February 21, 2004
Klondike Kars
Moving further into the Yukon, we are now in the town of Dawson City, site of the big gold rush in the late 1800's.
Started the day with a short TSD outside of Whitehorse, then off to a new location for a slalom on a lake outside of town. The event on the Yukon was cancelled due to lack of freezure. (is that a word). Anyway, the ice on Fish Lake was quite froze, and very very slippy. Imagine an ice rink after it's been zamboni'ed and you'll have an idea.
We had a great time trying to get around the single lap with some amount of grace and style. Style points were available for nearly every car and we had some good hoots and hollers on the last sharp corner before the finish line. Ask to see Jim's in-car video some time.
We don't know yet if we'll have to decide to take the penalty points or pony up cash to avoid the points for the tug from the snowbank...
Scores are in now, and Car 11 maxed the slalom (i.e. too slow). Car 6 got best time of the unstudded cars and Eric managed 3rd fastest in the BMW in the studded entries. Yesterday's scores will soon be posted by Eric (if they're not already there). Jim and Dan moved up a spot in overall, Eric and Steve continue to lead Class I and Rob and Nick are poised to make a move as well.
Drive up along the Yukon and Klondike Rivers today was fantastic -- sun was out and the roads were just a little slimy. Once past Carmacks (named for the guy who pretty much discovered the gold that started the Klondike Gold Rush), we saw quickly dropping temps and more snow on the road. The surface was pretty nice, though, and the drivin' was good. Cars 6 (Rob and Nick), 7 (Eric and Steve) and 11 (Jim and Dan) did the convoy thing and had a great time chatting over the radio and keeping each other safe. We drove with Car 13, a Mitsubishi Montero, for a while 
It's amazing the amount of infrastructure and work that goes into keeping a road up here in drivable condition. Consider that we're well north, in (usually) very intense weather conditions with little population. yet the roads remain in nice shape, well signed, and lost of fun to drive. We're loving it!
Here's a parting shot of Eric looking over the hamlet of Pelly Crossing, where the Pelly River joins the Yukon: 
And, of course, what he was looking at: 