "wheel" dogs. All dogs in between are "team" dogs. My take is that the first two pairs are selected for their brains and the ability to take commands while the "wheel" dogs are the strongest and do much of the heavy work.

The 600 race starts with 8 dogs and has to have at least 6 dogs at the end of the race. In some ways it is regarded as harder than the 1200 as the pace is more intense, but I suspect the endurance requirement of the longer race is more a test of man or woman and the animals themselves than the shorter race and there is much prestige associated with the longer race. These are the results from this years race that finished 15/16 March 2024.

A map of the course:

Map Finnmarksløpet 1200. 2024.jpg

Contestant numbers were down a little this year in the 1200 but the 600 race was well subscribed. Of the 28 contestants that started this year's race exactly half finished with the rest having to pull out. This years race was particularly demanding because of the conditions. It was relatively warm and in places instead of snow, the sleds had to traverse water. the warmer weather takes it's toll on the dogs as they are not tolerant of heat. During the summer the dogs are not placed in the sleds if the temperature goes above 10°C.

While the majority of contestants were Norwegian this year there were a few Swedes, a Frenchman and a man from the UK. The first woman was Maria Hernetkoski. Nicklas Rogne was the first Norwegian home in second placed and he narrowly beat the veteran 72 year old Roger Dahl also from Norway. All first time contenders in the 1200 race are classified as Rookies irrespective of whether they have competed in the 600.

On our way to Brisbane prior to flying out SWMBO was reading out some accounts of experiences and that the dogs were not to be handled. That is not my experience either from the Villmarksenter where we did our run or from Kirkenes where Simon worked with the dogs there. They are hugely friendly and will reach out to you if you pass their kennels. In fact they loved being patted.

Regards
Paul

PS: you can see our little dog sled adventure here.

[Bushmiller]

This is another link to the competitors

Finnmarksløpet (finnmarkslopet.no)

I found it interesting the number of older competitors, which is identified in the above link. I would have thought it would suit only younger people. A good example is Roger Dahl, who is 72, and came in third only beaten quite narrowly from being the second team home. Actually I thought everybody looked young .

I asked Simon (son) whether he had ever considered this race as he spent a couple of seasons at Kirkenes as a musher and general dog handler. He also built a sled during Covid and eventually took it back to Kirkenes to test it out, which you can see here:

Russian Border Dog Sledding - Riding a self build dog sled in Kirkenes Norway - North & Beyond Ep. 7 (youtube.com)

I had forgotten about the content of the video, but it gives a far superior description of what is involved than I did above. With his beard and build he looks the part too .

He told me that he did consider competing, but time frames just did not fit and he didn't really get the opportunity. It was the sort of venture at which I feel he would have excelled.

Regards
Paul

PS: I noticed his partner got in on the act towards the end of the video at Kirkenes. Now with an 8 month old baby girl I suspect that the first Australian to enter the Finnmarksløpet is a fair way off.