Mush: sled dog races return to Waskimo Winter Festival

Sled dog racing is coming back to Regina’s Waskimo Winter Festival for the first time in 30 years.

Festival producer Jim Aho joined the 980 CJME Morning Show on Friday to announce what Waskimo organizers are calling “the biggest comeback story of the year”.

On Family Day, Feb. 19, dog mushers and their teams will take over Wascana Lake for the South Saskatchewan Sled Dog Championships.

“It’s going to be a huge, huge event. We thought we had big crowds last year, I think it’s going to be bigger crowds this time around,” Aho commented.

Waskimo was reborn last year after a 14-year hiatus and Aho explained that volunteers on the organizing committee have been working since this summer to make this year even better.

The return of the festival in 2017 drew crowds numbering in the thousands.

“The magic of Waskimo is that you get to celebrate winter outdoors on Wascana Lake, it’s the only day of the year you can be on the lake, on the ice, and people come out in droves,” Aho said.

The family-focused free outdoor festival will once again take place on the east side of the Broad Street Bridge near Conexus Arts Centre.

Sled dog races will go all afternoon along with the popular Hole-lympics outhouse races returning for another year. Other activities include snow cricket which made its debut last year, along with cross-country skiing, fat bike races, snowshoeing and horse-drawn sleigh rides.

An indoor children’s carnival will also be available at Conexus Arts Centre. Last year there was a fee to get inside which created problems with big lines at the entrance. This year organizers have opted to charge a fee to park at Conexus Arts Centre — but getting into all of the actual events will be free.