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Retracing history, sled dog racers last weekend challenged the Red River between Halstad and Grand Forks.

Three teams of 12 dogs each ran the 154-mile round-trip race as part of the Red River Sled Dog Derby.

En route to Grand Forks and back to Halstad the sled dog racers stopped at Frog Point on the Red.

More than 100 spectators were waiting for the sled dog teams at Belmont Park Saturday. The race from Grand Forks to Halstad was completed Sunday. 

Friends of the three teams watched the race Saturday from the bridges at Shelly and Nielsville.

The race retraces the history of sled dog travel on the Red River from its fur trade era to the 1917 Winnipeg to St. Paul, Minn. Dog Derby sponsored by the Great Northern Railroad and the St. Paul Winter Carnival.

Dr. John Reichert, experienced sled dog race veterinarian, coordinated the team of veterinarians that followed the weekend race.

Competing in the race were Todd Lerol, Grafton, Nancy Johnson, Devils Lake, and Don Galloway, Makinen, Minn. Nancy Yoshida, Grand Forks, also had a dog sled team on the Red near Belmont Park.

Yoshida, who regularly runs her team of dogs on the Red, explained the art of sled dog racing to the crowd at Frog Point Saturday.

Teams left Halstad Saturday at 9:05 a.m.

Galloway crossed the finish line Sunday at Halstad in a time of 16:10.54. Johnson was second and Lerol third.

The winning team received a $1,000 cash prize.

Dr. Reichert commended the teams and handlers for their care of the dogs during the two-day race.

Organizers said the Red River Sled Dog Race was a success. They’d like to do it again next year, according to Lerol

“That’s the plan.”