Call of the wild for fans of husky races

Craig Morton doesn't enjoy cold weather and thankfully he doesn't need it to race his huskies.

Craig is a member of Cannock Chase Sled Dog Group where the dogs pull along a sledge which is on wheels through the thickly wooded forest.

"I have been doing this for four years after I went to see a husky dog race in Aviemore 25 years ago," says Craig, aged 45, from Milford, Stafford.

"At the time I was living in Glasgow and I said that if I was to ever get a dog it would be a husky.

"It was only when I moved to England that I had the space to get a dog and I now have three that I race."

The group meet regularly on Cannock Chase near Huntington and as well as Siberian Huskies they race Alaskan Malamutes, Greenland Dogs and Samoyeds.

The longest serving member has held a permit on Cannock Chase for more than 25 years and the youngest members are eight, and can compete in the junior classes at rallies.

Craig says he enjoys getting out with his dogs Troy, Suki and Apollo.

"Huskies are not very good on their own, but once you get two you want three and soon I am planning on buying a fourth," says Craig, an IT project manager.

"When I heard that training took place on Cannock Chase I came along for a session and have been coming ever since.I like that it gets me out of the house, and I have always been an outdoors person.

"Also, this is my way of letting the dogs have their fun – they always get excited before each training session or rally."

The club is not just focused on racing as they have raised more than £18,000 for charities such as Acorns Children's Hospice, Alzheimer's Society, Jane Lane School and Siberian Husky Welfare.

Every year, two members of the group work in Norway taking teams of people on sled dog expeditions.

The group is supported by the Forestry Commission, which maintains and cut new trails for use in the training area and supplies safety signs.

"For the majority of the time we use sledges that have three wheels as there is hardly ever enough snow on Cannock Chase," Craig says.

"Races are held up and down the country.

"The dogs love racing – they are bred for this and even though they are built for going over long distances we just use them for sprints."

Mike Turner and his six-year-old son Cameron, from Cannock, enjoy being on the Chase with their huskies.

Mike, aged 37, says: "I have been involved in this for eight years as I had always wanted a husky dog.

"Now I have seven and you can tell that they all enjoy it.

"One of the dogs, Havoc, is silent at home but once she gets on to the Chase she starts barking and gets excited."

As Mike and Craig stand on their three wheeled sledges their dogs are straining to be off as they slowly count down – "five, four, three, two, one" before shouting "Go", and the dogs are off.

The huskies quickly build up to a speed of around 16mph and don't seem to notice the bumps in the path as they hurtle forward.

Mike says: "My daughter Danielle is 10 and she takes part in the junior rallies.

"In our club we have numbers ranging from two dogs to 10 across the 25 permit holders.

"The buzz you get from racing is incredible.

"In any sport there are accidents, but we are all safety conscious and aware of the dangers."

Video by Wendy Lloyd.