Dogsled.com: Mushing news, Iditarod, Yukon Quest, sled dog events

The Great Slave 200 is the only distance dog mushing race in the Northern Canada and is a qualifying race for the Iditarod and the Yukon Quest. This will be the third running of the race. Mushers will drive teams with a maximum of 12 dogs, a minimum of 8 dogs and must finish with a minimum of 5 dogs in harness.

The Great Slave 200 Race Committee is pleased to announce the projected purse for the 2007 Great Slave 200 is now set at   $15,000 CDN dollars.  The race committee has also secured product sponsorship from FirstMate pet foods, a Canadian company based in British Columbia, Canada.

The entry fee is set at $300 CDN until December 9th; entry fee will be raised to $500 CDN after December 10th.  The purse will pay to 5th place and the breakdown is: $5000, 4000, 3000, 2000, and 1000.

The race is set to start in Fort Providence, a community located approximately 300 kms south of Yellowknife on the shores of the Mackenzie River.  The race passes through North Arm Park which is located just south of Beh'choko approximately 1.5 hours south of Yellowknife.  Approximately 60% of the race route is road accessible, spectator and support crew friendly. From the North Arm Park the dog teams will go onto the North Arm of Great Slave Lake to finish on Grace Lake in Yellowknife.

Three official checkpoints along the road accessible route will be available for media and spectators alike.  Checkpoint 1at the Chan Lake Park, Checkpoint 3 at the North Arm Park Checkpoint 2 will be located along Highway 3 and exact mileage location will be announced at the Musher's meeting December 14th.  Checkpoint 4 & the finish line will be located on Grace Lake within Yellowknife City Limits. There is a mandatory 6 hours of rest for each dog team which must be taken at check point three, an additional four hours of rest is to be completed at the individual musher's discretion during the race.

The events begin December 14th in Fort Providence at the Snowshoe Inn (867) 699-3511) with the pre race veterinarian check at 4 pm. The public and media are welcome to attend and meet some world class athletes from around North America and some mushers too.  Dr. Richard Long will be acting as Chief Veterinarian. The nights festivities will include a dinner (sponsored by DehGah School) to be followed by the musher's meeting at 8pm.

The race will commence at 9:00am Saturday December 15th on the main street of Fort Providence.  Musher's will depart at two minute intervals. A post race awards ceremony will be held on Monday December 17th in Yellowknife, location TBA.

For more information please contact:

Warren or Kate Palfrey of NorthernStar Kennels
www.northernstarkennels.com
(867) 766-3950