It's day six of the Yukon Quest, and its lead mushers passed through the Dawson City checkpoint yesterday. What does it take to keep the mushers going? We talked to Dawson-based Yukon Quest veteran Brian Wilmshurst to find out.
"My favourite is ice cream sandwiches," he told us via email from Mexico, where he was vacationing earlier this month and definitely not thinking about the gruelling 1,600-kilometre trek. "I'm a fat kid who loves ice cream."
Wilmshurst's philosophy is simple: "You pretty much eat whatever you like to eat," he explains. "You burn lots of calories, so you have to keep eating." If that's not enough incentive to race the Yukon Quest, here's a bit more of his race trail meal plan: "I eat lots of burritos, breakfast and beef ones; bags of cooked bacon; and last year, I had french toast with maple syrup." But that, he says, is an improvement from his rookie days: "My first Quest, all I ate was hot dogs and chocolate bars the whole race. After I started eating better, it made a big difference."
Brian, next time you sign up for a dogsledding race, take us with you.
