Sled Optional - Girard State Forest - NSW - AU
And now for something a little different, Girard State Forest just this side of Drake will come alive at the start of July to the sounds of dog sledding as the Australian Sleddog Sports Association (ASSA) national championships are fought out.

The championships are being hosted by the Northern Exposure Gig Racing Club, who holds meets a couple of times a year at Girard but this is the first time a national comp has been held there. The club’s Elise Pike said the Tenterfield Endurance Riders Club campsite is an ideal base for the meet.

“The runs can start right from the campsite, so we don’t have to transport dogs to the start,” she said.

“It’s an awesome site with kitchen, power, drop toilets and showers.”

While many of the competitors in the 50-70 entries received from around Australia will be camping onsite, Miss Pike said others have booked accommodation at the Lunatic Hotel, in dormitory accommodation at the blueberry farm or at Rover Park. Some will also be traveling out from Tenterfield each day.

Miss Pike said it’s a great spectator sport, although by necessity conditions will be cool. The temperature must be less than 14 degrees for the races to take place, for the sake of the dogs. Heats run in the early morning, weather permitting, and again in the evening under lights. She said spectators are welcome to come to the base camp and see the teams take off or come in, with 6am on the Saturday or Sunday morning or 5pm Saturday afternoon prime viewing times.

Crews have made several visits to Girard to clear fire trails and make sure they’re ready for racing. Teams with one or two dogs tend to pull scooters which need only a single trail, but the bigger packs of dogs pull rigs which need a wider track, especially for overtaking.

The weekend will offer entrants a range of options including 1-8 dog dryland sledding classes, a canicross running event and bikejoring. There will be entrants of all capabilities from novice to professional and ages from peewee to adult.

Dogs on the day are not restricted to the expected Huskies and Malamutes. Miss Pike said any medium to large active dog is a potential sled-puller, and breeds represented include Border Collies and Shorthaired Pointers, which she said are hard to beat given their speed.

While the site will be busy on national competition weekend, Miss Pike encouraged anyone interested in taking up sledding to come out during one of the club’s other weekends and they can try it out. Members range from individuals to families wanting to get outdoors and spend some quality time with the pet dog, to the serious competitors who have 15 or more dogs and travel the country attending race events in a number of states.

Racing at Girard takes place Saturday, July 2 and Sunday, July 3. While this is anticipated to be a dryland event, the racing schedule also accommodates snow tracks.