This story will be updated.
Hundreds lined Main Street in Fort Kent on Saturday morning to see mushers and their dogs take off in the 33rd annual Can-Am Crown International Sled Dog Races.
Morning conditions were pleasant enough for spectators but still cold enough to sustain the dogs.
“Things are going wonderfully this morning,” said Andrew Birden, media adviser for the Can-Am Crown Planning Committee. “We have some cold weather to start us off that’s going to get warmer today, up in the 40s, but the start should be just fine and the trail conditions are good.”
As the day progresses, particularly when racers in the 250-mile category begin taking off, thousands will likely crowd into the quarter-mile stretch of Main Street, Birden said.
He’s optimistic about the rest of the race.
“I’m feeling good,” he said. “This is my favorite event of the year up here in Aroostook County.”
Lance Morin, Main Street start director, said the snow may pose some challenges and might be a little soft later in the day. The snow this year is more granular, not unlike sugar, which is harder to compact, but it will pack down hard once the dogs go over the trail, he said.
Morin and a crew of more than 100 volunteers all work together to ensure a smooth takeoff on Saturday morning. He also works with the Fort Kent, fire, police and public work departments.
“The town stands behind this and supports it,” Morin said. “So we’re really thankful for them.“
On Friday night, Morin said there were probably 70 volunteers helping to set up the quarter-mile fence on Main Street that separates the dogs from the spectators, and that around 50 were students at the University of Maine at Fort Kent.
The event may have reduced attendance due to the fact that the town’s basketball team, the Warriors, recently made history with its first regional championship victory and is competing for the state title on Saturday night, he said. Some spots in town, such as the local theater, are also broadcasting the game for fans unable to make it to Augusta.
International Race Marshal Jim Cunningham, who is one of eight people in the world with an license to hold this position, said Saturday morning that conditions looked good, but he’s waiting to see about a potential mix of snow and rain later in the day.
“Hopefully it’ll stay overcast so the dogs don’t get super heated,” he said. “I think today will probably be the hardest day of the race. It’s best to keep the team going slow, don’t overheat them, don’t exhaust them, get into Portage, stop for three or four hours, let that temperature drop, and the trail will harden up just like asphalt.”
After traveling to similar races across the globe, Cunningham said Fort Kent does a fantastic job. He particularly appreciates that the race has 30-mile and 100-mile categories in addition to the 250-mile category, which is an Iditarod qualifier.
“[The Can-Am] is a very well-known race, not only in North America, but it’s also known in Europe,” he said. “When I’m over in the northern hemisphere of Europe, people ask me about it there, too.”
Becki Tucker, a musher in the 100-mile category this year, has spent 25 years mushing. Tucker has loved dogs her whole life. Before mushing, she worked in an animal shelter rescuing animals. From there, she eventually found her way to the sport.
She said she’s keeping a positive attitude about the potentially warmer weather later in the day.
“It’s Mother Nature. She’s going to throw anything at you,” Tucker said. “And just because the weatherman says it’s going to be this, doesn’t mean that’s what’s going to be out there. Sometimes it’s as much about the dogs’ endurance as it is the musher’s mindset.”
A Connecticut native, Tucker later moved to New Hampshire, and from there decided to move just outside Fort Kent, partly because of its vicinity to the big race. When it came time to move, one of the local race officials, John Pelletier, helped her find a house, she said.
Now that she’s been in northern Maine for seven years, she’s glad she made the decision.
“This town can put their heart and soul into anything,” she said. “That’s the thing that grabs at you big time, when you have people that have the same love, dedication and passion toward something. And this town, I mean look at it, races don’t happen like this everywhere.”
