Husky News

Art Falk was able to cross dog sledding off his “Bucket List” on Saturday.Falk, of Naples, has already had his share of adventures, sky diving once in college, learning how to fly a plane and recently returning from a three-week excursion in Antarctica. But at the Mushers Bowl Winter Carnival, he was intent on riding on a dog sled.

The rides on Highland Lake came with mushing instructions. Falk, who is retired, joked about being able to cross it off his list of things to do before he dies, an idea made popular recently by the movie “The Bucket List.” “I’ve already been sky diving, so I didn’t have to do that,” he said. “(Dog sledding) was wonderful.”

The annual Mushers Bowl kicked off last weekend and will run through today. Many of the carnival’s most popular events took place Saturday, including the actual Mushers Bowl dog sled races, the “Freezing for a Reason” polar plunge and snowmobile and dog sled rides. The Mushers Bowl competition also includes skijoring, where skiers are pulled by one or two dogs.

Last weekend, 64 people participated in the carnival’s first-ever biathlon. Organizers decided to extend the festival from four to 10 days and add more non-snow-dependent events this year as insurance against uncooperative weather, said Mike McClellan, executive director of the Greater Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce. Over the past five years, races have been canceled once and postponed twice because of lack of snow and ice, McClellan said.

This year, however, participants say the weather was ideal. “If you don’t have the ice and snow, a lot of this stuff can’t happen,” McClellan said. “It makes all the difference.” Phil Meiss of Jay participated in the six-dog and four-dog race classes Saturday, bringing along 10 Siberian huskies.

The course is not an easy one, Meiss said, which he believes draws good competition for the races. Ciara Eagle, 12, raced in the 4.4-mile, 3-dog juniors competition. She participated along with her mother, Christina, and her 9-year-old sister, Ayana. The family got into the sport several years ago, after they bought their second Siberian husky. The dog already had a fitted harness, which the previous owner offered to the family. So they started dog sledding, and now own 10 dogs, mostly Alaskan huskies, said Christina Eagle of Osborn.

“We kind of always did it as a family,” she said. The “Freezing for a Reason” polar plunge drew about 60 jumpers this year. Many of the participants, like Mary Evans, proclaimed this year far easier than the last, as temperatures “felt 50 degrees warmer,” she said.

All proceeds from the polar plunge benefit the Harvest Hills Animal Shelter. Kim Kressler of Halifax, Mass., and Penni Robbins of Bridgton, seven-year veterans of “Freezing for a Reason,” didn’t mind waiting in their swimsuits in the 20-degree weather Saturday afternoon.

“Everyone thinks we’re nuts,” Robbins said. For Kressler, agreeing to do the polar plunge wasn’t a difficult decision — she once was swept into the ocean while watching a storm: “I said ‘Sign me up, I’ve already had the practice.’” Gail Tucker and her grandson Labbie, 8, of Windham, watched the polar plunge and later signed up for one of the last available dog sled rides.

“It was a dream of my life,” said Tucker, who had seen dog sleds but had never been on one. “It’s fabulous.”

Source: Kennebec Journal