The huskies' howls will signal the start of the 20th Wanaka Sled Dog Festival tomorrow.
Southern Regions Sled Dog Club race secretary Sarah Campbell said the four-day festival at the Snow Farm on the Pisa Range near Wanaka begins at 4.30pm tomorrow.
The public could watch the racing for free, she said.
''Bring your earplugs because it gets really noisy,'' she warned spectators.
At the start line, the dogs ''bark, talk and jump'' as they were eager to race.
The first sled dog snow race was held in New Zealand in 1991 and it was held at different skifields.
From 1996, the event had been held at Snow Farm and the event was named Wanaka Sled Dog Festival.
For its 20th anniversary, the NZ Federation of Sled Dog Sports has given the event New Zealand Snow Championship status.
The festival was the only dog snow race in New Zealand. Many suitable areas in the North Island were national parks, areas where dogs could not enter.
The pristine groomed trails in Snow Farm were among the best in the world for dog sledding, she said.
''We are really lucky.''
At the festival, 32 entrants, or ''mushers'', would be racing about 120 dogs.
The teams ranged from six-dog sled teams to single-dog skijoring teams.
The event was the only opportunity for mushers in New Zealand to race on the snow with sleds and skis.
In New Zealand, dogs normally raced on dryland in forests, using wheeled rigs and scooters,'' Mrs Campbell said.
The mushers at the Wanaka festival were from across New Zealand and Australia.
Festival musher Chris Smith, of Sydney, said he had been racing sled dogs for 18 years, in countries including Australia, Canada and Alaska, racing up to 16 dogs.
He was racing at the festival for the first time and would race a team of three Dunedin dogs - Indy, Stig and Polar.
''I always take the opportunity to get on a sled behind a team of dogs - it's always fun.''
