DETROIT LAKES — Deb Knutson and her husband Jim drove into Detroit Lakes on Sunday, July 10, 2022 for the Northwest Water Carnival Pup Plunge only to find out it had been canceled.
The two decided to let their rescue black lab-mix, Reba, and their 13-year-old golden retriever Carly have a few dock jumps all the same.
“We went to make our own fun and more people with dogs came,” Knutson said. “They joined us and then we heard it was back on.”
Co-admiral Kacey Fetzer said the heavy rain storms that came through the city caused some events to be rescheduled. When they saw people had come out for the Pup Plunge, they decided to hold it.
As thunder rolled to the north, the dogs lined up and took their turns. Each dog was given two jumps with the total distances added to make the final score.
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After 13 pups plunged, a chocolate lab named Lincoln took top honors. The three-year-old pup returned to defend his title, as he also won last year.
“We heard it was canceled, so we went home,” said Jon Yocom, Lincoln’s owner. “Then we got the call that it was back on, so we came back.”
Yocum and Lincoln do a fair amount of hunting, but don’t train for dock jumping. Luckily, Lincoln really loves his Dokken training toy that he has been fetching since a pup.
“We’ll be back next year,” Yocum said.
After two jumps, Lincoln had cleared 42 feet. In second place was Aspen, who cleared 41 feet in two jumps.
Aspen’s owner, Lori Blonigan, made it a family affair. In addition to Aspen, two of her pups from a recent litter were there, as was the proud pop. The hunting dog also earned the longest jump title by hitting 23 feet.
Third went to Olive who had two jumps that totaled 38 feet.
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