Reindeer Racing Festivities

I was fortunate that my recent visit to Murmansk coincided with the so called Great Northern Olympics held every year in Murmansk since the mid 1930’s.  The Northern Olympics are a collection of winter games and festivities that include long distance skiing, biathlon (where rifles and skis meet), reindeer racing and general winter weather merriment. 

 

I was unable to attend the entire ten day event but my trip did allow me to spend an afternoon watching the reindeer racing being held in Comfort Valley in the heart of the city. In comfort valley hundreds of people came out to cheer on the reindeer and their riders, partake in pony rides and eat and drink to their hearts content.

  The sunny blue sky and the relatively warm spring weather (-2 Celsius) ensured a full and happy crowd of onlookers and revellers both young and old. 

 

The crowd stood around Comfort Valley while the reindeer and their riders whizzed along circular track of hard press snow running the circumference of Comfort Valley, likely a half mile or so in length.  The reindeer teams ran alone and were timed on as they circled the track twice with the crowd shouting their encouragement.  The reindeer team consisted of four reindeer lashed together with rope and tied to a wooden sleigh covered in furs.  Atop the sleigh sits a young man, generally clad in fur leggings, wool cap and a brightly colored sweater.  In one hand the man appears to hold the sleigh and in the other he has a massive hooked stick that he seems to use for steering.

  As best I could ascertain the rider reaches the hooked stick towards the ropes lashing the reindeer together, once he connects with the ropes he pulls the reindeer left or right to make them turn. 

 

Turning the reindeer does not appear to be a simple feat.  On the one hand the process of hooking the stick around the rope while bouncing along the snow at 20 or 25 miles per hour requires quite a bit of hand on coordination.  On the other hand the reindeer aren’t exactly tame.  Often times the reindeer wouldn’t follow the lead of the rider and they would blow the turn altogether, this seemed to disqualify the rider from that particular race.   Sometimes the reindeer would even barrel into the crowd sending mom, dad, children and me flying out of the path of stomping hooves.

  To help with the steering process other fur clad and capped men would often stand along the curves hooting and hollering in an attempt to guide the reindeer along their curve.  To They don’t seem as responsive as a team of horses or a dog sled.  They reminded me more of small cows being hooked to a sleigh.  They aren’t exactly wild animals, but certainly not tame either.

 

I watched the racing for about an hour before I began to get cold and moved away from the crowd towards another part of the track where people were milling about.  I came to find a market of trinkets, pony rides, reindeer apparel and other odds and end.  At the far end of the market through a 3 foot snow bank lay an open food area where hot drinks, cold beer and grilling shaschlick beckoned.  The outdoor was surprisingly filled with people picnicking and laughing.  The negative temperatures were little deterrent families who sat on plastic lawn furniture in insulated fur clothing eating and drinking.  It was a seen more reminiscent of 18 degree weather not -2 degree weather, but I guess a warm spring day in Murmansk is different then a warm spring day in other parts of the world.