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INUVIK - Getting around town has never been more fun for teacher Dan Heilbrunn.

Heilbrunn has been learning to mush with his new best friend, a dog named Kodo.

Elementary school teacher Dan Heilbrunn poses with his dog Kodo and his mini-sled for dog racing. Heilbrunn adopted the stray pup and brings her out for runs down by the river. - Dez Loreen/NNSL photo

The Grade 5/6 teacher took in the stray dog after finding it outside his apartment building in late September 2008.

"It was freezing rain outside," he said.

"I found this shivering freezing dog on the steps of my apartment building."

At first, it was easy to pass by the unknown canine.

"I went home, but couldn't eat dinner because I was thinking about the dog outside," he said.

So he welcomed the strange dog into his dwelling, fed it and helped the dog get warm.

After becoming friends with the dog and posting notices to find a possible owner, Heilbrunn named the dog Kodo, which means "Old universe."

"I can say that she's now my best friend," he said.

The day after bringing his new friend into his life, Kodo ran off during an unleashed walk.

"I didn't have a leash yet and she ran off on me," said Heilbrunn.

"I had to bail her out of the dog pound."

With a background in skateboarding and snowboarding, Heilbrunn was looking for his next thrill, which is when he noticed that Kodo might have some husky in her.

"I thought to myself that dog sledding could be awesome," he said.

"So I started talking to local mushers and got started."

Heilbrunn said it was Mike Baxter that first extended the friendly hand and gave him a small harness for Kodo to wear while pulling a sled.

"That was very generous of him," said Heilbrunn.

Finding a small enough sled that Kodo could pull was another challenge.

"I ended up finding a sled in Whitehorse," he said.

"It's kind of this crazy creation of a guy there."

The frame of the sled is lightweight wood, with copper piping holding the frame together.

On top of the sled are some of Heilbrunn's unique customizations.

"I have a licence plate on the front for fun," he said.

He also has a small milk crate that he uses for storage.

"I put some wire in here, in case I need to make some repairs," he said.

He said he likes to take Kodo out for a run four or five times a week, depending on the weather.

"If it's not too cold out, we'll be on the ice road," he said.

On a downhill slope, Heilbrunn estimates their top speed at about 25 km/h.