6 Dog Sprint Race Route
This sprint race consists of a 6 Dog team, and includes both purebred and open categories. The same course, utilizing the same dogs, is run by each Musher on both Saturday and Sunday, with the total time from both days determining the winner. In previous years we have had racers from Ontario, Quebec, several Northern States and Jamaica competing.
Dogs in the open class are usually a mixed breed, utilizing any combination of Alaskan Huskies, German Short-Hair Pointers, English Pointers, Greyhounds, etc. The emphasis is to breed the race dogs for speed and stamina, stride length, feet health, as well as more general considerations like climate and type of racing. We have seen other non-traditional breeds like Border Collies and Setters race in the past. The Registered Northern Breed (RNB) class is generally thought of as the more traditional sled dogs. This class is organized specifically to recognize the historic legacy that northern breeds have played in establishing the bond between musher and sled dog thousands of years ago. This category is satisfied by any dog team that has purebred papers registered under AKC, CKC, Continental Kennel Club, IFSS, and/or the World Sled Dog Association. The breeds approved are Alaskan Malamute, Canadian Eskimo, Greenland Dog, Samoyed, Siberian Husky, and Yakutian Laika.
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Route Details
The race begins at Park Street just south of the dog yard at the Legion. Teams will run down Park Street and bank left down Patton Road into the woods beyond. Teams turn onto a looped section that return mushers will recognize as the former "home stretch" from years past. This area of trail runs close to Main Street in downtown Kearney but does not return to any actual roads. After turning into the "4 dog trail", the course runs through a variety of terrain. There is winding forested areas which will be technical but a fun ride. There are large sections of fields with open views of the Almaguin Highlands. There are no main snowmobile trails or road crossings on this trail. Ample trail help will be stationed throughout the trail for assistance if required.
