DAWSON CITY – Participants in this year's Fulda Extreme Arctic Adventure were tested by almost continual temperatures between -40 and -45 C.

They've had cold weather during the previous 10 years' worth of events, but never such a long stretch.

According to Rod Raycroft, of the territorial Department of Tourism and Culture, they loved it. This year will give them all bragging rights.

Super-cold temperatures make for some quick changes in events.

When a proposed helicopter drop fell through in Dawson, the group went to the airport and showed off how well their VW Touareg sport utility vehicles, mounted with Fulda winter tires, of course, handled on the gravel airstrip.

Earlier that day, they did manage a run up half of the Midnight Dome (6.5 kilometres) on snowshoes.

It was -41 at the bottom of the hill that day, and there was enough of a breeze in the circle at the top that Raycroft figures it dipped below -50 when they arrived.

From Dawson, it was on to Eagle Plains, where they staged a half-marathon at the Arctic Circle.

Last Friday, in Inuvik, they watched instructors build snow houses called Quinzhees, then had to build their own to sleep in that night.

Fortunately, it was bit warmer than it had been in Dawson, where they had had to cancel their plans to overnight in tents.

After the drive to Tuktoyaktuk the next day, they participated in a harpoon-tossing contest in which they had to score by getting the harpoon through a target made of – what else? – tires.

That same night, there was a banquet back in Inuvik. Then the athletes and the media representatives departed by air, to be replaced by an incentive and VIP tour by employees of Fulda.

The incentive group drove back to Dawson from Inuvik and spent Monday in the Klondike.

Event organizer Holger Bergold explained that this group had more of a tourist experience, with a skidoo trek on the Yukon River in the afternoon and curling scheduled, as well as a dinner and shopping time.

For them, the weather was nicer sunshine instead of ice fog, and mere -23, which Raycroft said some of them referred to as balmy.

In Dawson, the Fulda people turned the vehicles over to a contingent from Volkswagen, who embarked on their own Yukon tour. At one point, about 48 VIP visitors were in Dawson at the same time.

Volkswagen is one of the sponsors of the challenge, along with Condor Airlines, Lowa and Schiller Medizintechnik. Fulda itself is now part of the Goodyear-Dunlop Tire Company of Germany.

The Yukon government invested $150,000 in a co-operative marketing agreement to support the coverage by European journalists and broadcasters.

The government estimates 5.4 million euros ($7.4 million Cdn) in public relations advertising can be expected to flow from the event.

In addition, it's estimated that $1 million is spent locally by Fulda on equipment rentals, food and beverages, transportation, accommodations, staging of events and other services which help to stimulate the local economy in the middle of the slow tourism season.