Best dog care – new award!
This year a new award was given for best dog care. The award was established by Ingo Stollenwerk who has participated in Polardistans a couple of times. The winner was Pär Jansson from Sweden. Pär has siberian husky and competed in 160 km 6-dogs nome style. The prize was a beautiful picture with a musher and his team.

Read more about the prize ceremoni here...

A story of Polardistans 2008 by Katerina Paleckova - check it out!

Polar Distance 2008 is now settled. Mushers and volunteers have enjoyed a tasty dinner in happy conversations and awards has been delivered.
It is always fascinated to hear the different stories from every musher, and volunteer! This year it has been talking a lot about the weather and it´s not hard to see that, a frightful weather like this it never has been during the competition. – Rain, slushy snow, fog, raw and besides that strong snowfall and hardy wind when some of the mushers cross the bare mountain region. Many got wet, too wet… but as one of the mushers said “It has to be some hardship, other else we have nothing to talk about!”
But every dog went very fast despite the weather and it was not much damage either. Our veterinary was very pleased with how the mushers were to taking care of their dogs.

I will also give a big thanks to all our sponsors. Husse who was giving dog foods and we got lucky winner to the dog cage from PRIMEK and the bike cab from Nordic Cab during the banquet.

Especially thanks to Westél and Ivar Westberg. Thanks to their radio phones we could get reports to the website from our checkpoints. They have a great coverage up here and it has meant a lot for the competition. Please visit their website www.westel.se

Checkpoint Lövnäsvallen was one of the places Westéls radio phones responded for the technical communication. Foto: Foto Såsa

I can tell that our man in the snowmobile club has promised brilliant weather till next year, allot of snow, -10 degrees, sunshine at days and northern lights over Vedungsfjället at nights! Let’s begin and make plans for next year - Polar Distance 2009!

See you then! Race marshal Ulla Lindroth Andersson

Day 4

19:12
Rain, fog, wind and snow... As the last mushers started out, I never thought I´d get to see as many happy faces cross the finish line. Despite harsh weather conditions everyone had smiles on their faces at the finish and I think they were very content with their own and their dogs´achievements. We now await the banquet and price ceremony tomorrow night.

/Race Marshal Ulla Lindroth Andersson

18:00
Finally all mushers cross the finish line. During the day Ingela Hedberg, Inge Eklund, Helen Söderstrom, Othmar Teimer and last was Leonard Antonsen who blew out the lantern of Polardistans!

11:02
Pierre-Antonie Hertier has cross the finish line with his dog, they all looked very pleased. He was the only in the 400 kilometres class who did finish. Congratulations!

07:49
It has been frozing outside during the night and is now in the morning -2 degrees.

Every mushers has now left the last checkpoint and is driving for finish.

Hans-Richard Beck has cross the finish line now in the morning.

Day 3

23:59
We can now tell that Pia Lykke, Anders Larsen and Håkan Nissula was Thursdays last mushers to cross the finish line.

18:49
Pascal Rebord, Sigmund Alhaug and Björn Zelander has now cross the finish line.

16:20
Siri Storevik, Ingar Helstrup and Gösta Karlberg has cross the finish line, see the results list.

14:02
Harry Weiss has now finish the race

11:30
Pär Jansson and Per Esben Jakobsen has now finish their race.

09:45
Ylva Kiöhling-Söderman and Daniel Bulens has now cross the finish line. Please check the results list.

07:30
Katerina Paleckova, Wilfried Umbach, Rupert Hirschberg and Heidi Vogel has now cross the finish line.

We can also tell that it is -1 degrees outside and newly-fallen snow on the ground.

05:00
Now a few more people has crossed the finish line like Eveline Koch, Raul Neubauer, Nina Filander,
Annika Carlsson, Malin Sundin and a few more. Please take a look in the results list.

00:21
Second man over the finish line we got to see Freddy Kampenes.
Freddy thought the last km was very wet over the ice, but he's very pleased that all the dogs could finish the race.
BIG CONGRATULATION

Day 2

20:05
Christer Afséer was the first one to cross finish line. He says that it was a wet experience but he is mighty impressed of the dogs.
BIG CONGRATULATION!

18:51
We can now tell that the rain has turned into big snowflakes and the temperature is sinking!

17:55
Hakon Bugge has abandoned.

17:15
The trail has been changed because of the wheater, that means it will be 30 kilometres shorter for all mushers.

16:18
Three mushers has abandoned; Hans Werner Schwegel, Georg Frauenholz and Kenth Hjelm.

10:36
Finally the last musher now has left the starting line, Ingela Hedberg from Sweden, 160 km nordic style B.

10:15
The start was very eager and you could heard all over Särna how hurry the dogs was to get away!
Unfortunately it is raining even today and the temperature will stay around 0-degrees celcius.

Two mushers has abandoned in the 300 km class, Lennart Andersson, Sweden and Göran Halvorsen, Norway.

There was only two entrants starting in the 400 km class, Pierre-Antoine Hertier, Switzerland and Nisse Uppström from Sweden.

08:29
One minutes left til next the start in 400 km nome style, directly after 160 km nordic style, 300 km nome style 8-dogs A and 6-dogs A and B 160 km.
Mushers, handlers and volounteers are now doing the last preparations. The atmosphere is charged!

07:36
It has been a rainy night but all the mushers and their dogs has struggled despite the wheater. Every mushers except Håkan Nissula has during the night-early in the morning left the third checkpoint, Sir mikael. First to leave was Hakon Bugge, 00:50 AM.

14:06 PM everybody has passed the first checkpoint, Husse/Idre. Check the results link for more info.

This year we have a speaker with some real loudspeaker that is embellish the competition atmosphere.

10 minutes left!

You can feel it in the air, the dogs are howling and the first mushers are soon ready to go.

We have +1 degrees here in Särna for the moment.

Tomorrow it is!

Today it has been snowing and 0 degrees celsius.

'Tomorrow 9.00 am the first starters go. It´s full activitet here on Särna camping and we are looking forward a funny week. Follow every mushers and happenings here on the website!

Wheater news
-10 degrees in the morning and sunshine with +1 degrees. It is not thaw!

Wheater today
In the afternoon it was -1 degrees with sunshine and ten m/s of wind force.

Wheater in Särna
Tuesday 4th yesterday it was -23 degrees celsius in the morning and -10 during the day and evening, a couple centimeters of snow came under the night.
Today wednesday it was -10 degress and later it sink til -5 and started to snow.

One update in the map, see here

Updated musher list, one new entrant.

See updates under:
Race rules - "Checkpoint"

Wheater report from Särna
For some week now it has been a few degrees above zero, but truly cold at nights. So the trails are nice. Today it will come newly-fallen snow and it´s 0 degress right now.

See the map of preliminary trail, there has been some changes.
Due to snowconditions at Fulusjön checkpoint 2 has been moved to Drosbacken. Distance Idre-Drosbacken is approx. 24 km, from Start to Drosbacken approx 65 km. Distance Drosbacken-Sir Mikael approx 58,5 km. See updated map, trailprofile, distances and rising.

Four new entrants, musher list.

Some updates under Map over preliminary trail.

Three new entrants. See musher list

Now you can find a list over the volunteers on the site.

A reminder from the secretariat: All mushers must hand in both the Team Roster and the “Anmälningsblankett till provtillfälle”. The last form should be accompanied by copies of the dogs registration form if this has not been handed in, with this form, at earlier occasion in Sweden.
Team Roster (pdf)
Team Roster (word)
Anmälningsblankett för provtillfälle (pdf)
Anmälningsblankett för provtillfälle (word)

If you have any questions on how to fill in the forms please contact mari.christoffersson@bahnhof.se

NB! Changes in program!
The time of start for Polar Distans 400km is changed to 08.30 at Wednesday morning the 12th of March.
See the program
For german click here

One new entrant under musher list.

Two new entrants under musher list,

Updated trail map.

One new entrant under musher list.

Wheater report from Särna

It has been around -2 degrees this weekend with snow storm.

One new entrant and some updates under musher list.

Now there is more pictures to watch, click here!

Wheater report from Särna
 
It has been lovely days with sunshine and temperatures between -10 and -16 degrees celcius in Särna. The trails are great!

Now there is a preliminary trail map on the site.

Some corrections under musher list.

Two new entrants under musher list

One new entrant under musher list.

Wheater report from Särna
It has been about -1 to -5 degrees celsius last week and snow high is 50-70 centimeters. They say it will be -10 degrees in the weekend.

Three new entrants.

Updated musher list with one new entrant.

One new entrant under musher list

Updated musher list with one new entrant.

One new entrant under musher list

Weather report
Today we got to know that it was -27 degrees in Särna this morning!

Updated musher list with one new entrant.

Weather report from Särna
Today december 11th it is -10 degrees celcius and the trails are hard and nice.

Weather report
Today december 6th it is +2 degrees celius and the snow has melt down to 30 centimeters high.

Updated musher list with one new entrant.

The race rules are uppdated for entrants who start in the distance of 400 km (look under "Checkpoints")

Weather report from Särna
Today december 2th we have alot of snow here in Särna. It has came even more the last day.

Updated musher list.

Seven new entrants.

On new entrant to the musher list.

Two new entrants.

Snow in Särna! Since a few weeks ago there is snow in Särna. Temperature -6 C. Mushers are on their way to train the dogs and themselves.

One new added to musher list

Updated musher list

Two new entrants

Updated musher list.

Updated musher list.

Now you can find some more information on this site.