The medal that the mayor wears on his coat is a National Defense Service medal. It is the oldest service medal that is still being issued.
Even though it was filmed during May in Maine, most of the snow had to be trucked in from the local ski resort and entire yards had snow shoveled onto them.
On second day of filming, a dogsled hit a pipe submerged in the snow and was cut in half. Stunt doubles were not hurt.
The coach makes reference to a "Hail Mary Pass" when speaking with the dog lady. The expression "Hail Mary Pass" originated with the Dallas Cowboys' Roger Staubach in 1975 after a playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings and would not have been used during the great depression.
The sidecar motorcycle ridden by the dog catchers is a modified Rokon (prounounced "Rock On") motorcycle. It is a 2-wheel drive motorcycle.