UP 200 Dog Sled Race -- Post 1

This weekend is the annual UP 200 Dog Sled Race.  I did open the museum, which required heating the building as well as unpacking product from the last show.  Since the checkpoint is immediately in front of the museum and there are a couple of hundred people who watch the teams come and go, it seems to make sense that I open.  I was going to just open from noon to 3:00, but I ended up opening from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.  Sales were low and probably barely paid the heat bill, so in future years I'll have to decide if the good will earned by those who came into the museum is worth it. 

Here is the view of the check point taken from the museum's gift shop.

 

 



Before the teams arrived, their support staffs pulled in.  The deep snow delayed the arrival.  In some years the teams have started arriving in early morning.  This year, the first team pulled in at 1:15 in the afternoon.  It must have been a long night on the trail between Marquette and Grand Marais.

 

People started to gather....

 

 

 

 

 

Excitement built as the first musher arrived.

 

 

The snowmobiles are stopped when ever there is a dog sled team in the area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Each dog is checked by a veterinarian to make sure they are OK to continue.