LOTTIE EVANS has spoken of husband Steve’s devastation after dropping out of the 350-mile Alaskan endurance challenge.
The Medical Specialist Group doctor, pictured, made the difficult decision not to continue after suffering from a stomach bug for the last four days.
He had been competing in the Iditarod Trail Invitational, pulling a sled-load of supplies on foot in sub-zero temperatures.
Mrs Evans received a call from him last night to tell her that he had decided it was not safe to carry on.
‘He will be incredibly disappointed not to finish the race. He must have been feeling absolutely dreadful to stop. It’s not like Steve, he doesn’t normally get things like this. He’s done so many of these [events] now that he doesn’t expect not to finish them.’
Dr Evans had been vomiting and unable to eat anything after a meal out in Anchorage before the start of the race, but he had initially thought it was pre-race nerves.
‘He had a dodgy tummy all through Saturday night, but on Sunday he started the race because you don’t go all that way not to start,’ said Mrs Evans.
‘He managed 107 miles of it but he just couldn’t get all the calories he needed.’
Dr Evans is the eighth racer to drop out of the race after reaching Shell Lake Lodge – halfway between the second and third checkpoint at 9.30am local time on Wednesday.
Reports from the race blog suggested that weather conditions were getting increasingly difficult – with a winter snow storm forecast for yesterday afternoon.
Mrs Evans said her two sons, Joel, 9, and Noah, 5, would be pleased to see him back.
‘I’m glad he’s safe. He said he was at the back of the pack and nobody would have been there to help him on his way so it was probably the right decision to make.’
Dr Evans has arrived back in Anchorage where he is recuperating.
He will fly back to the UK after arranging a flight from Seattle.
Article posted on 6th March, 2009 - 2.29pm
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