|
|
|
|
|
|
A
Banbridge man is set to become the
first person from Ireland to compete
outside Ulster in a sled dog event
with his own Siberian huskies.
Sixty-year-old Michael Rolston will
travel to Asarna in Northern Sweden
next week to take part in the World
Championship Sled Dog race.
The local man will be representing
Ireland as one of only three teams
from the UK competing in the
prestigious event, which will see
around 150 teams from over 25
countries in Europe compete.
He has been racing Siberian Huskies
for over 10 years and won the
Scottish Championship in 2005/2006
winning all eight races in the
calendar.
Currently the owner of 26 dogs, he’s
been busy training all winter four
or five times a week to bring the
fitness level of his dogs up to
championship status.
Michael said that he first became
interested in sled dog racing around
15 years ago when he was given two
huskies as pets.
“These dogs really enjoy racing, it
is inbred in them to run, so I took
up racing.”
|
|
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
He found out more about
the sport through talking to other dog owners and general word of
mouth, and since then has competed in the mainland many times, as
the practice doesn’t take place in Northern Ireland.
In total, 12 dogs will be making the four-day journey to Sweden
travelling through Holland, Germany, Denmark on the way.
They are due to arrive next Monday and will spend a fortnight
training in preparation for the main races.
The three-day event, schedule for March 7, 8 and 9, will take the
form of a ten-mile sprint each day.And all the dogs have their own
pet passport so they can travel back to the UK after the event.
Michael said: “The dogs will do well and will reach speeds of 25mph
over their 10 mile sprint. The weak link will be me as I have never
raced on snow with a sled before. In the UK we always run with
three-wheeled rigs due to lack of snow.”
Admitting that the competition would be tough, he added: “We will be
racing against Scandinavian teams that spend half their training
season on sleds.
“But the dogs should rise to the challenge - they are good dogs.
It’s just that our training has been restricted because of the
weather since Christmas.
“Ideally we need cold and dry conditions in order for the dogs to
fully enjoy the run. These dogs are used to very low temperatures.”
He added: “We are looking forward to it, and have had a lot of
support from everyone at home. Anyone who’s heard about of it has
been quite interested.” |
|
| |
|
|
|
