No doubt the most astonishing fact of my upcoming trip to
Yellowknife for the Frostbite 50 is the decision by my wife, Lindi Rosner (a virtually-born-and-bred,
flip-on-the-heat-when-it-dips-below-68-degrees, Southern California girl) to tag
along. Lindi has her heart set on witnessing the aurora borealis and
Yellowknife purports to be the best spot on earth to accomplish that goal.
Obviously, such an expedition requires careful planning, and
I, having spent a total of 8 days out of my 60-plus years in the Arctic and
Sub-Arctic, have been appointed Lindi’s expert guide. In making my wardrobe
recommendations, I adopted a classic layered strategy that favored practicality
over fashion.
You judge the results!
For the base layer, I chose merino wool tops and bottoms.
Lightweight and breathable. They’ll keep her warm in the face of the most
severe Arctic blasts, but still comfortable when snuggled on a polar bear rug
back at the hotel.
For the mid-layer, the concept is simple: insulation up top,
water resistance below while maintaining a soupçon of mystery and sex appeal.
The pièce de
résistance! For the outer garment, I selected a Canada Goose expedition
parka. Lindi will be able to laugh in the face of 50-below-zero wind chills while promenading with confidence with the crème de la crème of Yellowknife society.
The parka was supplied by my good friend Ken Shifren who
owns A.A. Surplus Sales here in Los Angeles. This particular garment was scavenged
from the body of a retired Navy seaman who died of alcohol poisoning while
working as a fry cook in McMurdo Station, Alaska. A trip to the dry cleaners
and it was as good as new. Thanks, Kenny!
Excellent post, terrific topic, brilliantly presented. But it leaves the following burning question: Did the dry cleaning get all of the cooking smells out of the park? (I presume the cook wore it in the kitchen.) Only Lindi can tell if all of the cook's BO was successfully removed.
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