Local mushers represented the Southeast well at this year's Vita and Area Winter Festival.

Dave Hochman is a musher from the St. Malo area and a member of the fundraising committee for the Vita and Area Winter Festival. He came in 4th of 12 in both the 6-dog and 10-dog categories and says it was exciting to be in the mix.

"We had entries from all over North America, from Quebec to Wisconsin, Minnesota, Saskatchewan so to place highly with those guys is quite an accomplishment."

Loretta Dykun lives in Thompson but many of her family members live in the Vita area and when she was growing up she spent many summers in Vita. She came in 3rd in the 6-dog category and say it was really neat to race in front of her family.

"It is exciting that my mom and dad were there and my nieces and nephews were out there visiting and helping. My sister was helping at the start line. A lot of people came through and were looking at the dogs and I invited them to come and touch the dogs and talk a little bit about them and when people engage the race part goes to a whole new level because you are a little more connected and I like that about Vita."

Both sled dogs and their owners enjoy the race

Hochman says each category raced the same route on Saturday and Sunday and the winners are decided by combining the times from both days. He says they are very pleased with how everything unfolded.

"The whole weekend was just perfect. It would have been nice to be a little warmer but I was amazed at how many spectators we actually had considering the cold. The other events during the carnival were very busy as well."

Hochman says the race route they chose often followed roads which meant it was very easy for spectators to follow the race. He notes they hope to continue growing the Vita and Area Winter Festival over the next few years.