CARRIE JONES

NOV 11, 2023

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BAR HARBOR—Nobody was resting on the job at the Bar Harbor Bed Races had plenty of excitement Saturday morning with lost wheels, face plants, and missed stops as bed racing teams of four (plus one screaming rider) competed for the honor of the fastest bed runners of 2023.

Crowds gathered on the sidewalk on Cottage Street. People leaned out of windows. Others crept further onto the short race route as local teams vied for the best time.

“This,” said a visitor from Pennsylvania as he leaned against the barricade halfway down the Cottage Street race route, “is amazing.”

The woman with him nodded. “Bar Harbor . . . Bar Harbor is amazing.”

And so were the teams of racers. After three dominating heats, the Acadia Youth Sports team of Jeremy and Dean Dougherty, Peter and Henry Hastings and Elizbeth Bunker. Smooth transitions, fast feet, and a need to reclaim the title fueled the team to its time of 38.06 seconds.

Second place went to the Bar Harbor Inn and Spa, which Dougherty manages and has run with before. The team rushed into a close second with a time of 39.81 in the final heat. That, Dougherty said, was going to just fire them up even more to topple AYS next year and bring the inn a win.

Last year, the Bed Subcommittee’s time of 37.15 seconds earned first place, and with a time of 40 seconds, the Bar Harbor Inn and Spa came in second.

The Chamber honored veterans just before the race began. Music blared as each team raced. Spectators watched from the rooftops and out second-story windows as teams switched sides (as mandated) throughout the race route at designated spots.

Side Street Cafe’s General Manager and Bar Harbor Chamber Board President Bo Jennings emceed the multi-heat, multi-bed race. Chris Popper of Townsquare Media normally covers the race, but was in Bangor for the MDI Trojans State Football Championship game, which began at 11 p.m., just when the races ended.

The annual race is part of Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce’s Early Bird Pajama Sale.

It’s the first bed races for Everal Eaton, the chamber’s executive who was hired last year. Eaton manned the halfway mark, looking for penalties with other volunteers. Aubrie Pool organized the event with the Chamber’s team.

The teams competing were:

• Bangor Savings Buccaneers
• Bar Harbor Inn and Spa
• Grinches n’ Cinches
• Camp Beech Cliff Slumberjacks
• Faster Than Rising Rates (First National Bank)
• Yosemite Trekkers
• The Inn on Mount Desert
• Supreme Bed Fellows
• Acadia Youth Sports
• Rodick St. Rollers
• The Lumberjacks and Babe
• The Inn on Mount Desert

All photos by Carrie Jones and Shaun Farrar. Disclosure: I also volunteered for the event while taking photos.

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