– I feel a little more nervous about this race than before. Now that mom isn’t around to look after me. That’s what dog walker Silje Máret Somby from Karasjok says. Mamma Berit has long been her regular handler and thus an important supporter in several dog sledding races. But now the 28-year-old will drive for the first time without his mother by his side. The reason is that they both participate as dog handlers in this year’s Finnmark race. – It will be a bit fun to compete. We want the best for each other, but at the same time we want to do better, says Silje Máret. ON MY OWN BONES: – This year I’ve had to do a lot more alone and without mum. She tends to have an overview of things, says Silje Máret Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news – Can you ask for help then? – During the race, my mother is busy with her own work, but I can always call her if there is anything. In any case, it will be exciting to see how it will go, says the daughter before the start. Mother and daughter both participate in the so-called FL600, which has WC status this year. The race has a distance of 600 kilometers which is run with a team of eight dogs. Mor Gaup arrived at checkpoint Levajok just after nine o’clock on Monday. She is in 20th place, while her daughter, who is in 23rd place, is still on her way to Levajok. Knowing the mother’s instinct Mamma Berit Gaup thinks it is good that both are competing in the same competition this year, and she is inclined to assist her daughter if needed. – If she gets into trouble, I might have to turn around to help, says Berit and continues with a laugh: – Maybe the mother’s instinct will come, but the question is what kind of trouble she will get into. The daughter, on the other hand, doesn’t quite believe that it will happen. – I think she won’t turn around. It must be quite a crisis if she turns around, says Silje Máret. THE STARTING LINE: Here Berit Gaup sets out from the start in Alta with eight dogs in the team. The goal is to drive around the race and get back over the finish line. Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news Joint challenge past Karasjok In the race you have to drive past Karasjok twice, and it can be difficult for the dogs of both the mother and the daughter. The reason is that the four-legged ones think they are going home again – not past and on towards Alta, where the finish line is. – Every year it is a big challenge to drive past our home. In previous races, the dogs have turned towards Karasjok or want to turn in. It is a mental challenge for them, says Silje Máret. Therefore, they have trained a lot on this particular passage in advance of the Finnmarksløpet. – It is the passing that is most critical for us. Who wins? The goal for both of them is to cross the finish line. – I didn’t do that last year, so this year I’m trying to get around, says Berit. But Silje Máret is toying with the idea of getting a better position than her mother. This despite the fact that she is actually prepared to end up behind her. – It would have been fun to drive past mum and get a better position. Especially when she runs with the better dogs. – So yes, a small goal is to beat her. – Can you handle it then? – Time will tell. A lot can happen in a race, so you can never say never. LOOKS UP TO MOTHER: – She has a good relationship with the dogs and is actually very tough. I look up to my mum as a dog walker. She hasn’t kept at it for long, but jumped into it after I started with dog sledding, says Silje Máret Somby Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news At the last minute Initially, Silje Máret was supposed to be her mother’s handler in this year’s race, but that changed two weeks before the start of the race. – I signed up at the last minute, she says. The opportunity arose for them both to participate. That in addition to the fact that they had enough dogs for two teams. And the mother got first choice of the dogs. – It was fair that she got to choose the dogs she wanted to drive, and then I took the rest. It is she who has had the main responsibility for the training this season, says Silje Máret. Mamma Berit has always been Silje Máret’s safe handler. She says that her mother is good with the dogs and the team, and knows what dog racing entails. And regarding the latter – it does not necessarily make the reserve in this year’s race. – My boyfriend is a trader, but he has never been to a dog race before. But I have faith that he can do it. He learns quickly, Silje Máret says with a laugh.
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Silje Máret Somby and Berit Gaup compete in the Finnmark race – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
