Ch5-Straight Ahead!

CHAPTER FIVE Straight Ahead! Moonlight cast a silvery glow over the icebound sea. The huskies' heavy breathing made a cloud over the team as it glided along the coast. The only other sounds in the darkness were the jingling bells of the lead dogs, the creaking of the sled basket, and the swish of the smooth wooden runners over the snow. As the dogs did their job, Jack magically knew how to do his: He knew how to "pedal" the sled by pushing the ground with his right foot while keeping his left on the runner. He knew how to

第五章一直往前走！月光在冰封的海面上投下银光。 哈士奇们沉重的呼吸声给沿着海岸滑行的队伍蒙上了一层乌云。 黑暗中唯一的其他声音是领头狗的叮当声，雪橇篮子的嘎吱声，以及光滑的木制雪橇在雪地上的嗖嗖声。 当狗狗们做他们的工作时，杰克神奇地知道如何做他的工作：他知道如何用右脚蹬地来“踩”雪橇，同时把左脚放在赛跑者身上。 他知道如何

push in the perfect rhythm to keep the team from running too fast, so they wouldn't pant and hurt their lungs in the freezing air. He knew how to balance his weight and bend his legs to absorb the shock of bumps on the trail. He knew how to keep all the lines tight and straight, so none of the dogs would get tangled in them. Jack knew all the musher commands, too. When the team came to a snowdrift, he shouted, "Gee!" to make the wheel dogs curve to the right. When the team came to another drift, he shouted, "Haw!" to make the wheel dogs curve to the left. When it was time to straighten out the towline again, Jack shouted, "Straight ahead!" Every time the dogs did what Jack commanded, he said, "Good dogs!" But he hardly said more. He knew the fewer words, the better. The dogs depended on clear commands. Riding in the sled basket, Annie was silent, too, though several times Jack heard her gasp and say, "Wow!"

以完美的节奏推进，防止队员跑得太快，这样他们就不会在寒冷的空气中喘气，伤到肺。 他知道如何平衡自己的体重，弯曲双腿来吸收路上颠簸的冲击。 他知道如何把所有的绳子都弄得又紧又直，这样狗就不会被它们缠住了。 杰克也知道所有的musher命令。 当车队来到雪堆前时，他大喊一声“咦！”，让轮狗向右转弯。 当车队来到另一个漂流点时，他大喊一声“唧唧”，使轮狗向左弯曲。 到了重新把拖绳拉直的时候，杰克喊道：“一直往前走！”每次狗狗们按照杰克的命令行事时，他都会说：“好狗！”但他几乎没再说什么。 他知道话越少越好。 狗只听清楚的命令。 坐在雪橇篮子里的安妮也默不作声，尽管杰克好几次听到她喘着气说：“哇！”

"Wow!" is right, Jack thought. The windless Alaskan night was beautiful. Maybe the forecast was wrong. Maybe their ride would just be a thrilling race to save lives. Mile after mile, the huskies ran along the wellworn trail. When the dogs raced down an incline, Jack dragged his heel to keep them from going too fast. When they labored up an incline, he lightened their load by hopping off and running beside the sled, holding on to one of the handles to keep it steady. When the trail was flat again, he jumped back on the runners.

“哇！”是对的，杰克想。 阿拉斯加无风的夜晚很美。 也许预报是错的。 也许他们的旅程只是一场拯救生命的惊险比赛。 一英里又一英里，哈士奇沿着那条破旧的小路奔跑。 当狗跑下斜坡时，杰克拖着脚跟不让它们跑得太快。 当他们费力地爬上一个斜坡时，他会跳下来，跑到雪橇旁边，抓住其中一个把手，让雪橇保持稳定，从而减轻他们的负担。 当跑道再次变平时，他跳到了赛跑者的身后。

"Good driving!" Annie called. Jack smiled. He loved being a champion musher. He loved knowing exactly what to do and when to do it. But he especially loved the easy connection he felt with the huskies. Sometimes he even felt like a running dog himself as he pedaled in rhythm to their pace. Lost in his thoughts, Jack failed to notice a change in the weather, until he heard Annie call out, "The storm's starting!"

“好开车!”安妮叫。 杰克笑了笑。他喜欢成为一名冠军骑手。 他喜欢知道该做什么，什么时候做。 但他特别喜欢与哈士奇之间那种轻松的联系。 有时他甚至觉得自己就像一只奔跑的狗，因为他踩着他们的节奏。 杰克沉浸在沉思中，没有注意到天气的变化，直到他听到安妮喊道：“暴风雨开始了！”

Jack realized it had gotten colder and darker. Clouds covered the moon. The wind was blowing, and snow was falling. Snowflakes began to freeze on the lenses of Jack's glasses. Soon he couldn't see well enough to give commands to the dogs. Flying blindly down the trail, he tried to wipe his glasses with a fur mitten, but that only made it worse. As the huskies headed into a sharp curve, Jack lost his balance. He slipped off the runners and tumbled into the snow. The huskies came to a halt and started barking. "What happened?" Annie shouted. "My glasses got messed up," Jack said, picking himself up. "I couldn't see anything." "Don't worry, that happens," said Annie. "I guess I was too sure of myself," said Jack. "Even champion mushers have problems if they can't see," said Annie. "Let's switch places for a while. I'd love to drive." "Sure, thanks!" said Jack. He climbed into the basket and sat on the boards, while Annie took her

杰克意识到天变得更冷更黑了。 云遮住了月亮。风在吹，雪在下。 雪花开始在杰克的镜片上结冰。 不久，他就看不清楚了，无法对狗发号施令。 他在小路上盲目地飞着，试图用皮草连指手套擦眼镜，但这只会让情况变得更糟。 当哈士奇们冲进一个急转弯时，杰克失去了平衡。 他从赛跑者身上滑了下来，跌入雪地。 哈士奇停了下来，开始叫起来。 “发生什么事了?”安妮喊道。 “我的眼镜弄乱了。”杰克说着站了起来。 “我什么也看不见。” “别担心，这是常有的事，”安妮说。 “我想我是太自信了。”杰克说。 “即使是冠军骑手，如果他们看不见，也会有问题，”安妮说。 “让我们交换一下位置。 我喜欢开车。”“当然，谢谢！”杰克说。 他爬进篮子，坐在木板上，安妮抱着她

position on the runners. "Line out!" Annie commanded the dogs. The team straightened out the lines. "Good dogs!" Annie shouted. "Hike! Straight ahead!" The huskies started running again. As they pulled the sled through the swirling snow, Jack took off a mitten and scraped his glasses with his bare fingers. When his skin started burning with pain from the cold and wind, he quickly put the mitten back on. Annie kept a steady hand and a steady pace as she drove the eight huskies through the snowstorm. The wind blew harder, but she shifted her weight to keep the swaying sled from tipping over. She never let the towline go slack and get tangled with the other lines. Every time she yelled "Gee" or "Haw," Jack leaned to the right or left to help the sled around the curves. When the dogs started up a slope, Jack knew he should lighten their load. "I'll get off!" he called to Annie.

运动员的位置。“行了!”安妮命令狗。 队员们把线拉直了。 “好狗!”安妮喊道。 “走开!直走!”哈士奇又开始跑了起来。 当他们拉着雪橇穿过旋转的雪时，杰克脱下了连指手套，用手指刮了刮眼镜。 当他的皮肤因寒冷和风而开始疼痛时，他迅速戴上了连指手套。 安妮赶着八只哈士奇犬穿过暴风雪，她的手和步伐都很平稳。 风吹得更大了，但她改变了体重，以免摇晃的雪橇翻倒。 她从不让拖绳松松，和其他的绳子缠在一起。 每次她喊“咦”或“嗬”，杰克就向左或向右倾斜，帮助雪橇绕过弯道。 当狗开始上斜坡时，杰克知道他应该减轻它们的负担。 “我要下车了！”他对安妮喊道。