Theresa Jacobo

Being up for 24 hours straight, in below-zero temperatures, in complete darkness, with a driver that was equally as exhausted, is not a walk in the park.

What I expected to be a fun class road trip turned out completely opposite when I was given the job of being co-pilot to a friend and a fellow student, Amy Egan, who is a terrible night driver. I had to make sure she stayed awake and on the road.

The Steese Highway on the way to Central was a curvy, barely maintained road, with cliffs that drop steeply on the sides. Being a passenger is a scary experience when there are no lights or reflectors to light the way to your destination along a road that is riddled with rough icy patches.

As for the cold, I thought I was prepared for making the class road trip to Mile 101 and Central for the Yukon Quest checkpoint coverage. I underestimated my preparation. Two layers of pants, socks, sweaters, Carhart overalls, gloves, along with the necessary boots, hats, scarf and coat, were not enough to shield the biting wind that hit my body once stepping out the car at Mile 101. The extreme cold proved to be the major hurdle during the assignment, especially when braving the outhouses. The layers of clothes that kept me warm were the hardest to remove when needing to use the bathroom. And using an outhouse in freezing weather for a woman who is not used to the outdoors proved to be a challenge. Taking off my gloves to unhinge the straps of my Carharts was a clumsy task, with freezing, shaky hands.

Trying to photograph in almost pitch-black conditions was difficult. Making out faces during the night was nearly impossible especially with layers of clothing covering almost every inch of everyone’s body and faces. After a while, memorizing the color of coats and hats became essential, especially to distinguish mushers. Worrying about my batteries dying in the middle of photographing and dealing with harsh, blinding flashes were technical difficulties that I faced among the rest of the photographers out there. Luckily, Central had a roadhouse that offered outlets to charge up dead batteries in between photo opportunities. My eyes had a hard time adjusting in the freezing wind while photographing. I had to constantly blink and roll my eyes around in their sockets in order to keep my contacts from drying and popping out. With no extra contacts available, and being as blind as a bat, I couldn’t afford have my contacts falling out.

I thought that this assignment would be a breeze, but it was anything but that. Shooting in the dark, worrying about a frozen gear, being dead tired and cold, I don’t think I have ever whined so much before. But, it was an experience that not everyone can say they did. It really makes you admire the mushers and appreciate the warmth of having car with remote start.

Needless to say, after that long night, I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow when I got home.