Klondike Sun ~ February 24, 2010

The Quest for Dogs and Men in Dawson

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The Dawson Curling Club celebrated its 102nd anniversary in 2001 without a rink and held a real old-fashioned bonspiel out on the river. Jack Fraser sent us this photo as an entry in our photography contest. He sent two. The other one is on p. 8 with a bit more of an explanation and another challenge.

Story & Photos
by Allie Winton

Gabby Sgaga has been volunteering for the Yukon Quest since 1999 and she still finds the dogs cuter than the mushers. As she puts it, “the dogs always win hands down, but the scenery’s not so bad.”

Both Gabby and Justine Cottingham- Leblanc, a volunteer for the Percy DeWolfe concession at the Dawson checkpoint, admit that the scruffy, trail-weary “musher look” executed so well by many of the mushers, handlers, and even some of the volunteers, is pretty cute. Unfortunately, they don’t have much time for ogling.

The Dawson checkpoint is the largest on the 1000-mile trail, and Gabby helps to organize and run it. This entails transforming the local Visitor’s Information Centre into a kitchen, restaurant, media centre, sleeping quarters and a social gathering place for mushers, media, volunteers and tourists. Gabby also ensures that all mushers are checked into and out of Dawson with all the appropriate gear, that their sites at the campground across the river are left clean, and that all first aid and emergencies are dealt with appropriately.

It takes about 30 volunteers to run the checkpoint, and only half of those come from Dawson. Some of the others come from Britain, Scotland, Holland, B.C. and Ontario. Gabby says they come for the excitement of being involved in such an amazing event, and they are often charmed by the spirit of Dawson and the warm, friendly experience they have here.

The generous spirit of Dawson volunteers is evident at the checkpoint concession, which is run by the Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Race. For Justine, a member of the Percy DeWolfe Board of Directors, the Quest is an opportunity to publicize the Percy, and it’s also the largest fundraiser for the race.

Surrounded by hearty homemade stews, different types of chili, home-baked muffins, cookies, and even trays of hand-made perogies, Justine clutched a precious, five-page list of local cooks who donated all the delicious food. That means about 200 people volunteer to cook and bake for the concession, which is also run 24 hours a day by volunteers.

“It takes a lot of planning, and therefore it brings our board together,” said Justine. “You get to see the community pull together so that we can pull this off. Everything’s donated, it’s all volunteers,” she emphasized.

Dawson’s good cooks have helped the checkpoint gain the reputation of having the best food on the entire Quest trail. Indeed, many locals opted to have lunch and dinner at the concession.

Like many volunteers, Gabby loves the community feel and the great energy of being involved with an event like the Quest, but she says she’d never compete herself, “I’m not that crazy!” Both Gabby and Justine mush dogs recreationally, however. Justine shares a team of five dogs with her neighbour, while Gabby has a team of seven dogs. And of course, the Quest isn’t all about the dogs.

It’s also a time to reunite with the group of friends made over many years of helping out with the event. They may only see each other once a year, but Gabby describes them as family. Even after not sleeping for 2 ½ days, she decided to forgo a nap to catch up with some of these friends from far away.

The Quest is not only a time to get people excited about the sport of dog mushing, but also a time for The Quest for Dogs and Men in Dawson the town of Dawson to welcome visitors from around the world, and showcase their generosity and great cooks!

The Percy DeWolfe will be the next big dog-mushing event taking place in Dawson City, from March 25-27th.

Download full online edition: (pdf – 12.00MB)

IN THIS ISSUE (24 pages!):

1 – The Quest
2 – More Quest
3 – Gate of Evolution redux
4 – Letters
5 – Letters / Town Events Calendar
6 – Time Traveling
7 – Junior Rangers
8 – Photo Contest / Hoopla
9 – Full Moon Ski? / Bookends
10 – Another Letter
11 – Finding Farley
12-16 – Sun TV Guide
17 – Pix around town
18 – Meet Todd Stewart
19 – Follow KIAC
20 – 20 Years Ago
21 – A Little German/ Cartoons
22 – Obituary / Uffish Thoughts
23 – Classifieds, Jobs, Business Directory
24 – City of Dawson News & Notices