106th Ashton Dog Derby kicks off

ASHTON, Idaho (KIFI) - Mushers gathered together at the annual Ashton Dog Derby on Friday to race their mushers across the snow. On Friday, there were four, six, eight and even 14 dog sled teams that pushed from start to finish more than 22 miles of terrain. There were also junior teams who traveled three miles around the town.

This is the 106th year for the Ashton Dog Derby. The derby did have some years off in the late 80's and early 90's due to staffing issues, but overall, the derby has been running strong for the past couple of years. At first, the derby started back in 1917 as traders wanted to race each other from Ashton to Yellowstone in the winter. The rest is history.

The mushers have enjoyed two good changes to this year's course compared to the one they traveled on last year. First, the race now starts in the center of town. Last year, they started around Mesa Falls since there wasn't enough snow in the fields. Secondly, the snowpack and cold weather has made the trails almost perfect for the mushers. It's a thick enough snowpack for the dogs to not slip too much into the deep snow.

The action for the Ashton Dog Derby continues for one more day on Saturday. It all starts back in the center of Ashton on Main Street at 8:30 a.m.