One by one, the aloof dogs would stand there seemingly wondering what was being asked of them.

Every few turns, the dog bolted in the wrong direction.

When the dog got it right, and ran toward its owner, the chord attached to its harness would tighten in a jerk.

Such was the scene of the freight pull event in the Firstmate Extreme Summer Freight Pull and Cadence Cycle Hot Hounds dryland dog races at Drag ‘N' Fly Kennels on Sunday.

Jonathan Lucas' Rottweilers stole the show.

In the over 60-pound class, Asha pulled a staggering 700 lb – or 15 bags of Firstmate Extreme Dog Food piled atop a trolley – in six seconds. Lucas' other Rottweiler, Puck, pulled the same weight in 15 seconds.

Even Lucas was surprised with the effort of his dogs.

"That was a record. They never pulled that in training. That's why I stopped, because they would have kept going. I thought, ‘I don't want to damage them, and I want them to finish knowing they've won, knowing they've pulled.' You don't really want them to have to stop and sit down and finally not do it,” Lucas said.

The next freight pull will not be held until December. The third freight pull of the season will be the held in the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous. Sunday's was the only dryland freight pull.

The first summer dog races of the season attracted nearly 20 teams competing over five categories.

Events included the over 60-lb and under 60-lb freight pull, the canicross, one mile, one dog and two mile, two-four dog races.

Lucas finished fourth in the two-mile run with a time of eight minutes even.

On a scooter, he pointed out.

"That's a good trail for a scooter. I was fourth, and second, third and fourth were split by five seconds, so I wasn't that far off.”

Darryl Sheepway took first with a time of seven minutes, 43 seconds. Jean-Marc Champeval finished in 7:55 and Alex Rochat came in in 7:58.

"I was a little surprised that I came out on top,” Sheepway said. "I had a couple not perfect passes that I thought would have cost me some time, but we still ended up with the fastest time overall. But not by much.”

The trail, which ran along the Old Alaska Highway, involved head-on passing in all events.

Lucas said the narrow width of the trail and head-on passing are great experience for dogs.

"For new people that can be quite intimidating, because a lot of races are loops, so you don't really have much passing. In our races, we try to emphasize the passing.”

Sheepway agreed.

"If everything goes well you can win a race, and if you have one bad pass or one bad tangle in a race that's so short, it's very easy for teams behind to catch up.”

Lucas added the event also drew many first-timers.

"It was a good turn-out, a lot of new people, faces we haven't seen before, which is always good to see,” Lucas said, adding that he still has the same concerns as newcomers had Sunday.

Namely the flies and the temperament of the dogs.

"I have that as well and I've been racing for years,” Lucas said. "It's just that you're never quite sure how your dog is going to behave. You're pretty sure, but you never know what's going to happen.”

Sheepway knows that feeling.

As a competitor and a board member, he has been a mainstay at the races.

"It was good to see some fresh faces at one of our events,” Sheepway said. "It's great to see more interest in our association, in our events and in our sport. It's good to see it growing.”

Competitors met after the races for a barbecue.

"We planned it to be a social event for dogs and people, and it turned out to be excellent for both,” Lucas said.

Aside from Firstmate Extreme Dog Food, prize sponsors included Icy Waters Arctic Charr, Aurora Booties and Muktuck Adventures.

The race was put on by the Dog Powered Sports Association of the Yukon.

The next Hot Hounds is set to be held in the Ibex Valley off Creek Road at 5 p.m. on Aug. 14.

Rochat will host the races – which will mirror the format of Sunday's event, minus the freight pull – for the first time.

For more details on the upcoming Hot Hounds, visit www.dpsay.wordpress.com.

Complete results from Sunday are as follows:

Freight Pull

Under 60 pounds

1. Cash and Heather Desmaris, 220 lb in 6 seconds

2. Grizzly and Amil Dupuis-Rossi 140 lb in 15 seconds

Over 60 pounds

1. Asha and Jonathan Lucas, 700 lb in 9 seconds

2. Puck and Jonathan Lucas, 700 lb in 15 seconds

Canicross

1. Adam Robinson, 5:51

2. Antoine LeBlanc, 7:12

3. Amelie Janin, 7:38

1 mile, 1 dog

1. Amil Dupuis-Rossi, 4:44

2. Deb Knight, 5:16

3. Darryl Sheepway, 6:17

4. Amelie Janin, 7:40

2 mile, 2-4 dog

1. Darryl Sheepway, 7:43

2. Jean-Marc Champeval, 7:55

3. Alex Rochat, 7:58

4. Jonathan Lucas, 8:00

5. Barb Anderson, 9:08

6. Adam Robinson, 9:42

7. Rhonda Kotelko, 14:02

8. Amelie Janin, 17:34