Alaska News

Bribery is the name of the game at the All-Alaskan pig race

Bribery is the name of the game at the All-Alaskan pig race at the Ventura County Fair in Ventura, Calif. the Ventura County Star reports.

The race, started by Bart Noll 26 years ago in Fairbanks, Alaska, draws a crowd with the promise of adorable little pigs sprinting down a horseshoe-shaped track and bounding over obstacles in order to get to the precious trough that awaits them at the finish line.

"This is why I come," Michael Harris, of Ventura told the Ventura County Star. "This is the star attraction of the whole fair. You can't keep a straight face in a pig race."

Noll, the emcee of the race, is now based out of Eugene, Ore., along with his pigs. Noll's secret of managing a successful pig race is simple. "These guys get really excited over sweets, and chocolate chip cookies are the bribe of choice this week," he told the Ventura County Star.

From the Ventura County Star:

As Noll set up a huge hurdle about four times the height of the pigs, it was time for Soapy Smith [a black American mini hog] in the orange vest to hog the limelight…

…As Noll whipped the spectators into a frenzy, encouraging them to cheer on Soapy Smith, the small black pig raced over the first hurdle, rounded the turn and then dashed through a hidden door at the bottom of the huge hurdle as everyone laughed.

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Read more.

Check out the adorable pig-racing photo gallery, here.

Craig Medred

Craig Medred is a former writer for the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2015.

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