WHEN Russell Donald was growing up in Stockport, he considered himself lucky if he saw snow.

Today he runs a dog sled company with 50 Alaskan huskies and is to represent Britain in a bizarre winter sport.

Russell is now part of a drive to make skijoring, a cross between skiing and dog sled racing, an Olympic event.

The 37-old sprinkler designer emigrated from Bramhall to Canada after answering an advert for a job in the Manchester Evening News.

Aside from his job as a designer, he also runs his own dog sled touring company called Mad Dogs and Englishmen which started six years ago.

It was while he was starting his new life in Brampton, Ontario, just outside Toronto, that he discovered skijoring.

He said: ''Skijoring is a hybrid sport combining skiing with the dogs pulling you. It is not always done with dogs, in Scandinavia it is done behind reindeer, in other places, behind horses and snowmobiles.

''It is an old sport but relatively new in the public eye. There is a push to get it recognised as an Olympic sport but we are not there yet.''

Russell and two British Army officers will represent Great Britain at the world championship sled dogs races in Fairbanks, Alaska, in February.

He is spending six thousand Canadian dollars to take part and competes against more than 200 other nations, some of whom are lavishing huge resources on winning the competition.

''The event is a big race on a world stage. It is somewhat intimidating, particularly when you hear that the Swedish contingent have chartered a military Hercules plane to fly all their kit over.

''I guess I am sort of numbed at the prospects of going up there and having the opportunity to fly the flag. But it will be an exciting opportunity.''

But he has trained hard. He spent two seasons working with a mid distance racer out of Edmonton and entered two 500 mile races. He is considering taking part in the 1000-mile Yukon Quest.

''There is nothing quite like running a big team of dogs down the trail,'' he said.

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