Uko Akpanuko
Daily Herald
One year after being forced to cancel due to lack of snow, the Prince Albert sled dog races are back at the Winter Festival.
The sled dog races will be part of a series of regular outdoor events such as the King and Queen Trapper competition, Junior Trapper competition, sled dog rides, and sleigh rides.
“We are pretty excited about it,” Outdoor Site Director Tammy McGunigal said. “So far this year we have sled dogs teams already coming in. There are a couple teams in from Quebec, there’s teams from Northwest Territories. We are pretty excited to have the snow. We are not too thrilled about the cold weather getting everything ready, but we are pretty excited.”
The dog sled event starts at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday with the Buck Meridith Memorial One Dog Race. Entry into the races will be open till Saturday morning but the organizers are expecting about 15 10-dog teams and 15 six-dog teams competing at the festival.
The weather is expected to warm up significantly by the weekend, with Environment Canada forecasting temperatures of -3 C on Saturday. McGunigal said they will still run the races, but would prefer to see it a bit colder.
“It’s going to be business as usual but the dogs do prefer a little colder (weather),” she said. “Something like -10 C to -15 C is more ideal, depending on the breed of dogs running. The typical Alaskan Huskies, they find it a little warm, but the newer style breeds …, they love the warmer weather.”
McGunigal said the outdoor events are some of the oldest Winter Festival events. One of the reasons she joined the Winter Festival organizing committee was to make sure they kept going.
She’s hopeful Prince Albert residents will come out and take in the races.
“Everybody come and enjoy the weather,” she said. “It’s going to be beautiful.”
The mushers meeting is 11 a.m. on Saturday, with the Buck Meridith Memorial Race schedule for 11:30, the Six Dog Race scheduled for noon, the Park Range Three Dog Jr. Race scheduled for 1 p.m., and the Sask 10 Dog Sled Dog Championship scheduled for 2 p.m.
The Sunday races will begin at noon with the six dog race, followed by the four dog race at 1 p.m., and the Sask 10 Dog Sled Dog Championship at 2 p.m.
Dog Sled Rides and Horse Drawn Sleigh Rides are available from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and are free with a Prince Albert Winter Festival button.
