The Harald Drever Memorial Project, 1977

Extract

For more than 30 years the late Professor Harald Drever, of the Department of Geology, University of St Andrews, was intimately concerned with the people of the village of Igdlorssuit, near Umanak in west Greenland. Almost every year he spent some weeks in the summer visiting and working in the area. He always hoped that the villagers could maintain their traditional lifestyle by hunting seals and he made a lasting contribution to the preservation of one of their cultural skills when he initiated a kayak endurance race across 80 km of open sea from Umanak to Igdlorssuit. He provided the prize monies, and he donated a handsome trophy for the winner. With his death in 1975 this race was in doubt. However, in 1976 the Umanak Kommune formed a committee to run the race and started to raise support for future races. The Harald Drever Memorial Fund to help the race funds was begun the same year. A sum of about £1 700 (US$3 300) was raised from over 100 contributors and this sum has been matched by contributions from the Umanak Kommune and the Greenex Mining Company, which operates at Mârmorilik in the Umanak district. Thus a substantial basis for the financial future of the race has been laid.