Husky News

Firstly, His Honour Gordon Barnhart, Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, and Mrs. Barnhart will again be guest celebrity riders at the official start on Central Ave. in Prince Albert Feb. 18.

Their Honours have helped us celebrate the race since 2007, and we hope this will be the best ride yet for them. The Board appreciates their participation in this important race. The vice-regal couple will also be guests at the Musher’s Banquet the night before the start.

The second exciting piece of news is that, for the fi rst time ever, mushers will be allowed to use GPS receivers to help them plan their race. This does not include units which can transmit their location to anyone else. The GPS units will be inspected prior to the race to ensure compliance.

Mushers using GPS will be able to download the track prior to the race if they wish. Those running the race to qualify for the Iditarod or Yukon Quest should comply with the GPS-related rules for those races in order to qualify.

Tickets are on sale for the quad raffle – $20 for a one in 750 chance to win a 2008 Arctic Cat 366 4 x 4. You can fi nd them at the Prince Albert or La Ronge offices, at various retailers in northern communities, or in Gateway Mall in Prince Albert from Dec. 3 to 23. Call one of the offices to find out where to get tickets.

Work continues on fi nalizing the trail north of La Ronge. Because there are so many interestrd groups, a public meeting is planned for 7 pm on Dec. 4 at the La Ronge Hotel and Suites in La Ronge. At that meeting, the proposed route will be laid out on maps, and everyone will have a chance to voice their opinion. It’s the northern way!

Part of the northern trail will follow roughly the same track as last year, keeping closer in among the islands in the north end of the lake. We would like to open up a loop using an existing trail from Missinippe south through the Contact-Sulphide- Lynx Lake chain so the mushers do not have to return the way they came. It also provides more shelter in case of challenging weather.

The board is looking for volunteers to help out at the office. We have staff for this year who is available to train you, but we would like to run the office with volunteers in future to allow more of the funds raised to go towards the race purse.

Source: townoflaronge.ca