Over the weekend, thousands of people from different parts of North America gathered at Timberland Tours in Bristol for the 10th annual Bristol Dryland dog race.

From the sounds of ATV engines roaring to loud Euro hounds howling like wolves, Timberland Tours was the place to be for sled dog racers and enthusiasts from the region.

Featuring around 300 teams, the large crowds on hand were a testament to the event’s consistent growth over the last decade, according to its founding coordinator Denis Rozon.

“The turnout was fantastic,” he said. “Every year it gets bigger and bigger and was bigger again this year.”

Played out over three days, the event featured a wide variety of racing categories, including canicross, bikejoring and eight-dog rigs.

In each category, each participant ran two times and the participant with the lowest combined time over two runs ended up as the winner.

The trail featured four different courses, measuring between 1.6 km (1 mile) and 6.4 km (four miles).

With several open spots along the track, crowds of spectators watched from both sides of it hoping to get a glimpse of the world class sled dog teams running at upwards of 22 km/h

To keep anyone from going too hungry or thirsty, a few vendors doled out tons of warm food and beverages on site. Plus, a few volunteers sold all sorts of Bristol Dryland merchandise at a table located inside the main shelter at the facility.

On Friday and Saturday, the sun was out and the skies were clear of clouds making the conditions of the sandy trail as ideal as it can be for the competitors. With the parking lot packed to the brim, cars were lined up along chemin Ragged Chute for about a mile surrounding the facility.

Taking into account the sizes of entourages and the number of cars parked at the facility, Rozon estimated that well over 2,000 people attended the event on both Friday and Saturday.

However on Sunday, heavy rains turned the typically smooth sandy surface of the trail to mud. Along with smaller crowds than in the first two days (around 300 spectators), this made the final round of the event an even bigger gauntlet for the contestants to go through.

“There was so much rain during the night that even though we have the nicest trails in the world, they were still damaged,” he said. “There wasn’t enough time for the water to seep into the ground, which caused a lot of problems for certain runners.”

Despite that, everything worked out as planned and by the time the awards ceremony rolled around, the participants and spectators alike were all smiles after what was an unforgettable experience for some.

For Louis Parent, a 31-year-old racer from Saint Raymond de Port Neuf, Que., the three-day experience in Bristol was filled with all sorts of lifetime memories and personal achievements.

Along with fifth place in the two-dog scooter class and a podium finish in the six-dog rig, Parent ended up as the Canadian champion in the eight-dog rig – eclipsing the trail’s all-time record of 10 min, 11 sec. in 6.5 k, by five seconds.

After the event, Parent said he was grateful to have come out of the event with as much silverware as he did. While he and his team of Euro Hounds were determined to win at least something, he admitted that he had modest expectations heading into this year’s event. He added that the high quality of the facility really benefitted his team.

“I expected to perform and start and finish in good time,” he said. “To leave with this many medals, it was very satisfying. I think the trail here allows teams to really perform.”

Having had such significant success in its first 10 years of existence, Rozon feels pride knowing that racers from all parts of the continent, especially Alaska, are more than willing to make the trip to Bristol every year for the big race.

This year’s event featured a record two Alaskan teams and Rozon is hopeful that, whether it’s people coming back or newcomers giving the event a try, the trend will continue.

“Next year, maybe more will come,” he said. “The word has been out and people are talking about this everywhere.”

While it’s going to be hard to make the next Bristol Dryland even bigger than this year’s, Rozon noted that if things remain the way they have been in the last few years, the race will always be a big success.

Supported by so many sponsors from all parts of the region, Rozon feels grateful to be able to invite the community to a large-scale event without paying a price of admission.

“It’s fun when you see the people arrive and they don’t pay and get to see the show,” he said.

Winners

Junior one-dog Canicross

Alexi Fleury-Héroux, Low, Que.

Junior one-dog Bikejoring

Jules Coulaux, Saguenay, Que.

Junior three-dog rig

Ludovyk Fortier, Lac Drolet, Que.

Two-dog adult Bikejoring

Mikki Douglas, Easton, WA, U.S.A.

Adult one-dog scooter

Rich Kisseloff, Algonquin, IL, U.S.A.

Adult one-dog Canicross

Cédric Boisvert, Drummondville, Que.

Adult one-dog Bikejoring

Sylvain Daguerre, Saint-Charles-de-Bellechasse, Que.

Adult two-dog scooter

Sébastien Gauthier, Saguenay, Que.

Adult four-dog rig

Albine Devinant, Saint-Paul, Que.

Adult six-dog rig

Yanek Pépin, Becancour, Que.

Adult eight-dog rig

Louis Parent, Saint Raymond

Port de Neuf, Que.

New York-native Lisa De Gennaro runs through the sandy trail with her six-dog team on Saturday afternoon.

A team of dogs, eager to launch onto the trail, howl at the starting line as they get set to go.

Yannick Vallières and his team of Euro Hounds take off from the starting line in the eight-dog rig Saturday afternoon.

Two-time Canadian champion from Wakefield, Jean Bouvier, races through the trail with his six-dog team.

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