CopperDog Cancels Main Race Formats But Will Still Host the CopperDash and CopperPull in March
Unfortunately, all of the hanky-wool into dances won’t bring enough snow for Copper Dog. The annual Copper Country Sled Dog Race will cancel the weekend’s major races, including the 150, 80, 30, and 15-mile formats. However, leadership says that they still have plans to move ahead with the Copper Dash and Copper Pull. The unfortunate dry weather and lack of significant snowfall in the region have caused less-than-ideal conditions for the dog teams and future forecasts don’t look much better.
“Because of unsafe trail conditions. It doesn’t seem like we’re going to get the snowpack that’s going to be needed to safely pull this thing off. So we had to cancel the races. However, all of the Saturday Sunday, and Friday night activities in Calumet are going to stay as is. Fortunately, Copper Dog will still have a lot of fun for the community and visitors planning trips to enjoy.” – Krissy Tepsa, Volunteer Coordinator, CopperDog 150
Like other sled dog races in the region, that have planned alternative community events that act as sled dog festivals, Copper Dog will still have the block party, campfires, and fireworks.
“We, we all know everybody around here is suffering, um, tourist-wise, that we just, we haven’t had the people. There are no snowmobilers, there’s not a whole lot going on right now. So here’s, here’s a chance for people to come out and, and spend some money and, and get out there and, and enjoy some aspect of winter anyways. The block party is going to be fun. We’ll have food and there’ll be beverages. Everybody likes fireworks, too. Yeah, come on, watch some fireworks. But come out and visit the downtown merchants. Make a weekend of that. And even head up to Eagle Harbor and Copper Harbor. We’re not running there, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t go up there and visit all those, you know, go grab a bite to eat up in the harbor, Copper Harbor, Eagle Harbor.” – Krissy Tepsa, Volunteer Coordinator, CopperDog 150
Obviously, with the changes to the weekend’s plans, Copper Dog will not need as many volunteers. However, there are still opportunities to volunteer with the Copper Dash and Copper Pull events.
“Put a helmet on your kid and send them down a chute for 75 feet and see who makes it 75 feet in the quickest run. There’ll be prizes for the kids for that. That’s shaping up to be a pretty fun event too. And yes, we do need volunteers for those. It’s just kind of more of a safety thing, you know, helping get the kids in the sled, get the helmet on the kid, make sure that they’re tucked in the sled nice and safe, and send them off. For the weight pole job, that’s more of the volunteers would be handling the cinder blocks and helping put the weight on and off of the sled. So it’s more of a physical job for the weight pole, but we need help with that. And then as I mentioned, the fencing set up, we will need people for that too. It’s only going to be for the 100 block there. That’s where these events are going to be taking place.” – Krissy Tepsa, Volunteer Coordinator, CopperDog 150
Copper Dog 150 will unfortunately cancel its traditional races for the first time in its 15-year run. The warmer-than-seasonal weather and limited snowfall conditions have greatly impacted the region’s tourism industry. Copper Dog wants to do all that they can to still bring people to enjoy winter no matter the amount of snow on the ground. Organizers, sponsors, and passionate volunteers encouraged those who were planning trips from March 1st to the 3rd to consider keeping reservations and join them for their unexpected fun in Calumet.