GREENVILLE — Across the country, the American Red Cross responds to an emergency every eight minutes.

12,000 miles. For some people, long-distance hiking becomes a serious lifestyle. Ron Dobra is one of those people.

The 11th annual Wilderness Sled Dog Race will take place Saturday, Feb. 3 in the forested mountain trails of the Moosehead Lake region. One of only three long-distance races in New England, the Wilderness Race will begin and end at Leisure Life Resort. A 70-mile race begins at 9 a.m. and a 36-mile race is also held beginning at 10 a.m.

Upcoming events around the region

On Saturday, Jan. 27 the town of Brownville and the Maine Highlands Sled Dog Club will present the ninth annual Brownville-KI and Beyond Sled Dog Race & Dog Days of Winter event. The activities take place at and around Railroad Avenue, and the event continues on Sunday, Jan. 28.

From now through the end of March, the Kiwanis clubs in your town are working with local redemption centers to turn returnable bottles and cans into cash that will go directly to the Good Shepard Food Bank so that Maine people affected by natural disasters can feed their families a little easier. Their fundraising goal is just $2,500, and they hope to raise much more from the good-hearted contributors in our towns.

The Foxcroft Academy indoor track and field team was in action on Jan. 15 in a Penobscot Valley Conference/Eastern Maine Indoor Track League meet -- rescheduled from two days prior due to the weather -- at the University of Maine. Both Pony teams would finish sixth among six schools taking part.

The public is invited to join the Natural Resource Education Center (NREC) and Maine’s favorite NASCAR driver/analyst Ricky Craven for a “Wild and Tame Dinner.” Come on over to the Bartley’s Event Center on Pritham Avenue from 4-7 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 27.

Last July, I wrote a column that implored you to ignore fundraising reports and polls in the gubernatorial contest. Today is your first test to see whether you listened or not.

Some Republicans, it appears, suffer from situational hearing impairment. Present in a room, listening to an audio tape, reacting to a reporter’s questions, members of the Republican Party aren’t able to hear clearly -- at least if they’re to be believed.