Overview
- Saturday’s Stage 7 runs from Bessans to the Val-Cenis polar base with a mass start and an overnight bivouac above 2,000 meters.
- Organizers now allow only one handler to access the polar base to watch dogs while mushers take a meal, tightening on-site procedures.
- The event is operated by roughly 100 staff with about 90% volunteers working long days with daily briefings, base camps and coordinated convoys.
- A veterinary team of about a dozen led by Caroline Didier monitors roughly 600 dogs each day, advises mushers and can require rest for any dog.
- Mushers emphasize hydration and injury prevention, protecting paws with creams and booties, as contingency routes filed with authorities activate at J‑5 based on forecasts.