Ok, Friday November 4th @ 10:30 AM we promised some off-the-charts news, didn’t we?!?
However, the something-something we are about to share first comes with a challenge! Ready? How fast can you say SCSDS? Try it again! Now faster! Do you have any idea what this acronym stands for? Do you know what you have just said, spelled-out? Could it be Sally Can’t Sing Down State?
Look, as far as we are concerned, Sally can sing, dance, or do whatever, anywhere she wants to. Actually, she can even help us do this unveil! So without any further ado; go ahead Sally, pull back the curtain!
And so… the Tahquamenon Country Sled Dog Race and the The UP200, Midnight Run, and Jack Pine 30 are teaming-UP with CopperDog to bring you, musher and fan, a brand-new triple-event most-adventurous greatest-challenge taking place in all three regions of Superiorland!! It is with the uttermost excitement and joy that these awesome organizations present you the;
You may have guessed it, a multi-race point-based quest in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula!!! Is this cool or what?? Always reinvent-or-die are words we live by!! This series will be as hardy and as defiant as our snowy winters, with mushers having to do three races in less than two months time!! And it all comes with pretty simple rules; mushers must compete in, -AND- complete, three events. They are as follows;
Eastern Region – Newberry (event #1);
10-dog TC – January 7th-&-8th, 2023
Central Region – Marquette (event #2);
12-dog UP200 -OR- 8-dog MNR – February 16th-to-20th, 2023
Western Region – Calumet (event #3);
10-dog CD150 -OR- 8-dog CD80 – March 3rd-to-5th, 2023
For the inaugural year of this challenge, the three institutions have already committed to donating $1,000 each for a purse totaling $3,000. We hope this is just the start of “something-grand” something “world-class” that will always showcase the determination, opportunity, beauty, and history of a place many of us call home – and all while supporting and advancing the sport of sled dog racing. We are driven by the enrichment, development, and vitality of our communities, natural resources, and trails systems. It’s our backbone. With that, the 2023 purse-breakdown, as of today mind you ??, is;
First place; $1,500
Second place; $1,000
Third place; $500
The “Superior Crown” will use a weighted point system that exponentially benefits mushers finishing closer to first place and at the same time ensuring great competition for teams that are battling for the same position independent of where they are relative to first.
Please note the difference in points between the 12-dog, 10-dog, and 8-dog events (see pic below). For simplicity only first through 15th are shown – but the point system applies if there are 15, 51, or 1,551 teams.
The musher with the least amount of points will be crowned the 2023 Superior Crown Sled Dog Series Champion!!! It is also our intent that all participants that complete their three events in the series will receive an unique commemorative patch only available to mushers!! Can you say FINISHER?? It will be a dandy; the design is already in its final stages!
Registration for the CD150, CD80, UP200, and MNR are currently open, including for races not part of the SCSDS!!
Registration for all TC events open on the 15th of November – 12 days from now!! Races already full? Get on the waiting list, there is a very good chance you will still be able to participate! Keeping in mind as well that the UP200 is a qualifier for “The Last Great Race” – The Iditarod in Alaska.
As always, because we can’t say this enough; hats off to our communities across the three regions of da Yoop, the fans, the volunteers, the sponsors, the mushers, and the dogs… Without you we are nothing. Again, thank you!
Here is hoping you are as excited as we are about all this!! Make sure to share this spectacular news with friends and family because this coming winter will be one for the books!!See you down the trail! We absolutely can’t wait!!