La Ronge Neckbone Sled Dog Race

A Mid-Distance Sled Dog Race: Stanley Mission to La Ronge to Weyakwin

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2009 Race

Wrap-Up Report

[February 26, 2009]

On the weekend of January 24 & 25, 2009, the 7th annual La Ronge Neckbone Sled Dog Race ran between Stanley Mission and Weyakwin. 10 mushers showed up at the old High School in Stanley Mission early on Saturday, January 24 to sign up for the race. Before sign up got under way, some of Stanley Mission’s best cooks, headed up by Theresa McLeod, fed the mushers and their handlers an excellent breakfast of pancakes, bacon and eggs. Neckbone Race Marshal Tom Charles, with help from his daughter Kim, then made sure everyone was signed up. He also gave a race briefing to explain the route and the race rules. Finally, before everyone headed off to hook up, Councillor Brian Hardlotte presented every musher with a very sharp looking Stanley Mission toque.

Teams left Stanley Mission at two-minute intervals decided by random draw. The first to go out was Dee Roy of Lloydminster, driving a team of 9 females and 1 male belonging to her Dad Gerry Walker. Dee and the other mushers had pretty good going for the first 10 km out of Stanley as the trail went through a series of portages and small lakes.  But Dee had a tough job ahead when she got to Russell Bay on Lac la Ronge and left the shelter of the bush behind. Race Marshall Tom Charles had marked a trail across Lac la Ronge with branches and had gone over it with a snow machine the day before, but the wind overnight had blown in Tom’s track and caused most of it to disappear. A west north-west wind was blowing at about 30 km per hour and gusting to 48. Dee’s dogs had to be tough-headed to face into the wind and make their way from one spruce branch to another.  Things were not a lot better for the teams that came behind, but they could at least follow the runner tracks that Dee had left behind.  Some teams had more trouble than some.  Both Sid Robinson and Tanya Tabel had some difficulty getting their teams to stay on the trail after Russell Bay opened into the main part of the lake.  And Stacey Neubuhr lost the trail to Nut Portage and ended up travelling to La Ronge via McGibbon Bay.  But eventually, all teams made it to the Day #1 finish line in front of the Band Office at La Ronge. 

At La Ronge, all the mushers had a hot chili supper served up by Jenna Charles and Doreen Laliberte at the old Kitsaki Hall next to the Band Office. It was nice to be out of the cold wind. When mushers had eaten, they headed out to feed their dogs and get ready for the next day.

Sunday, January 25, the teams started out from the Creighton junction to head on an 80-km journey to Weyakwin. The morning was cool at minus 29 degrees C., but, thankfully, the wind had almost died away. Tom Charles had left ahead of the teams with a snow machine, and there was now a good trail to follow.  From the Creighton junction, teams first travelled down the east side of Highway 2 to a point near the Pinehouse junction.  They then went east via "route 66" and then east across old Highway 169 to get to Molanosa Lake. They next headed back west to re-cross Highway 169, through what was the community of Molanosa (which has an unusual collection of abandoned cook stoves and cars scattered amid the trees), west across Montreal Lake and, finally, down an old fish haul trail to get to Weyakwin.

The Neckbone’s chief timer, Gill Gracie, reported that Dee Roy had the fastest time from the Creighton junction to Weyakwin, beating out her Dad Gerry by 28 seconds. However, as Gerry had been 9 minutes faster on Saturday, he was declared the overall winner. This was Gerry’s third win at the Neckbone.

At Weyakwin, community member Bob Nelson and his wife Marlene came out to see the dog teams. Bob was a serious sprint musher "back in the day." Marlene showed mushers an old photograph from the Prince Albert Winter Festival race where Bob is shown passing the late John Calvert and Franklin Carriere. Franklin was just a youngster in the picture!

When all the dogs were put away, Weyakwin Mayor Stella Brown and the community gave mushers a warm reception and a neckbone supper at the local hall. School principal Medric Thomas and his wife and fellow teacher, Linda Nelson, helped organize the food. They had also decorated the walls of the hall with colourful pictures of dog mushing that their students had drawn.  In appreciation of the students' support, the Neckbone presented Weyakwin's students with a box of books and other school supplies.  When everyone had eaten, Tom Charles and Sid Robinson presented plaques and cash awards to the Neckbone's top 3 mushers for 2009.  1st place went to Gerry Walker, 2nd place to Dee Roy and 3rd place to Bart de Marie.  The remaining 7 mushers were awarded cash based on their finishing position.

With the Neckbone is wrapped up for another year, several mushers began to look ahead to the Canadian Challenge set to start in Prince Albert on Wednesday, February 18.  And, a total of 7 mushers from the 2009 Neckbone did sign up for the Challenge.  Gerry Walker, Bart de Marie and Sid Robinson signed up for the Challenge's 12-dog event.  Ron Shaw, Dave Neubuhr, Tanya Table and Stacey Neubuhr signed up for the Challenge's 8-dog event.  All of these mushers were able to finish their Challenge race with Bart de Marie winning the 12-dog event and Tanya Tabel winning the 8-dog event.

The Neckbone's organizing committee is now making plans for the 2010 Neckbone!

Neckbone Organizing Committee

 

[January 21, 2009]

We can now confirm that the Neckbone's Day #1 breakfast, registration and mushers meeting will be held at the "old High School" in Stanley Mission.  This is the same location as last year.  The old High School is pretty easy to find as it is centrally located in Stanley.  After mushers have eaten and registered, they will move their dog trucks and trailers a short distance to the start line at the local Band Hall.  Teams will start from the Band Hall at intervals in an order determined by a draw at the mushers meeting.

Mushers will be able to stay at the old High School in Stanley if they arrive Friday night.  However, anyone wishing to do so are asked to call Tom Charles at (306) 425-2886 to make arrangements.

When mushers arrive in La Ronge on Saturday, they will finish on the lake ice a short distance from the Lac la Ronge Indian Band's main administration buildings.  There will be a chili supper at the old Kitsaki Hall right next door to the Band's administration buildings.  We are expecting all teams to be in before dark, so supper should be ready by about 6:00 p.m.

The La Ronge area has had some recent warm weather which has resulted in some settling of the snow and some icing.  However, the Environment Canada forecast for La Ronge indicates that the area should receive 5 to 10 cm of snow on Wednesday evening and another 2 to 4 cm of snow on Thursday.  Saturday and Sunday are expected to be sunny with a predicted high of minus 20 C. on Saturday and a predicted high of minus 14 C. on Sunday.  Way warmer than last year!

So far, we are expecting 11 teams at the Neckbone---Ron Shaw, Gerry Walker, Dee Walker, Colin Emerson, Bart de Marie, Stefaan de Marie, Dave Neubuhr, Stacey Neubuhr, Quincy Miller, Miriam Korner and Sid Robinson.  Lac la Ronge is a big lake, so we can still fit in a couple more teams!

 

[January 19, 2009]

We are just days away from the Neckbone start this coming Saturday, January 24.  Race Marshal Tom Charles has been working hard to keep things on track.  The trail has been marked, and the neckbones have been ordered for the wind-up supper.  Now we just have to get the dog teams to the Stanley Mission start line.

This year's trail promises to be an improvement over last year.  On Day #1, the trail will have more protection than before since it will stay in closer to the islands along the north shore of Lac la Ronge.  On Day #2, a new section of trail perhaps 6 or 7 kilometres long will allow teams to jump directly across Highway 969 en route to Molanosa Lake.  Last year, teams had to travel south along 969 for about 4 kilometres before turning east towards Molanosa Lake.  And, further south, when teams leave Molanosa Lake and recross Highway 969 towards the old community of Molanosa, they will find---thanks to Tom Charles---that many of the sharp turns in the trail have been straightened out.  We could use more snow on the trail, but there is still easily enough snow to race on.

The Challenge's trail boss, Cliff Jessup, has kindly provided us with copies of the Neckbone race trail.  We plan to have laminated copies of the trail available to hand out to mushers at the mushers meeting in Stanley Mission.  Something to study as you travel along.

Tomorrow, Tom Charles and Redmond Fox will leave Weyakwin with snow machines tomorrow morning and groom the trail back to La Ronge.  Then, in the last couple days, the trail north from La Ronge (the Day #1 trail) will get some finishing touches.

As a side note, we should mention that work on the new Challenge trail north from Sucker River to Missinipe has gone well this winter.  The Challenge work crews have now got the trail broken open the whole way.  The good news is that there is enough head clearance under the Lynx Creek bridge on the Stanley Mission road to allow teams to go under the bridge and avoid any actual crossing over the road.

We look forward to seeing mushers show up Saturday morning in Stanley Mission.  We will be able to confirm in the next day or two where mushers should meet for breakfast and registration.  In the meantime, for more information, you can call Tom Charles at (306) 425-2886 or Sid Robinson at (306) 425-2502.

[January 6, 2009]

Race Marshal Tom Charles has now finished breaking open the Neckbone (and Challenge) trail across the north end of Lac la Ronge.  In the days ahead, more work will be done to make sure the trail is packed and marked.

There have been some questions asked about the actual length of Day #1 of the Neckbone.  Based on measures taken off a 1:50,000 topo map and Google Earth, we can confirm that the total distance from Stanley Mission to the first day finish at La Ronge will be very close to 80 km.  From Stanley Mission the trail runs 10 km to where it comes to Russell Bay on Lac la Ronge.  it then runs another 44 km across the north end of Lac la Ronge to the community of Sucker River.  It then runs south 26 km to the La Ronge finish.  This totals 80 km.

We have had more inquiries from mushers interested in running the Neckbone.  Colin Emerson of Alberta is thinking about coming.  And both Stacey and Dave Neubuhr are also thinking about coming.

[December 31, 2008]

Neckbone organizers held a meeting on Sunday, December 21 to firm up plans for the 2009 Neckbone.  Organizers can confirm that the Neckbone will be held on the weekend of Saturday, January 24 & Sunday, January 25, 2009.

The Neckbone is sanctioned by the Gateway North Sled Dog Race Association as a lead-up to the Canadian Challenge which will start in Prince Albert on Wednesday, February 18.  It is felt that the 25 days between January 24 and February 18 should allow a reasonable break for mushers who want to enter both the Neckbone and the Challenge.

The Neckbone's race route will be essentially the same as last year.  For Day #1, teams will start at Stanley Mission on Saturday, January 24 at 10:00 a.m. and travel south across some small lakes and Lac la Ronge to the settlement of Sucker River and then on to the town of La Ronge.  The Day #1 distance will be 80 km.  On Day #2, teams will re-start about 30 km south of La Ronge (at the "Creighton junction" on Highway 2) and travel south on the Canadian Challenge trail to reach Weyakwin.  The Day #2 distance is 82 km.

The Neckbone's route will follow parts of the route to be followed by the Canadian Challenge.  This will help build up the Challenge Trail and also let mushers preview parts of the trail.

This year's route across the north part of Lac la Ronge will be slightly further north and somewhat more protected from the wind than last year's route.  The new trail follows a route that Vern Studer of La Ronge says was being used by trappers when he first came north in the 1930s.  It goes across a portage over the Williams Peninsula near Sucker River instead of going around the peninsula.  Tom Charles, Jim Bradfield and Quincy Miller have now cleared out an old portage over the peninsula.  Further work will continue in the days ahead.  Any parts of the trail on the lake will be marked with sticks or branches that should be easy to follow.

Thanks to the generous support of its sponsors, the Neckbone can confirm a modest increase to the 2009 purse, from $3,000 (last year) to $3,600.  The purse will be broken down as follows:  1st---$600, 2nd---$500, 3rd---$400, 4th---$350, 5th---$300, 6th---$250, 7th---$225, 8th---$200, 9th---$175---10th---$150, 11th---$125, 12th---$100, 13th---$75, 14th---$75, and 15th---$75.  Nobody will get rich from the Neckbone, but finishers can count on a little gas money.

The Neckbone will allow mushers to use GPS devices if they so wish.  Mushers are also being encouraged to bring a cell phone and give their cell phone numbers to the Race Marshal before the race.  Cell phone coverage is absent on parts of the route, but where it exists, it may help organizers find missing mushers.

The Neckbone does not require advance registration, but the organizers would like to know if you plan on coming.  We understand Irvin Wai will not be able to come to this year's race as he is busy getting ready for the Yukon Quest 300.  But we expect that Gerry Walker will be here, possibly with two teams.  Stefaan and Bart de Marie can be expected as well.  Ron Shaw of Alberta has called and says he may be able to attend.

For more information, mushers can contact Race Marshal Tom Charles at (306) 425-2886 or Sid Robinson at (306) 425-2502 or sid.hil@sasktel.net.

Neckbone Committee

 

 

2009 RACE INFORMATION

[December 31, 2008, 12:00 noon]

We still need to confirm the race start location in Stanley Mission.  It may be at the "old High School" or at the arena.  The exact location will be posted here in due course.  In any event, mushers should be at the start headquarters by 7:30 a.m. on the morning of Saturday, January 24.  Race registration and a breakfast will start at 7:30 a.m.  A mandatory mushers meeting will be held at 8:00 a.m.

There are no hotels in Stanley Mission, but there  is a chance we may be able to arrange sleeping space in Stanley for the evening of Friday, January 23.  If this is not possible, mushers will want to drive up from La Ronge early on the morning of Saturday, January 24.  It takes about 1 hour to drive the 80 km from La Ronge to Stanley.  The first 30 km is pavement, and then it is gravel.  The road is generally good, but it does have many twists and turns.  You have to take it easy.

Teams will start at 10:00 a.m. sharp on Saturday morning with teams going out at 2-minute intervals.  Start order will be decided at the mushers meeting.  We will likely be starting on the main street in front of the Band Hall.  Teams will run about a kilometre before leaving the street to head for the bush.  The street has a hard surface of snow and ice.  It should be good for sled runners.  But hooking down in the first kilometre might be hard.  We will try to have help available to stand on a brake in an emergency.

We will have a dog drop at Sucker River.  Right now, the plan would be to have dog handlers ready to pick up dropped dogs at Sucker River.  The Neckbone will not have much in the way of resources for looking after dogs left behind.  There are 2 entrances into Sucker River that lead east off Highway #2.  Be sure to take the entrance south of the bridge if you are going into the community.

The trail into La Ronge will go across Nut Bay and then over Nut Portage to the Campbell Channel.  This is a slight change from last year to avoid all road crossings coming into La Ronge town.  From Nut Portage on, there will be a main snow machine trail---as wide as Toronto's 401---leading to town.  The trail runs along the front of town.  Keep going in a westerly direction past the main downtown area to get to the finish line on the lake ice adjacent to old Kitsaki Hall near the Band's administration offices.  We plan to have some orange snow fence up on the lake to make the finish line visible from a distance.

Mushers will be on their own for supper and accommodation in La Ronge on Saturday evening.  That being said, we expect the old Kitsaki Hall will be open to serve finishing mushers something hot to eat and drink.  It is also likely that the Race Marshal will give a short evening race briefing for Day #2.

On Day #2, Sunday, January 25, we anticipate that teams will re-start about 30 km south of La Ronge at the junction of Highway 165 and Highway 2 (there will be lots of parking on Highway 165) and then take the Canadian Challenge trail south to Weyakwin.  The Day  #2 distance will be about 80 km.  We hope to have teams off Montreal Lake before dark and into Weyakwin in time for a neckbone supper.

Mushers can expect at least one dog drop on Day #2.  We will likely have a dog drop off point on old Highway 969 at a distance of 34 km into Day #2 (after 18 km down the east ditch of Highway 2 and another 14.5 km eastward on a bush trail).

Mushers will be given floor space for sleeping at the local hall in Weyakwin on the evening of Sunday, January 25 if they wish to get a fresh start for home on Monday morning.

Basic rules and race schedule for the Neckbone are as follows:

  • Mushers must be 16 years old to register.  Mushers under the age of 16 may be allowed to race if the Race Marshal, upon reviewing the musher's experience, decides the mushers has sufficient skills to finish the race safely.
  • Mushers must pay a race entry fee of $60, make a refundable $20 bib deposit, and sign a liability waiver to be officially entered in the race.  Waivers for mushers under the age of 18 must be signed by a parent or guardian.
  • Race registration will be in Stanley Mission (at a place still to be decided) on Saturday, January 24, starting at 7:30 a.m.  Coffee and muffins will be available during registration.
  • All mushers must be present for a mushers meeting to be held at 8:00 a.m. at Stanley Mission.
  • The race will start from Stanley Mission on Saturday, January 24, at 10:00 a.m. with mushers leaving at 2-minute intervals in an order determined by random draw.  The interval starts may be 2 teams at a time.
  • Mushers will be allowed to run from 6 to 10 dogs on their team.
  • No dogs can be added to a team after the official start.  Mushers will be allowed to drop dogs at Sucker River and La Ronge on Day #1 and at a point yet to be determined on Day #2.  Mushers must finish the race with at least 4 dogs still in harness.
  • Sleds or toboggans may be of any type, but they must be equipped with a working brake, sturdy drag mat,  at least one snow hook, and a sled bag capable of holding an injured dog.
  • Ganglines must have a cable core.
  • Mandatory equipment (to be with the musher at all times) will include a head lamp, knife, axe, matches or lighter, and cable cutters.  Mushers are encouraged to bring anything else that might help them survive a cold night out.  Travelling on lakes is a little different.  You can get lost.  We will find you eventually but when is an open question.
  • GPS devices will be allowed.  Mushers are also encouraged to bring cell phones or satellite phones for use in emergencies.  Mushers are warned that cell phone coverage is not always available on the route.
  • Leaving both Stanley Mission and the Day #2 re-start, mushers must have 500 grams of dog food and a set of booties for each dog on the team as well as 500 grams of human food.
  • When mushers reach La Ronge at the end of Day #1, their times will be recorded.
  • Mushers will overnight in La Ronge on Saturday, January 24 (mushers are responsible for their own accommodation).
  • Mushers will leave on Sunday, January 25, at 8:30 a.m. from Highway 165 south of La Ronge at intervals in reverse order of their Day #1 finish order and then race south to Weyakwin.
  • Finish times will be calculated by adding a musher's actual times from Day #1 and Day #2, i.e., the winner will be the musher with the fastest total time (after any time penalties have been taken into account).
  • A wind-up supper will be held in Weyakwin on Sunday, January 25 at 6:00 p.m.  Mushers must attend to collect any prize money offered.

In the past, the Neckbone has had the benefit of generous local support and sponsorship (please see sponsor page) which has allowed a modest purse to be offered to the top finishers.  We can  confirm a race purse of $3,600.  Purse details are set out on the "Race Purse" page.  In addition to the purse, plaques  will be awarded to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finishers.  The winner will also have his or her name engraved on the Neckbone race trophy, a trophy generously donated by Jim and Elaine Tomkins.

For more information, mushers can telephone  Race Marshal Tom Charles at (306) 425-2886 or Sid Robinson at (306) 425-2502.  Inquiries can also be sent to Sid Robinson by e-mail at sid.hil@sasktel.net.

Neckbone Race Committee

 

 

 

 

 

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