Youngsters ready for Willow Jr. 100

WILLOW — This weekend’s Willow Jr. 100 Sled Dog Race promises fun and experience for the youth mushers, said Christine Stitt, creator and promoter of the race.

The race starts today at 10 a.m. and has competitors ages 12 to 17. The mushers will start at Dream a Dream Bed and Breakfast and run 50 miles out to the halfway point, spending a mandatory eight= to 10-hour layover.

Saturday morning, the mushers will head back to the finish line.

Stitt believes the race provides youth a chance to get out there and have a taste of dog sledding competition without exposing them to unnecessary dangers.

“The kids are never alone within a quarter of mile and everybody is supervised with plenty of officials and parents,” Stitt siad. “It is a good time. We are catering to them because they are young and still learning adult traits, and that is why we are there to help.”

In fact, the kids do quite well, Still said.

Organizers expect the race to be close and provide an exciting and enjoyable time for competitors and observers.

“I think the winning time will be decided coming down the hill on the last leg of the race,” Stitt said. “It will be fun to see everything on Saturday, the racers will be fresh and ready to go, it should be a lot fun.”

With the recent snowfall, Stitt said the trail will be in excellent condition and allow for a great race.

“We get out before the race to mark the trails and help even out some of the drifts and get the trail ready to go,” she said.

That’s what Donna Quante is hoping for.

Quante’s Husky Productions is filming footage for a movie/documentary about the race, Stitt said.

The race should end between 12 and 3 p.m. on Saturday. An awards banquet will be held that evening at 6 p.m. at the Willow Community Center and is open to the public.

Contact Lanier Hutcheson at lanier.hutcheson@frontiersman.com or 352-2265.