MANITOUWADGE — Manitouwadge has announced a new event coming to Kiwissa Ski Hill in 2024 that will see snowmobile enthusiasts racing to the top.
The Township of Manitouwadge, in partnership with the Manitouwadge Skatepark Committee and Hill Climb Project Team, will be hosting the first annual Kiwissa Hill Climb Drag Race event on Feb. 17 and 18, 2024.
Cody Keough, president of the Skate Park Committee, said that the idea for the event originally came from fundraising plans for the Manitouwadge skate park.
“We ended up reaching our financial goal to complete the project before that event took place,” he said.
“But even after the fact we had completed the skate park, we were still in the motion of bringing this fundraiser to life just for the community as well as, you know, there's still some things that completed the skate park like an area of sod grass to be installed, we're working toward a shade structure, things of that nature.”
Keough said that the response back from the community following the announcement was overwhelmingly positive and he hopes that the excitement of the event will draw in crowds.
“We had done some studies on how many snow machines that we can put through for the event and we've settled on 200 snow machines, so with two at a time in a drag race format, we'll be able to put 200 units through the race event itself,” he said.
“Also, we plan on having some type of beer garden, a DJ and as well as food services there, so it's going to be, you know, open to spectators to come in, enjoy a beer, you know and enjoy the event.
A majority of the funds raised during the 2024 event will be going toward the building of the new chalet at Kiwissa Ski Hill and the rest will go to support skate park maintenance.
Further information about the event will be coming in the fall season of 2023 and residents and visitors are advised to keep an eye out on the township’s website.
