Running North: A Yukon Adventure

In the world of sled-dog racing only three long-distance courses count: the Iditarod, the Alpirod and the Yukon Quest. The last is dubbed ""a thousand miles of Hell"" for its 1000-mile course across moutainous Alaskan terrain, its requirement that mushers pack every necessity at the start and the fact that there are only six checkpoints in 16 days, leaving entrants alone and unaccounted for over vast stretches of wild, icy land. In 1992, amateur racer George Cook took on the Quest, with Ann Mariah, his childhood sweetheart and wife, serving as his handler. This is her fast-clipped account of their seven-month Alaskan sojourn, most of which was spent in a small town outside Fairbanks, Alaska, where they forged a home/training camp for their three-year-old daughter, a college graduate niece and the 32 Siberian huskies they brought with them. Considered inferior sled dogs by Alaskans, the huskies are among the book's most intriguing characters. Cook strikes a smart balance between reports of George's training with sketches of her own experiences as support staff. The book hits its stride when explaining their exacting logistical preparation. From frozen lamb cubes and salmon jerky to the best style of dog booties and clothing items like parkys and muklaks, the details are precise and absorbing. Cook doesn't bring the same vitality to her descriptions of, or reflections on, the Alaskan wilderness, but she successfully captures the social idiosyncrasies of her diverse cast. From Sten, a neighbor whose failed Quest attempt haunts him still, to Martha, an Alaskan who sews exquisite mitts and wastes nothing of her beaver pelts, the state's hale souls appear as particular as the untamed land they've claimed for home. (Oct.)