Organizers of the McCall Winter Carnival are adding to the region's offering of sled dog races.

The inaugural McCall Ultra Sled Dog Challenge will be held during the weeklong celebration in late January.

The event kicks off with a ceremonial start Jan. 28 that will give spectators a chance to meet and interact with the mushers and their dogs. The real racing begins Jan. 29 and will follow a 200-mile course that winds its way through Valley County, following groomed snowmobile trails there.

"We designed the course with checkpoints that are accessible by the road system and next to the communities so they get maximum involvement," said organizer Jerry Wortly of New Meadows.

Checkpoints will be established near Donnelly, Cascade and Smiths Ferry. Additional information on the course and the event is available at www.mccallultrachallenge.org.

The course is expected to take 36 to 48 hours to complete the race, which is a qualifying event for Alaska's Iditarod in March.

Wortly has volunteered as a pilot for the Iditarod for the past 11 years and said race officials and veterinarians who will work the McCall race are all Iditarod veterans.

Wortly attended last year's Winter Carnival and took in the "Monster Dog Pull," where dogs pull light sleds for a short distance. There he thought, "Why don't we bring a real dog sled race here?" He worked with Dave Looney, another Iditarod pilot, to put the race together. They are still seeking volunteers who can sign up on the website.

The race will join the Eagle Cap Extreme based out of the Wallowa Valley in northeast Oregon as a regional sled dog race.

The Eagle Cap Extreme, also an Iditarod qualifier, will be held Jan. 18. Both races feature a maximum of 12 dog teams.

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