SUNRIVER —

Dogs of different breeds and sizes took turns Saturday hauling beer kegs down a snow-covered track at the Sunriver Brewing Company K-9 Keg Pull.

A total of 160 dogs entered the keg-pull competition, the most ever at the event, which was canceled last year due to icy conditions. The dogs competed in six weight categories from 10 pounds and less hauling empty beer cans to 100 pounds and more hauling full-sized empty kegs.

Some dogs darted down the 150-foot track with ease, while others lost focus and turned back the other way. One Labrador was so excited, it broke free from its harness, leaving the empty keg at the starting line.

The keg-pull event, which started in 2014, raises money through $15 entry fees for the American Cancer Society’s Bark for Life campaign.

Zac Carter and his wife, Kendra, who were visiting from Tri-Cities, Washington, brought their 2-year-old German shepherd and malamute mix, Brodie.

The couple was not sure how Brodie would do in his first keg-pulling competition.

“He is part malamute, which are slow,” Zac Carter said. “But he’s going to have fun.”

Zac Carter’s plan was to run alongside Brodie while his wife called out from the finish line. But dog treats would be no help, Kendra Carter said.

“He doesn’t care about those things with a lot of people around,” she said.

The Carters’ plan worked perfectly, and Brodie took home the gold medal in the 100 pounds and more category.

Bend residents Karl and Michelle Berg had high hopes for their 2-year-old Bernese mountain dog, Sparks, who had a good run at the keg-pull event as a puppy two years ago.

“She is a draft dog,” Karl Berg said. “She is bred for this thing.”

Karl Berg, a real estate broker in Bend, tried his best to call for Sparks with a treat in his hand, but she froze at the starting line. He had to run down the track and, with the help of his wife, encourage Sparks across the finish line.

Ryan Smith, of Alpine Entertainment in Sunriver, which organized the keg-pull event, said his favorite part is watching the dog owners use different methods to coax their dogs down the track. Owners throw tennis balls, use squeaky toys or hide treats in their hands.

“The best part of about it is the relationship between the owner and the dog,” Smith said.

Bend resident Gatlin Neuman and girlfriend, Kelly Utley, planned to use a stick to get their 3-year-old black Labrador, Kane, across the finish line.

“She likes swimming for the stick so we hold her and then throw the stick,” Neuman, an accountant in Bend, said. “That usually gets her going.”

Kane, who competed in the keg-pull event for the third time Saturday, had a good run but did not finish in the top three, which earns a medal on a makeshift podium.

Neuman and Utley were with their friend, Mariel Robertson, who entered her 1-year-old yellow Labrador, Lucy, in the event.

Robertson, who does social media work in Bend, said all it takes to get Lucy down the track is a tennis ball and treats hidden in her coat pocket. Robertson’s strategy worked well, but Lucy’s time was not fast enough to earn a spot on the medal podium.

That, of course, did not bother the Labrador, who was excited well before her run, sensing the treats in Robertson’s pocket.

“Every moment is the best moment of her life,” Robertson said.

— Reporter: 541-617-7820, kspurr@bendbulletin.com