Sandpoint, ID

Eichardts Keg Pull

Each year during the winter carnival Eichardt’s holds it’s annual K-9 Keg Pull. This was the first year I had gone, but I have always wanted to go, I just had never made it to the event. The Keg Pull starts at 10am, so my friends and I showed up about 10 minutes early. We found a parking spot near the hospital and made our way over to the parking lot behind Eichardt’s, where the keg pull was being held. There were several dogs and their owners along with spectators, human and canine alike, lining the soon to be track that ran all the way from the Bank of America parking lot to the end of the Sandpoint Title’s parking lot (or the old library for any of you old timers reading this!).

Although there were a lot of people we still had a front row view. Empty kegs with a ribbon outlined the track for the dogs, keeping the spectators back. We were all given a warning by the commentator to keep back as the dogs go by as the kegs can get a little out of control and they did not want anyone to get hurt. 

Eichardts Keg Pull

As we eagerly awaited the start of the event we stood admiring all the different kinds of dogs, from chihuahuas and bulldogs to St Bernards and Berneses, the dog size ran the gauntlet. I was interested to see how the smaller dogs were going to be pulling these kegs, since a keg is not only much larger than the dog but also out weighs the dog by a lot. I imagined it would look a lot like the World’s Strongest Man competition, when the guy is all harnessed up pulling the bus down the track. Luckily for these smaller dogs Eichardt’s had something else in mind. For the smallest dogs, they would pull an empty beer can. The next larger dog would get a Heineken mini keg. Medium sized dogs pulled a sixth barrel keg and the largest dogs pulled a half barrel keg.

Last Years Winner - Eichardts Annual Keg Pull

The keg pull is quite a spectacle for sure and totally worth checking it out. The humor of it is almost unbearable as you stand there watching the dogs try to figure out what the heck is going on and why their owners are trying to get them to run down this track with a huge silver thing attached to them. Some of the dogs found little interest in this and plopped themselves down looking at their owners like “what is wrong with you”. The dogs that did compete were often found looking behind them as the keg “chased” them or had to be convinced with a treat to get them to run down the track. Some of the dogs you could tell were veterans and had no problem pulling the keg. Last years winner competed again this year and put on quite a show for everyone as she did not stop once, unlike many of the other dogs as they were more interested in getting petted on the sidelines than dragging the heavy keg down to the finish line.

This dog took a breather during his keg pull. This dog started out great, but later stopped near the finish line for a few pets

I think my favorite keg pullers were the smaller dogs. Although it was not as impressive since it was just a beer can, but when you see a chihuahua dressed in a fur collar hot pink jacket dragging a beer can behind it you can not help but laugh! The keg pull is an annual event and is held by Eichardt’s usually during the winter carnival. If you would like to enter your dog in the event you can sign up that day for $5, with all the money being donated to the local animal shelter. Remember it starts at 10am, but get there a little early to get a good spot to watch. Eichardt’s is located at 212 Cedar Street and the keg pull is held in the alley behind Eichardt’s.

This dog had a great start but got distracted near the finish line with a few pets