J.D. Potié
BRISTOL Oct. 10, 2019
Around 30 members of the local press, community leaders and representatives of various organizations gathered at . . .
Timberland Tours, in Bristol, for a press conference and a tour of the facility.
Ahead of the 10th annual Bristol Dryland Dog Race taking place on Oct. 25-27, the event was an opportunity for folks to get a first-hand look at the track along with some information about the race from the organizer himself, Denis Rozon.
Among the community leaders present were Jane Toller (MRC Pontiac Warden), Brent Orr (Bristol Mayor) and Maurice Beauregard (Campbell’s Bay Mayor).
With the sound of Eurohounds barking in the distance, Rozon opened the event with a brief word of welcome, followed by a run-down of the event and an introduction of a few important attendees, including two-time Canadian dryland racing champion Jean Bouvier from Wakefield.
Afterwards, folks socialized and snacked on platters of food and ice-cold beverages catered by the Little Red Wagon Winery and Brauwerk Hoffman.
Attendees then migrated towards the starting point of the track, where Bouvier demonstrated the track using a four-wheeler pulled by eight dogs.
Rozon explained that, in actual dryland races, dogs pull carts and not four-wheelers. He added that the dogs were running a little slower than they would if they were pulling a cart instead.
“He’s going about 15 miles per hour,” he said. “But when he’s racing, it’s at least 21-22 miles per hour.”
As Bouvier and his dogs lined up for takeoff, attendees gathered on both sides of the track to catch brief sightings of them zipping by a couple of times, on route to the finish line.
The demonstration was intended to showcase the dogs’ running ability and with Bouvier running with some of the best dogs in the country, attendees were in for an impressive display, Rozon said.
“The speed of the dogs, you’re going to see that,” he said. “It’s spectacular.”
After the demonstration, the event ended with a tour of the track on the back of a trailer.
According to Rozon, the tenth Bristol Dryland will be very special because it will be a testament to the event’s constant growth from one year to the next.
Compared to 55 teams back in 2010, this year’s race will feature over 300 teams, including three elite teams from each province and territory for each class, Rozon said.
From hosting the world championships, to the nationals this year, it seems like the event’s participation rate never ceases to rise.
“We’ve never had Newfoundland,” he said. “Now they’re coming. We’ve never had Nova Scotia, they’re coming. We’ve never had the Northwest Territories, and Yukon. They’re coming.”
Featuring the same nine classes as in previous editions, folks can expect to see the nation’s best canicrossers, bikejorers and teams of four, six and eight dogs, go at it on the dirt track at impressive speeds once again.
The event will also feature an all-new veterans’ class for runners aged 50 and up, Rozon said.
Rozon admitted that when he first organized the race ten years ago, he never thought it would have evolved as significantly and as rapidly as it has. When it comes to the event’s sustained success, he owes it all to the people who have pitched in to help him achieve it.
“It’s thanks to all the support I have here in the community in the Pontiac, the businesses, the farmers, everybody,” he said. “Other places don’t have that and people tell me. All the runners that come from other places say ‘We don’t have this where we’re from.’”
“That’s why we’re up to the 10th year,” he added. “It’s not me, it’s all of them. I just tell them about it, I sell it, and they jump on board. It’s very special, you know.”
