There will be a bunch of mushers and their dogs keeping their fingers and paws crossed for some bad weather later this month.
"Everyone will be hoping for good weather, we'll be hoping for bad weather," said Jen Gastmeir," the driving force behind the Guelph Lake Dog Sled Race scheduled for Feb. 25 and 26 at Guelph Lake Conservation Area.
Gastmeir said they need a foot of snow on the ground to be able to hold the race - enough snow to hold a snow hook needed to hold a sled in place if necessary.
The event is a fundraiser for
A similar event was planned last year but had to be cancelled due to a lack of snow. Despite that, Gastmeir, who works at the hospital, said that they still managed to raise $3,000.
"Last year and this year we've paired programs within the hospital up with (dog sled) teams to raise funds," said Gastmeir, who has been racing dog sleds herself for about eight years.
"We have about 10 musher/health care teams already committed."
Last year there were 40 dog sled teams hoping to take part in the event.
Gastmeir said it's hard to say how many will come this year. Many will wait until they see what the weather conditions are before committing. There will also be a big influx of racers from the
The event is competitive, with races ranging from one and two dogs pulling people on skis up to four and six-dog teams racing a 4 km and 6 km course. There is also a novice race.
Races start at
There is no entry fee to the event but parking at the conservation area is $10.
More information can be found at www.glsdr.ca.
