As part of North Lake Tahoe’s SnowFest 2016, the 12th annual I-Did-A-Run event took place on March 13 at Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area.

Dogs of all shapes and sizes pulled out all the stops to compete in this on-snow dog pull race with proceeds from raffle sales raising $1,671 for the Humane Society of Truckee-Tahoe. Dogs raced against the clock pulling covered wagon sleds over a snow-covered course. Prizes were awarded to the speediest finishers among four weight divisions.

In total, 38 dogs ranging in age from 5 months to 15 years old raced for the title:

·         Division 1 (0-25 pounds) winner: Raina, an American Cocker Spaniel, at 2.57 seconds, owner: Dean Eppley. Of interest, Raina was the second oldest dog that competed in this year’s event at approximately age 14.

·         Division 2 (26-50 pounds) winner: Sascha, a mixed breed adopted from the Humane Society, at 2.79 seconds, owner: Hannah Grey. Of interest, Sascha was the youngest race winner this year at age 1.

·         Division 3 (51-75 pounds) winner: Nikolai, a Siberian Husky, at 2.40 seconds, owner: Hannah Gray. Of interest, Nikolai was last year’s fastest dog and overall event winner.

·         Division 4 (76+ pounds) winner: Nellie, a Golden Retriever, at 3.11 seconds, owner: Melissa and PJ Madigan. Of interest, Nellie was one of three Golden Retrievers to race and the only winner for her breed.

The overall winner was the second consecutive year was Nikolai, owned by Hannah Grey of Dayton. In addition to being the fastest dog and overall winner for two years, Nikolai also competed as a puppy in 2014, taking first place in division 1.