A new New Year's tradition?

| December 30, 2016 4:00 AM

Lakeside offers a fun new way to end the old year or start the new one as the Flathead Lake Skijoring Championships kick off what we hope will be a long tradition. The new event will be held Saturday, Dec. 31, and Sunday, Jan. 1, on a private airstrip at the Lakeside Club south of Lakeside. Skijoring, in case you don’t know, is a fantastic event that combines horsemanship and skiing in a wild ride that makes for a fun spectator sport.

This is the first event of the Skijoring America’s 2017 winter event schedule, which includes competitions in New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana, where competitors compete for point series championships at sanctioned events. Added money to the Lakeside purse is estimated at $25,000, projected to make it the biggest combined purse ever in skijoring.

Access to the Lakeside Club race site is directly off U.S. 93, approximately one mile south of Lakeside. Parking is free and admission to the event is $5 per person, with children age 12 and under admitted free. Food and bar concessions will be available on site.

Competition starts at 12:30 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday and will finish at about 3 p.m. And don’t worry, if you get hooked on skijoring, you don’t have to travel out of state to see your next event. The Whitefish World Invitational Skijoring competition is scheduled to be held later in January! ————————————————

•Time to bundle up!

Another reason to attend the skijoring competition this weekend is that it may be your last chance to enjoy an outdoor activity for a week or more. Saturday’s weather is expected to be seasonable and partly sunny, and Sunday could see several inches of snow, but come Monday of next week, temperatures are expected to dip below zero for four or five days. Wind chill will add to the problem, so while you are making plans for the new year you might want to get out your long johns, an extra sweater and a warm cap. Don’t forget to plan for extra attention for your pets and for your elderly friends and neighbors who may bot be able to get out.