Hooked on huskies: the ultimate athlete

 The harder the conditions get the more they like it — sled dogs might just be the ultimate animal athlete.

Imagine a race over 1850km — the distance from Invercargill to Whangarei — a 10 to 17-day grind for the mushers and their dog teams as they try to conquer Alaska's icy mountain ranges, desolate tundra and frozen coastlines.

It's called the Iditarod. It's considered the last great race, and it's a long way from there to Invercargill.

In fact, on a wintry Southland morning it's actually too warm for the dogs as they make their way around a wooded track on the outskirts of Invercargill. "Anything above zero (degC) and they start to suffer from heat stress," said Tony Turner, a sled dog aficionado who is giving his prized pack a training run along the Sandy Point trails.

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There are 14 Alaskan huskies — a man-developed breed that has overtaken its Siberian cousin in racing circles -- in New Zealand, and Turner owns most of them.

The workshop manager for Kawarau Jet, Turner lives in Athol and commutes to Queenstown each day.

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He runs a commercial sled dog operation at the Cardrona Snow Farm during winter, and when he can he brings his dogs to Invercargill to train them with other members of the Southland Sled Dog Association.

This is not a cheap pastime.

Turner estimates it would cost about $100,000 to put together his lineup of dogs today.

Turner has been involved with sled dogs for 20 years. "I spent the winter of '98 in Alaska and that's where I got hooked on the Alaskan huskies. It's a passion, an obsession.

I just get a real buzz with a team of dogs strung out in front of you." The Southland association has the biggest date of its calendar at the Sandy Point scout camp this weekend.

Sled dog racers from throughout the country will be in attendance with about 120 dogs during the two-day competition.

Secretary Aleeya Brass said the public was welcome to come and watch but she asked that people do not bring their own dogs along.