Pulk
A pulk (from Sami languages: puhlke, via Finnish: pulkka; Swedish: pulka; Norwegian: pulk; Northern Sami: bulki) is a Nordic short, low-slung small sled used in sport or for transport, pulled by a dog or a skier, or in Sápmi pulled by reindeer.[1] They are classically made out of wood and other natural materials but are nowadays made of plastic, which makes them inexpensive.
Pulks are originally meant to carry supplies such as a tent or food, or transport a child or other person. In Norway and Sweden, pulks are often used by parents to pull small children on skiing trips. In Finland and Sweden, pulks exist as a winter toy, mainly for children, for going downhill. Besides the classic toy pulk there are similar alternatives like "saucers" (pulks shaped like a disc), as well as sleighs of different configurations.
A larger pulk, designed for transporting larger amounts of goods, is called ahkio [ɑhkio] in Finnish. This word is also used by the US Army for a human-drawn snow sled.
References
- The Sámi and their reindeer – University of Texas at Austin
External links
- ACAPULKA international pulk/pulka website
- The Gear Junkie, a syndicated U.S. newspaper columnist, has an in-depth review of a pulk
- XC Ski World reviews of XC ski sleds
- Ski Randonne Nordique A French pulk website (in French)
- Laughing Daw blog Building a Backcountry Pulk
- Madriver Rocket Instructions to build a pulk