Some of our region's most talented and versatile athletes are the waiters and waitresses who serve your food and drink in this area's restaurants and taverns all year round.

See them strut their stuff in the 8th Annual Server's Challenge, held at 3pm sharp on Friday, August 20th near the Entertainment Tent. Teams of servers try to be the first to negotiate a winding course that challenges their speed, agility and balance in a light-hearted competition for the coveted traveling trophy and bragging rights for next year.

2009 Server's Challenge winner was The Perry Hotel. Get your application right here.

Spectators truly add the spice to this event and are encouraged to join in by cheering on their favorite watering hole's hard working crew. For more information call the Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce at (231) 347-4150.

Just how long does it take to cross the Bay from Harbor Springs to Petoskey via good old-fashioned manpower? Find out by entering the annual Jiimaan Challenge sponsored by the Odawa Casino Resort and Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians.

Starting in Harbor Springs at Zoll Street Park at 8 am on Saturday, August 21, participants will paddle canoes, kayaks or other human-powered craft across the bay to finish at Festival Place, inside the breakwater in Petoskey. Racers compete in three categories, single, two-person and open (three or more paddlers) and there are both amateur and professional categories.

Entry forms are available here, through the Petoskey Chamber of Commerce (231) 347-4150, or through the Odawa Casino Resort at (877) 442-6464.