Cantery Sled Dog Club - Christchurch, New Zealand 
Canterbury Sled Dog Club
Dryland Sled Dog Racing
In Christchurch, since we rarely have snow in winter, all our racing and training is done on dryland, usually through forests and on four wheel drive tracks. Depending on how many dogs you have and what you enjoy, there is something for everyone, including:
- Rig Racing
- Scootering
- Bikejoring
- Canicross
- Junior Races
Rig Racing
Rig racing is the main dryland sled dog event. Teams of up to 8 dogs pull a 3 or 4 wheeled cart (called a rig). The distance raced depends on the number of dogs in the team. For example, six dogs will race between 7 and 15 kilometres. The more the dogs in team, the further and faster they can travel. A six dog team is capable of speeds up to over 40 kilometers per hour. The speed a dog team can maintain is very dependent on the weather conditions, with it ideally being low temperature and humidity. For the safety of the dogs, races are never run if the temperature is over 13 degrees Celsius. This is the main reason why even though we don't need snow, dryland sled dog racing is a winter sport.
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