Pottering Around the Pasture In The Dimness, Polar Night Virtual 5K

Fit To Ride

Walking

Awareness of the outside world. “Since 1919, the Norway-America Association has awarded scholarships to Norwegian and American students looking to study outside of their respective countries.” NORAM
~~~

PolarNight Marathon Virtual edition
Sats Mørketidstrim (5k)
Official Location- Tromoso, Norway
IRL Location – Pasture
Official Date – 21 Nov 2020 to 21 Jan 2021
IRL Date – January 13, 2021
Official Distance – 5K, adjusted by organizers
IRL Distance – 3.2 miles
Official Time – 1:08:23, adjusted by organizers
IRL Time – 1:10:13
Placing overall – 68 of 29(?). Results page has 74 finishers.
Placing gender – 45 of 20(?). Dunno how many but no one behind me on results page.
Placing age (I assume) – 6 of 4(?). Ditto. Turtle power!

Results

International
“In Tromsø, the Polar night starts 21st November and ends 21st January. During this time, the sun never rises above the horizon.” PNMVe

It costs 240!?! Oh, 240 kr. That’s $28.

What about my self-imposed rule of virtual only? It appears that the entire country is erring on the side of caution. ” …. stand out as the closest Western equivalents to Asian nations that have managed to avoid the worst of the pandemic.” Wall Street Journal: Finland and Norway Avoid Covid-19 Lockdowns but Keep the Virus At Bay , by Pancevski, Nov 2020. [Digital Fun]

Local
In the spirit of arctic dark, I decided to do this one at night. Staying home and walking in the pasture was the easiest way to accomplish the plan.

I set out at 6:01 pm, one hour after sunset.

Thoughts you have in the dark. Could I recreate a flashlight if I was yanked back into the past? Bulb? Battery?

It helped that I had walked the path many, many, many times, by foot and by hoof.

It got easier once I took off my glasses. Better dark adaption? A pleasant uniform blur was all I needed? Weird. [I See that]

36 degrees when I finished. I’m so tough.

Butter side up. My flashlight was dim and finally failed a few feet from the front door as I finished. I had just enough light to see my way. This was excellent. The fully-charged flashlight gives off sufficient lumens to land small aircraft. This would not have been atmospheric at all.