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The 2022 Montane Yukon Arctic Ultra will follow the revised Yukon Quest trail this year.

The trail goes from Whitehorse through Braeburn to Mandanna Lake, then turns around and comes back through Braeburn to finish at Whitehorse.

There was no 2021 race last year due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The Ultra will start on Feb. 3 at 10:30 a.m. from Shipyards Park, and will run until Feb. 11.

There are three categories for the Ultra. The marathon finishes at Muktuk Adventures just off the Takhini River. The 100 mile racers will go from Whitehorse to Braeburn. The 300 mile racers will go to Madanna Lake, then turn around and come back to Whitehorse, the same as the mushers in the Yukon Quest. Racing modes include mountain bike, cross-country skis or on foot.

GPS鈥檚 are recommended.

The race only goes to Dawson every other year. It鈥檚 not going to Pelly Crossing this year, either.

鈥淭hat was a pandemic-related decision because of the government recommendation not to travel to the communities and some First Nations communities not being keen on getting visitors, we made that decision,鈥� related Ultra organizer Robert Pollhammer.

The obvious question is why do this crazy race?

鈥淚t鈥檚 a question I hear often,鈥� said Pollhammer.

鈥淔rom an athlete鈥檚 perspective, I can only guess. It鈥檚 an inspiration for people. It is a positive thing in their lives, even if they may be suffer during the experience, it gives them something they will remember forever. It gives them a lot of mental strength, even physical strength, and it鈥檚 just positive.

鈥淚t鈥檚 enriching their lives. It makes them feel alive, and it鈥檚 an interesting experience for them to see where their limits are, to maybe find out that they can actually achieve more than they thought.鈥�

Pollhammer explains the time frames involved with the race.

鈥淭he marathon is done late-afternoon, early evening. The 100-milers, they have three days to complete it and the three-hundred miles will have eight days to reach the finish line.鈥�

There are obvious concerns about keeping people safe during this race. People have lost fingers and toes during the gruelling event.

鈥淭hat is correct,鈥� stated Pollhammer.

鈥淲e do a lot. It starts of course, with the gear people have ... the ones on foot have pokes with all the gear they need to be comfortable and survive all sorts of dangerous situations. People who bike usually have it all attached to their bike.

鈥淭hen you need to have the skills. Either people come with the skills already, because they鈥檝e done something similar in the past, and those people who maybe don鈥檛 have all the skills, they participate in a four-day training program.

鈥淭hen we use SPOT trackers. I think we were one of the first events world-wide to adapt SPOT trackers at the time, so we can follow the people. They can call for help or push the 911 button.

鈥淲e have more checkpoints than the Quest has, because we travel at a slow speed.

鈥淎nd we have snowmobile crews who go out during the day every day to check on the athletes to identify any new situations on the trail that maybe need taking care of.

鈥淲e have of course the checkpoint teams, including people who can be there to help with first aid if need be.

鈥淲hat is new this year is that in addition to the SPOTs, every athlete in the Ultra distances (the 100 and 300) they also have to have a communication device with them. So a satellite phone or something like the Garmin inReach. Because in the past we had some situations where it could have been resolved better if people would have been able to communicate with us. And of course if there is somebody in a life-threatening situation, and we get a bit more information than just that one message, that 911, and that鈥檚 it. So if we can establish, ok, it鈥檚 actually 鈥業鈥檓 in agonizing pain, or I fell and I think I鈥檓 going to be unconscious,鈥� 鈥� it鈥檚 just a little bit of information. We feel that adds an element of safety,鈥� added Pollhammer.

Of course, there are medical personnel on the trail.

鈥淲e have volunteers who have qualifications that allows them to help if need be,鈥� said Pollhammer.

鈥淲e鈥檝e had paramedics, people with specific training in wilderness first aid. We鈥檝e had doctors; it depends on the year.鈥�

Pollhammer explains what led to instances of frostbite in the past.

鈥淓ach case is a little bit individual. It鈥檚 tough to say the cause. It can have many causes. It鈥檚 very important that people hydrate well and eat well. They all know that. Of course, if they kind of ignore that advice, because something else is being the priority, they鈥檙e immediately more likely to suffer from that problem. People know of course when they have a problem, then they should immediately of course try to fix it.

鈥淚f somebody鈥檚 got cold feet, and he feels like he can still go 10 km because that鈥檚 where the checkpoint is, and he鈥檚 not taking care of his feet, then that鈥檚 probably asking for trouble. I think it鈥檚 sometimes mistakes that are being made. People know better, but, for whatever reason, they just prioritize differently and that鈥檚 when it happens.鈥�

鈥淪ometimes people, they just push too hard, not sleep enough and that鈥檚 what leads to them, at some point, suffering from frostbite.

鈥淎nd of course we鈥檝e had years where it was just brutal for everyone. It was just borderline of us having to stop the race and sometimes, we did stop the race and waited for it to warm up and wait a little bit and then we continued, but it just stayed cold for an entire week, so at some point, it catches up too people,鈥� added Pollhammer.

The race doesn鈥檛 have a shutdown temperature, but has other ways of dealing with an ultra-chilly situation.

鈥淲e have a whole protocol for each temperature range. In simple terms, we cannot continue with the race when ... the machinery doesn鈥檛 work anymore. That鈥檚 definitely the cutoff. When it鈥檚 that cold, that snowmobiles don鈥檛 work reliably, or cars get flat tires and stuff, when all that kind of happens, then of course we 鈥� there鈥檚 no question about it. That鈥檚 when the race is halted.鈥�

There is an alert status, and the organizers have different things they can do as safety measures and see if they can continue.

There are no mandatory rest stops on this journey.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a so-called non-stop race, so the athletes can decide when to stop. We don鈥檛 enforce any stops. Everybody鈥檚 got a different rhythm, a different speed, or endurance. Some people like to go hard, and then sleep longer. Others like to go slower, but be on their feet longer,鈥� related Pollhammer.

鈥淲hen we go to Dawson for our 430 mile, people have a mandatory stay in Pelly Farm, for I believe it鈥檚 12 hours. Because we want to make sure when they go that last stretch, where it鈥檚 potentially the coldest, the most remote, we want to make sure they are rested.鈥�

There are 40 people signed up for the race.

鈥淲e got a lot of cancellations when the last rule changes came about and Omicron hit the world.鈥�

Nine people are in the marathon, 14 are entered in the 100-mile race, and 17 are entered in the 300-mile race.

The age range of the racers is 18-72. Yes, 72. The 72-year-old is David Colley, a Canadian.

As with any event these days, there are concerns about COVID-19.

鈥淵eah, of course. There have to be,鈥� stated Pollhammer.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not so much that people in the race are afraid that they can catch COVID, and COVID as such can cause problems for them. Everybody in the race is fully vaccinated. And I daresay the people who are still left in the race are feeling quite confident with their vaccination status. We鈥檙e more afraid of course that people do catch it while they鈥檙e here, and that means they can鈥檛 participate. I know to some people this may sound like a bit of a funny statement, but these people have trained for this for a year or even more. They spent a considerable amount of money on gear; the entry fee, the travel. And if you see it all go down the drain, because you鈥檙e catching COVID, then that鈥檚 of course bad news.鈥�

鈥淭he people who were really worried about that, they were the ones who immediately cancelled when they still had the chance.

鈥淥f course we take the communities very seriously and the First Nations in their desire to try to keep people out if possible. But I do respect it and that鈥檚 why we did decide not to go through the communities.鈥�

鈥淏ut because we are a small event, we are not a marathon race with a few hundred people and because our athletes spread out over a long distance fairly quickly, we feel confident that we can oblige with the rules.鈥�

The Ultra will have wall tents set up at Braeburn to keep people warm when there are too many people in the checkpoint at Braeburn Lodge.

Not surprisingly, Pollhammer is happy the race is a go.

鈥淚鈥檓 glad we鈥檙e here. I think I can say that for all the athletes as well. I鈥檓 glad the rules allowed us to be here. I hope it鈥檚 ok for most of the Yukoners that we鈥檙e here, and I鈥檓 just in the group of people who hope to and try to get back to a new normal.

鈥淔or me the race is a little bit of a symbol for normalism ... every single person in the race has had their challenges because of the pandemic and I鈥檓 pretty sure they are really happy that they had the race to look forward to, to train for, to prepare for, and now to be able to come to the start line and to do the race.鈥�

Pollhammer adds a message for anyone wishing to come out to see the fearless racers off this year.

鈥淣ormally I would say please locals come to see us at the start line, but unfortunately this time ... I have to say, we would love to see you, but stay home,鈥� he implored.

鈥淗opefully next year we can have people at the start line again and a normal start with lots of people watching and cheering everybody on.鈥�