# Plans for a Bike Tour with your V



## Pecan_and_BB

So with hunting season just around the corner and the temperatures getting into the perfect range for great full days outside, I have decided to do something a little different......bike touring SW Ontario with my Vizsla and meet up with friends/family for a few hunts along the way.

I'll preface this by stating that I have done a few regular bike tours in my day, but none this adventurous and never with my dogs so it is going to be quite a learning experience.

1st: Transportation

The bike:
Most bicycle touring people will tell you "Any old bike will do" when going on a couple of 100 mile bike tour, however, the terrain, locations and paths that I am planning along with the required gear for myself and Pecan is a little more specific. I need a bike that can handle all terrains, have some "granny" gears for tough hills and mud, and something a little more heavy duty for loading up with gear and towing. There are specific touring bikes, but most lack the ability to handle off road and gravel paths. So, I decided to build my own bicycle for this. A friend of mine had a 2 year old bike frame that was slightly too big for him and surprise, surprise, it was the right size for me and me all of the criteria that I needed. Now the hunt is on for all of the parts (see pic 1).

The trailer:
The plan is to complete an average of 60km per day and have a few hunt days mixed in at certain destinations. That said, Pecan is good for about 20km per day of running while bikejoring or off-leash while I ride so she needs transportation for the other 40km per day and will probably need the entire 60km the day after hunt days. I looked at the dog trailers on the market and again, nothing I tested would hold up to those rigors. Luckily while speaking with a friend, he put me onto the Bob Ibex trailer which is a single wheel with suspension that can carry 70lbs. I tested his out with Pecan and it works beautifully, so I now have one on order. I attached a pic of one below that someone has setup on their tandem (see pic 2)

Current foreseable problems:

1 - Pecan is on a raw diet and eats roughly 1.5 pounds per day. If we are gone for 10 days, I need to carry 15-17lbs of raw food and somehow keep it cool. This is my #1 priority right now in figuring out. I need to test in a cooler, how long a frozen 1.5lb package will stay frozen in a cooler with ice, and then pre-plan to get my friends and family enough so when I meet up on hunt days, they can replenish her stock. This is going to take some serious testing and planning.

2 - Dealing with farm dogs that are left to roam. This is an easy one that I've dealt with when I've done bike treks without a dog as you can get off of your bike, and keep it between the dog and you, then give the dog some very, very good treats and snacks and usually they become your friend or at the very least it buys you enough time until the owner is able to get there. However, I now have my own dog, harnessed in and willing to protect me which may escalate things in a hurry. A secure top for the Ibex trailer may be in order to keep everyone safe.

3 - Keeping us both injury free. That's a lot of miles over a lot of days with some hunting mixed in. So it will be important in the coming weeks to be in shape, pay attention to her feet to ensure her pads don't get worn down and form blisters or cuts, and make sure we both set a sustainable pace every step of the way.


Well, that's the start to this. I plan on posting daily / every second day over the next month or so for progress. ANY and ALL feedback / ideas are welcome as I would like this to go really well and make it into an annual thing.


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## Canadian Expy

This sounds like an adventure indeed! Not being a cyclist (beyond recreational), I don't have much to contribute, but I do backcountry canoeing which takes a fair amount of prepwork and planning, and faces some of the same challenges you may face. 

For food, have you looked into/considered dehydrated? It may be an option for you. I know that in our car coolers, nothing stays frozen, but we have a 7 day cooler that keeps things very cool provided you aren't opening and closing it all the time. I don't feed raw (I feed Acana), but dehydrated is something I'm considering for future trips that are 7+ days, as the kibble is quite heavy, and takes up a lot of space. You have friends able to help, so this may not be a problem, but thought I would suggest it if you have any gaps where you can't arrange a drop off. 

We recently returned from a 230+ km trip, which we completed over 2 weeks. This was the longest trip Aspen had been on, and I definitely underestimated his energy output. He came back from the trip (which was admittedly difficult for all of us) 60 lbs (5 lbs lighter) due to long days portaging, and the amount of energy he was consistently exerting. I always up his food intake on these trips, but I clearly didn't increase his intake enough. Just something to consider. 

We dealt with so many injuries, dog and human, so a VERY well stocked first aid kit is a must (packed in a dry bag to protect it from the elements). You may want to look into boots in case Pecan does suffer an pad injuries. I have been impressed with the Ruffwear Etrex. 

Farm dogs encountering unknown dogs (and people!) can, in my experience, be nasty. I would maybe consider an air can which might deter the dog in case you do have any bad encounters. There is also a dog attack deterrent spray you may get just in case (Canadian Tire and Sail I know sell it). I have a can, but have no used it, but after being attacked on 3 different occasions I caved and bought it. If the dog is aggressive to other dogs, treats will likely have no effect.

I would also suggest scheduling in rest days to be used if needed. We only got 1 day of rest on our trip and everyone, including Aspen greatly needed it (we actually needed far more). He is normally a dog that can run for days, and he was EXHAUSTED. We had days where we were mostly paddling (therefore Aspen lying down, sitting, etc) but he still wasn't resting. There was too much going on around him. Pecan may be fine, but this being your first outing like this together, you may want to consider including some true "do nothing" days. 

Rain gear may be needed If Pecan hates the rain as much as Aspen (especially cold Fall rains). I love the Hurtta Slush Suit (not sure why they call it slush), except that it doesn't keep the head dry. I'm looking at making a solution for that. 

I look forward to hearing about your progress, and if anything else comes to mind, I'll let you know. Goodluck with your planning!


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## einspänner

I've been dreaming of doing this for a long time, but always let various obstacles stop me. I will be following your adventure with great interest. 

A couple thoughts for you. 

Have you looked into freeze dried raw options? If Pecan would tolerate them and you have regular access to water, it would cut down on your weight and storage space. Then if you pop into a town with a grocery store you could supplement with fresh meat. With all the running and hunting she'll be doing she will need a lot more food than her normal 1.5lb a day to maintain good weight. I've used pure suet in the past to keep weight on Scout. Yeti coolers are some of the best I've seen, but they are pretty pricey!

The ibex trailers are highly rated and the one wheel design should be really nice off road. For an enclosure you could get a few short lengths of bendable pvc, zip tie it to the trailer making an arch, and make a cover. I didn't think Scout would stay in the bob trailers and I figured there would be times when I would want to keep the dog contained, so I searched for flatbed trailers that could accommodate my crate. Ended up going with one made by burly and use straps to secure her crate to the bed. In theory I could strap additional cargo on top. Pic below.

This thread has some links I found on touring with dogs. http://www.vizslaforums.com/index.php/topic,9561.msg72614.html#msg72614

Good luck!


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## organicthoughts

Dehydrated raw is the best idea but also if you get some dry ice that should keep the food frozen for a long period of time in a cooler


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## texasred

That would be an adventure. 
Just hunting wipes me out. I'll leave the bike riding, hunting combo to the younger members.


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## Pecan_and_BB

C-Expy: Thanks for the advice, I didn't know there was dehydrated raw options out there. That would definitely save a lot of weight (food moisture, ice, cooler). I agree days off are important and this is a 15 day plan (10 riding days, 2 hunt days, 3 off days). We'll be cycling 600-650km and she'll have 2 hunt days of exercise with roughly 150km of running with the bike. Planned average speed is between 12-15 km/hr and roughly 60km per day, so 4-5 hours of ride time per day with the rest for exploring, resting, foraging, etc...

eispn: The grocery store stops are a good idea. I could grab some fresh turkey necks, etc....to add into the dehydrated. The Ibex has multiple water bottle screw nubs that I was planning to use to build the cover. I was thinking of PVC or something even a little lighter weight like bendable fiberglass/kevlar tent poles which will secure with bolts to the water bottle holders.

orgt: Thinking that a combo of dehydrated and frozen raw might be the way to go with a few grocery store fresh pit stops and using the two hunt days to re-stock from family. It will cut total weight down significantly. Thanks.

TR: well I ain't no spring chicken either so it's kind of a now or never proposition for me over the next few years while my knees still cooperate.

Day 2 of planning:

So yesterday I was speaking with a cycling friend and explained what I am planning, and low a behold, he has a Burley Tail Wagon that he could never get his dog to go in....so brand new. I picked it up as a loaner while the Ibex shows up so that I can get some conditioning in with Pecan and see how things go. My initial thoughts on this dog trailer is that:

Pros - The frame and wheels are well built, all aluminum, no plastic, strong connections. Furthermore, it collapses really quickly into a small footprint for loading and unloading and easily attaches to the bike and it's very stable behind the bike so the dog passengers are comfortable. 

Cons - Once setup, it's big and I could see it being not very nimble or responsive in tighter more challenging conditions. The base has a single aluminum bar and then a rigid pad sits on top for the passengers. It's stable, but I'd worry the pad might not hold up as well in the mud/rain/gravel conditions. As well, the shell doesn't lock down as tight as I would like and I could see escape artists pulling Houdini's with ease.

Overall - For me it will make a great training trailer and get Pecan and I used to using it. I could see it being a very good trailer for those that want to do a couple of miles or kms a day around town where they want to bring their dog along.

See attached photos for scale. Pecan is right at the top of the female standard and weighs in at 50lbs and as you can see, she has a lot of room to stretch out and enjoy the ride.


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## einspänner

Tent poles sound like the perfect option actually. 

Smack is one brand you might want to look into for dehydrated raw. It's only sold in Canada, so I haven't tried it personally, but a Yukon based trainer I really respect uses it with her GSP and HWV. This or diy would be my choice. 
http://smackpetfood.com/

origen, primal foods, honest kitchen, nature's variety, sojos, and stella and chewy's have options as well.


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 3:

- Training - 

Pecan, my wife and I went out to do a longer test of the trailer / bikejore combo for a 35km ride. Pecan did 12km bikejore and 23km in the trailer. Thoughts - I split up her time as 6km out / 12km in, switching from one to another with leaving her harness on was less than 5 minutes. In the trailer she was good, I did secure her harness to the D-Ring in the trailer with a 1' lead and she just lied down, got some water, caught her breath and enjoyed the ride. Pulling her 50lbs and the trailer, my speed and the gear I could use was lower with my energy output going up, but that was expected, however when she bikejores my gear and speed goes up while my energy output goes down as she is doing a lot of the work. Overall we managed an average speed of 19km/hr (17km/hr in trailer, 24km/hr out of trailer) while riding using a mountain bike and the tail wagon which is promising since the Ibex trailer and touring bike will increase efficiency.

- Touring Bike Build - 

My overall philosophy for a touring bike build priority is this: Reliability/Durability, Comfort, Parts Availability, Fixing, Weight ; in that order. 

R/D: Nobody wants to be broken down in the middle of nowhere multiple times throughout their trip spending a ton of time fixing their ride so I tend to use higher end components that use higher grade alloys and limit the use of plastic. 

Comfort: Nobody wants a sore back, knees, bottom throughout long days, it focuses your mind on the misery of pain instead of the beauty of the ride. It is important to check geometry of the frame, make sure it fits your body type and then select handlebars, saddle, shoes/pedals that will keep everything pain free. Don't be afraid to go to your LBS (local bike shop) and ask to try some different stuff out. 

Parts: If you do happen to break down, you want parts that are easy to find and are reasonably priced. For example, a bottom bracket is what holds your crank and pedals in place to the frame and has bearings in order to keep your pedaling smooth and as resistance free as possible. There are however *nine* different standards each with multiple sizes within that standard. English Threaded 68mm bottom bracket is the most common, so if your bottom bracket goes boom, every bike shop will carry these stock whereas if you have something like BBRight standard, well, you might be laid up for a day or two while the LBS orders in the part.

Fixing: If something breaks, you want to be able to fix it relatively easily in order to keep moving or if you are out in the middle of nowhere with miles/kms between any sign of a town. Let's stay with out bottom bracket example: English Threaded 68mm requires two wrenches (one common and one specific to bikes cranks that costs $8CAD) to remove and replace and an extra ET68mm cost is $15-$25CAD. BBRight requires tools to "press" the bottom bracket into the frame so you need specialized removal and installation tools ($65CAD) to even attempt this as well and extra BBRight bottom bracket cost is $50-$85CAD.

Weight: This is last priority but still important since for every pound I save on bike setup is an additional pound of gear I can tow. This is a law of diminishing returns however and can impact the total cost of the bicycle when I stick to my first priority of R/D as very light/strong bikes cost A LOT of money. Furthermore when you consider the total weight of everything - 
Me - 180lbs
Pecan - 50lbs
Trailer - 18lbs
Gear - 40lbs
Bike - 20lbs

Total - Roughly 300lbs.

So let's say I save 1lb on the bike build and the bike is now 19lbs. That is 0.3% of the total weight I have to move 60km/day. It has very little impact compared to the dollars spent to remove that extra lb from the bike. On the other hand, I don't want to use cheap heavy alloys and have a bike that weight near 40lbs either as I'm now adding 6% plus to the total weight i have to move 60km/day. So while it's a consideration, it isn't as important in the priority list.

With all that said, I chose to go with Shimano Ultegra and 105 level components. Shimano can be found anywhere, it's reliable, available, basic standards so easy to replace, and this mid-level line of theirs uses some light weight and very strong alloys. I'll be installing these on the bike later today.


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 4:

- Training -

Another day out for training, 40km with an average speed of 19km/hr again. Pecan runs and pulls hard for her first 3-4km then settles into a trot for the last 2-3km of her bikejore. With this warmer weather, the tongue is hanging out pretty long and she welcomes the water break and breather in the trailer while I do all of the work. We did a couple of KMs on a gravel road and she was a little jittery in the trailer from the rougher ride but I think once she gets another week or two of conditioning and the Ibex shows up which is better suited for that she will be great.

- Gear -

I've had Pecan's bikejore gear since March of 2016 and after doing some research into the sport, I found Nahak Sports out of Quebec Canada. They are a couple who have designed and manufactured their own line of products for dog powered sports. (see Pic 1 for the bikejore gear)

Their gear is top quality and after 6 months of 4 times per week use through rain, mud, and the rigors of a V, the gear still looks like it did when I first received it. Here's a link to their page for further details about them: http://www.nahaksports.com/#!home/s3vrp

With a little help from them, the harness I got for Pecan is the Pro Alaskan in their Medium-Long size and as I've stated, Pecan is at the top end of the female V standard for size. Take a look at Pic 2 to see how this harness should fit and how the loop attachment finishes at her tail. The design of this harness is for pulling, and pulling hard so it really isn't intended as a daily multi-use harness (unless you want your dog to pull you everywhere)  The Pro Alaskan design that I ordered is for hounds and other breads with sternum and chest plate that comes to a point more than being flat. The double wide strap with a small gap "hugs" both sides regardless of where Pecan applies tension instead of some of the harnesses that can "slip" to one side of the chest or other based upon where she is pulling from. This properly distributes the forces across her chest and shoulders for her breed, it limits rubbing so that she doesn't develop rash or chaffing, and it helps regulate her breathing since the tension isn't pulling across one side of her chest and flexing her rib cage from one side. See Pic 3 on how it fits across her chest.


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 5:

- Training -

Sunday was fun day! My wife, Pecan and I went out on some mountain bike back trails and just had a real fun time. It was about 16km but some tougher terrain, and Pecan was off leash so she's more likely to have done 20km+ running around and hunting anything that moved. We got rained on, we got muddy, and we had a really fun day on the trails. Pics of the day attached.

- Gear -

With the bike build moving along, it's time to decide on the range of gears and tires to go with. Without getting too technical on a bike's gears, I'll give a quick explanation. The cogs of each different front a rear gear have teeth and so each gear (front or back) is represented by the tooth count of the cog. The greater number of teeth on the front cogs means a bigger gear, while the greater number of teeth on the rear cogs means a smaller gear. So - Biggest cog front + Smallest cog rear = Biggest gear AND Smallest cog front + biggest cog rear = Smallest gear.

Just like a car with a manual transmission, that has a drive shaft (powered by the engine) spinning at a certain # of revolutions per minute (RPMs), a bicycle has a crank (powered by you) spinning at a certain # of revolutions per minute (Cadence). Just like a car in it's lowest gear (1st gear), the car's speed is relatively slow even if you push the RPMs way up, a bicycle in it's smallest gear will only go so fast as you darn near kill yourself peddling like crazy. Same applies to a steep hill, a car in it's biggest gear going up a steep hill will slow down an maybe stall out no matter how hard you press the gas, just like a bicycle on a steep hill in a big gear you will not be able to pedal.

With that analogy said, I am attempting to pick a gear "range" where the biggest gears will let me go at a fast speed while keeping my cadence at a reasonable pace, and where my smallest gears will let me go at a very slow speed (like walking speed) with a higher cadence so that when I hit big hills, I can make it up there. Then there is every gear in between to "fine tune" my energy output based upon riding conditions (slight uphill, downhill, head wind, tail wind, asphalt, gravel, mud, etc....). When travelling these types of mile/kms for multiple days, it is all about finding the gear that maintains your desired speed with the least amount of pedal resistance possible. It saves your energy, your knees, your forearms, and limits your risk of injury. I won't get into much more detail than that as it gets really, really boring.

For tire/rim selection it becomes finding the right size and width that will match what you are doing. Keeping in mind the priority list from day 3, I want a durable tire, that soaks up a lot of the bumps, that are fairly standard, easy to fix and don't weigh too much. If I go with skinny racing tires: I will feel every bump and I will more than likely get a lot of flats and broken spokes as well as zero control in gravel and off road, however, if I go with a big fat mountain bike tire on steel rims, nothing will break, but the weight and extra resistance will up my energy output by too much. So I have to pick a middle ground which is something in an aluminum rim, that is wide enough to soak up most bumps and handles well in gravel, and off road. Lucky for all of us thinking about doing these types of things, someone has already thought of it, designed it, tested it and now produce it: http://clementcycling.com/xplor-mso


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 6:

- Training -

Interesting day for training to say the least and first time in my life where I felt one of my dogs was in danger and myself or the people I was with didn't have the tools to protect all involved. I was bikejoring with Pecan on some trails and up ahead were 2 individuals with 3 dogs. From the distance I was, I saw two were dobermans and 1 looked to be a sheppard mix all off leash. I yelled ahead and asked them to leash their dogs as I came through, well as soon as I said that, the sheppard mix looks back and goes flat out sprint towards us. The owner attempts to grab him but the dog knocks them over and barrels right through them. I notice the dog has a muzzle on and so I release Pecan from the bikejore tether, get her to stay behind me and I put my bike between this dog and the two of us. The sheppard attempted to go around the bike and go directly for Pecan but the bike obstacle gave Pecan enough of a reaction time to understand that this dog didn't want to play and so she started to do circles around me and the bike as the other dog still pursued her. On the second time around circling, I got the bike between the two dogs and laid the bike down on top of the sheppard with my weight on it. I look up to see the other owner still 50 yards back and WALKING towards me.

I said politely, please hurry up and get your dog on a leash. They respond with "get your bike off of my dog now!"...still walking.... I respond "Once they are on a leash and there is no threat". The dog is now on a leash, the owner says "you could have injured my dog".....well, I haven't laid into somebody so hard in my life. It turned into a long lecture of being an ignorant dog owner who puts kids, other dogs, and their own dog at serious risk of injury or worse. I contacted animal control and they contacted the police as they wouldn't give me their names. I received a call back today from the police stating the individual was contacted and that the owner and the dog have a history complaints.

The good out of all of this - Pecan was calm and still listened to commands while this dog was charging from a distance. If this happens during the bike tour, I can trust she will still obey me up to a point. I'm going to discuss with my trainers who are certified to train aggressive dogs as well as hunting dogs, if their is a method to train a "flight" command for Pecan where if I have her off leash she can run for a distance in a certain direction until I give a command to stop. She does that in the field when she I first let her out and she starts to work the field, and considering how fast Vs are and that there aren't many dogs who can catch them in full run, I'm thinking this might be a valuable exercise in training. The other thing it lead me to think of is if Pecan decides to go into full flight and we aren't in a familiar area, it might be time to invest in a Garmin Astro. I think the spray repellents will also be an investment I make.

If anyone has any other ideas here, this experience sure opened my eyes even more to this risk while on the bike tour and is my priority #1. Very intriguing how this event presented itself while planning the bike tour and contemplating this very scenario.


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## texasred

If the dog had a muzzle on, I would have just grabbed it's collar. Hard for a dog to do any real damage if it's wearing a good muzzle.


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## Canadian Expy

I see your point TR. I'm not familiar with muzzles, but I wouldn't know a good one from a bad one looking at it. If a dog charged up to me with a muzzle on, I'm not going to assume it is a good one (though I will very much hope so!). If an owner doesn't have control of their dog, it shouldn't be off leash in a public space, in my opinion. If the dog had of been injured by the bike, let that be a lesson to the owner.


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## Canadian Expy

My other message didn't go through. This was the jist of it:

I am very interested to see what your trainer has to say. I can see how training a dog to flee to a known location to say, home, may work. But I don't see how you could train the dog to flee to somewhere safe from random locations (i.e. on your tour, on a trail, etc). Also, even if you train your dog to flee, there is no guarantee that the attacker will stop pursuit. Also, neither dog will be aware of hazards as they flee (roads/highways/vehicles, train tracks, etc). As you mention, there is also the possibility of the dog getting lost (I too am looking into the GPS tracker for our tripping). 

I would think that the best way to keep Pecan safe is to get her to stick with you, behind you, and have you deal with the hazard at hand, as you did today. You can process the situation at hand, and decide how to best to handle it, where Pecan cannot. 

Please let us know what you decide. I'm curious to see what others suggest.


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## Pecan_and_BB

TexasRed said:


> If the dog had a muzzle on, I would have just grabbed it's collar. Hard for a dog to do any real damage if it's wearing a good muzzle.


With an irresponsible owner like that and that level of aggression, I'm not taking any chances on grabbing the dog as you don't know how secure that muzzle is or what quality it is. As well, it was a long haired sheppard, I couldn't even tell if it had a collar or not and after seeing the owner get trampled out of the gate, I'm not reaching potentially losing my balance and going down in the middle of all of that.

I turned the steering wheel towards the ground and trapped the dog, it wasn't like I threw the bike on him and put all of my weight on top with a Randy Macho Man flying elbow drop. Not to sound cruel or callus, but this owner was extremely fortunate that Pecan has the temperament that she does and chooses "flight". If I would have had my previous foxhound and walker hound in their coyote hunting prime with me, that dog would have been shredded and it would have been that owners fault, not mine. 

Edit: C-Expy - I have a training session with them this Thursday to get Pecan out in the field and ready for hunt season, so I'll be asking them then and I'll post the outcome of our conversation.


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## texasred

I wasn't trying to imply you did anything wrong. There is more than one solution to some problems. We each handle things in our on way, dependant on our comfort level at the time.

When one of my dogs is put in danger I start thinking I'm 6 foot tall, and bullet proof. Not always the best decision, but the aggressor has to go through me first. My husband reminds me I'm 5'6 and not as young as I once was, and I need to stop doing that.


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## Pecan_and_BB

TR - I didn't take your comments with implication and understand we all approach these things differently. I replied to add a little more context to this specific situation, and I do agree with you in regards to putting your dog before yourself as that was my initial reaction when the dog started running at us (at that point I wasn't sure if the dog was coming for Pecan or me) was to ensure Pecan's safety before mine. Now that the incident is over, I find myself extremely angry that an individual like that owns a dog and continues to put that dog at risk as well as every other person and dog that come in contact. In Ontario we have laws holding the owner's liable for anything their dog does, however the laws are crafted in a way where the precedence of liability and actions that taken against an owner are only set in motion once a serious event has occurred. 

Day 7:

- Gear -

Tracking Pecan in unknown places:

I mentioned to Garmin Astro/Alpha yesterday as one of my top choices as I've seen a few guys use them in the field and they really are a fantastic device. However, doing a little digging, I have found out that they use MURS radio frequency which is a protected band of frequency in Canada. Garmin (since 2014) now has their software turning off the use of this frequency when it knows the device is in Canada which means no communication between the collar and the GPS device. So for those of us in Canada, it looks like the SportDog Tek (1.0 or 2.0 models) are our choices which use a different legal radio band. If I do purchase one of these, it might bring another slew of logistical nightmares which is charging the batteries for the collar and the hand held. This would have to happen daily which means mounting a solar panel on the bike setup, or I would need to purchase additional batteries for both....more to think about.

Foot care for Pecan:

I have used Musher's secret on a daily basis with her and she has developed some nice tough leathery paw pads that show no signs of cracks or blisters. That being said, I don't think it's enough for the rigors of this trip and I will be looking into some dog boots. There are 4 products on the market that I am currently investigating: 1. Kevlar Xtreme Dog Boots 2. Ruffwear Grip Trex 3. Kurgo Step-n-Strobe 4. Ultra Paws Rugged Boots.

From talking with owners who have used some of these in the past, most still suffer at the basic level of staying on the dogs foot to the point where there are companies who have introduced dog boot suspenders:










Speaking with a friend of mine who runs with his dogs daily and uses boots frequently, he explained to me that he read an article where an individual would wrap his dog's lower leg with a product called 3M Vet Wrap, then put the boot on ensuring the boot came above the Vet Wrap, then he would use a 2-3" wide piece of tape wrapped around the leg that overlapped both the boot and the Vet Wrap. My friend said he's used this for his longer runs for the last couple of years and said that he has never lost a boot with this method, and there is no chaffing on his dogs legs as the friction from the top of the boot is now on the Vet Wrap and not directly on the leg.

Again, any suggestions, other products, and feedback is more than welcome as both of these pieces of gear are new to me.


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## einspänner

I own the ultra paws, but hadn't had a chance to use them yet. They stayed on fine for fetch in the backyard, (I'll post the videos later) but I could see that you would want to secure them better, particularly on the rear paws where they seemed capable of rotating. I'll take her out for a ride tomorrow and report back.


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## einspänner

I took her out for ride just shy of 11km on mixed surfaces. The boots stayed on surprisingly well and didn't seem to affect her gait. There was some chafing on one of her paws right below the dew claw. A little bit of gravel got into them as well. Boot liners or vet wrap might help there. I like the blaze orange color, double straps, and the price point compared to other options, but can't speak to their longevity. 

Here are the videos from fetch the other day. A little unsure at first, but a ball was a good enough distraction. 

https://www.flickr.com/gp/[email protected]/4Fpm12

https://www.flickr.com/gp/[email protected]/tYHZa6


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## Pecan_and_BB

Thanks for that feedback on the Ultra Paws einspanner! I've narrowed it to the Grip Trex and the Ultra Paws based upon comfort and longevity (strictly from research), it's good to see the Ultra's stay on without any additional methods applied.

Day 10

- Training -

Thursday I talked it over with the trainers and they are of the opinion that it is best to keep the dog with me and if the trailer can be completely enclosed as a means of protection to work diligently with her on the speed that you can get her in and out from a riding position. They were saying it would take a special kind of dog with a special kind of aggression to attempt to go after an aluminum trailer that is canopied. They believed practicing getting her in and out quickly, combined with the toughest legal dog deterrent would be the safest method. So, off we'll go to some highly populated dog areas with lots of distraction and practice getting off the bike and into the trailer.

- Gear -

I had the day off yesterday and spent it assembling the bike (see Pic 1). It weighs in as built at 14.2lbs which I am a little surprised as I was estimating more in the 16-17 range unloaded. I went with mechanical disc brakes (TRP Spyre). Disc brakes offer better stopping power than traditional rim clinchers, and they work much better in the rain. For this build, I stayed away from hydraulic disc brakes for ease of fixing and availability. Again, the last thing you want is a hydraulic leak when you are in the middle of nowhere. I also decided to go with the widest tire I could fit (40C) and forgo fenders. The wider tire will help with comfort on bumpy roads and offer additional stability in off road conditions, however no fenders means additional stuff flying off the tires will go all over the place. I might look into a light weight durable plastic to attach to the underside of the bike racks to keep the mess off of Pecan and I. This no-fenders thing may be a bad decision, but I won't know until I get out there.

The Burley Tail Wagon has surprised me as well. I thought that I would have to go with the Bob Ibex, however that borrowed Tail Wagon with a few modifications might be just as good if not better. With a reinforced base platform, and larger wheels, I think it will work great. Plus, it would save me a bunch of money as the Bob Ibex is fairly pricey and will require the canopy modifications. I'm going to head to my LBS with the Tail Wagon and see what we can come up with, something like what RubyTheTrailDog has (see Pic2).


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## einspänner

look up down tube fenders.


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## Pecan_and_BB

einspänner said:


> look up down tube fenders.


Those are great for mountain bikes where the cable management is run along the top tube and the cyclocross & gravel grinder frames that have internal cable management. Unfortunately this Brodie uses the down tube for the cable management and those fenders tend to interfere with the cables and the braze-ons. If I had internal cable management on this frame, I would definitely go with those though.


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 12:

Out all weekend putting in the time with Pecan towing along on the new bike build. Our average speeds are much better with a proper adventure bike on the pavement and gravel roads than they were with the mountain bike. Saturday evening we did 50km with an average speed of 23.6km/hr. Pecan is getting used to relaxing in the trailer and the more we are out, the more she is enjoying this.

Sunday was fun day again and we drove out to some trails I know that a lot of guys use for 4 wheeling and dirt biking. We went out early before they all showed up and had a blast! So much mud and so much fun! Great trail that's about 22km one way, nice rolling hills and fields surround it and a picture perfect morning to blast through some mud.

Pics 1-3: Gives you an idea of what the trail looks like.
Pic 4: Pecan is somewhere in that dust cloud, and yes those are all turkeys
Pic 5: End of the run, back in the truck after getting cleaned up, big smile with mud in her teeth.

Today we went out for a longer ride again with the trailer and did 60km. Good average speed again, and Pecan even got in some hunt time (Pic 6). Yes, I'm still riding my bike through the field, this thing is great. Maybe Pecan and I can start a new field sport! One funny incident today on the way home where I took a paved road that had some pretty bad expansion joints in the pavement. Every time I'd go over one, Pecan would get a little cranky and vocalize her displeasure with them. If there were a few in a row, she'd roo at me. So I guess this week, it's time to go into the LBS and see if the Tail Wagon can sport a small suspension so she doesn't get too cranky over the bumps when she's tired.

So far I've just been working in the back yard in getting her in and out of the trailer quickly and my wife and I have made it a game with her which she loves to play. We are getting fairly quick in the transition from the joring line to the trailer so I think this week as well, it will be time to take it out where there are other dogs and see how that goes.


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## Pecan_and_BB

2nd set of pics


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 14:

Well, this trip gets squashed.......we took a long shot at selling our 2 acre farm house for a crazy price and purchasing a lake front house and low and behold, it went through. So instead of biking and hunting this fall, we now have some packing and moving to do. I'm going to put this off until spring time and plan something similar without the hunting days and if we have a lot of fun, we'll plan the tour/hunt one for next fall.

In the meantime, the bikejore/trailer combo for my wife and I to truck Pecan around to our favourite parks and places is going to be a staple in the activities we do with her. I'll be cutting back on the frequency of posts in here for a while, but I plan to continue to update it as I progress the plans for the spring trip.

- Gear -

Adding suspension to the Burley Tail Wagon might not be as big of an undertaking as I originally thought. After a conversation at my LBS with the lead mechanic, we came up with a few ideas, but one thing he said caught my attention; He said: "So nobody has already designed a two wheel suspension trailer?" My thoughts were always towards "suspension for dog trailer" and not "suspension for any two wheel trailer". Well some quick internet research and low and behold, Burley makes child trailers called the Cub and the D'Lite that both have suspensions (See Pic1). Burley sells the axle assembly for both of these as replacement parts for $50USD (See Pic2), so the plan is to purchase the Cub axle, retro-fit it to the Tail Wagon, and use the Tail Wagon axle as a base reinforcement. 

This will stiffen up the base platform, make it more durable for it's intended use, and provide additional comfort when a tired, cranky passenger has rolled over enough expansion joints when trying to get in a nap.


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## Rbka

Pecan_and_BB said:


> Day 14:
> 
> Well, this trip gets squashed.......we took a long shot at selling our 2 acre farm house for a crazy price and purchasing a lake front house and low and behold, it went through. So instead of biking and hunting this fall, we now have some packing and moving to do.


Funny, well, congrats on the move anyhow even though it puts a damper on your trip! Hope Pecan likes to swim if you're lakeside


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## Anida

Bummer!  I was enjoying your thread. Living lakeside is pretty much my dream haha so I'm a bit jealous. Easy fishing access  and Kaylee can play in the water.


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## Pecan_and_BB

Day 18:

Well, we got out today for about as long of a day tour that all of us could handle. We ended up completing 80km today in about 4 1/2 hours. Including break times and a few other stops at some locations for play time, the entire round trip totaled 7 hours. With the cooler weather, Pecan ended up doing roughly 25km of the trip running. Her pads held up really well since she only was in grass and gravel and I kept a good layer of musher's on them all day. There were a couple of hills we did that she was most helpful on and I was thankful to have her out of the trailer and pulling her own weight and then some up them. She also has me trained now to let me know when it's her turn to get out of the trailer and start pulling down the road as she'll give me 1 clean, crisp loud bark as to say: "Put me in coach!"

- Gear -

Pic 1 shows us all packed up in the morning and ready to go. For a day trip, here's a list of gear that we brought:

bikes tools/parts:

1 Extra tire tube
Patch kit
#4,5,6 allen keys
spoke tensioner
2 extra spokes
chain link tool
1 extra chain link
1 extra quick release axle (rear)
1 extra brake/gear cable
1 bike multi tool
2 extra batteries (flashing lights on trailer)

Pecan's stuff:

bikejoring harness and bungee
collar with her name and my phone number
regular 6' leash
e-collar
treats
3L fresh water
blanket
toy
towel
musher's secret
first aid kit

My wifes / my stuff:

Walking shoes
1 extra shirt
3L fresh water
towel
snacks (fruit/veg/granola)
bike locks
extra socks

We all had a great day. It amazes me how many people want to stop and talk because Pecan is pulling a bike with a whole bunch of gear and me around. So many ask questions about how far, the gear, how to train and in the end want to try something similar with their own dog. It was really fun to get the day trip in, but a little sad knowing that the bigger trip is now cancelled after having such a good time. When we got home, Pecan got out of the trailer, took about 6-8 steps and flopped in the sun for a good sleep (See Pic 2). All 3 of us slept and relaxed for the rest of the day enjoying the sun as one of the last nice lazy days at our farm house.


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## texasred

Pecan sounds like such a trooper, how old is she now?


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## Pecan_and_BB

TexasRed said:


> Pecan sounds like such a trooper, how old is she now?


She's a year and a half, and every day I feel like it's my wife and I that are attempting to keep up to her...lol


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## Pecan_and_BB

My wife, Pecan and I fit in a weekend bike trip while the weather is great and we still have a few free days before the real headaches of moving set in. We decided to do the L.E. & N Trail from Port Dover ON up to Paris and back. It was about 120km there back but it is practically all dedicated trails which made it much nicer for Pecan as there was lots of grass and way less hard surfaces.

Here's a link from google maps for those that are interested:

Google Maps

Great beaches, great trails with fantastic scenic routes and a lot of shade and cover along the path made for an awesome trip. It did however take us much longer on this trip because of the sheer amount of kids and people who wanted to talk to and pet Pecan. What should have been 3 hrs one way trip took nearly 5 hrs. Pecan loved every minute of every interaction and was more than happy to oblige all. One particular story to share was a mentally challenged boy, his mother and his care giver. They walked up calmly and they warned us that he isn't very nice to dogs but is always curious. They held onto him and I to Pecan, and as they got closer the boy made a face and kinda snarled at Pecan. She of course thought this was a playful thing and roo'ed back at him; so here they are what I would call "yelling" at each other when they both stop at the same time. The boy begins to laugh and giggle and Pecan's little tail starts to go a mile a minute. The boy then just plops himself down on the ground as the mother and care giver buckle in an attempt to hold him up but now he's sitting on the ground with them kneeling beside him at Pecan's level. They said they hadn't seen him act like this before so I ask if I could allow Pecan in contact with him which they agree. We slowly allow them in contact and the boy embraces Pecan to which she responds to him with a good 2 minute ear licking. He was now laughing hysterically and I could see the mother's eyes welling up with tears at which point she looks to my wife and thanks her for the experience. I gave Pecan her "with me" command to get her back to a sitting position beside me and the boy got back up, turned around and started to walk away. As they got a little further away, I heard the boy do another snarl and then giggle and laugh it up as he reenacted their encounter. We never properly introduced ourselves, we barely spoke a word, but they will be the people my wife and I remember from this trip and is a reminder to me how dogs can have such a huge impact on people. 

It was difficult to get pictures where there weren't others in the shots as it was a very busy weekend through there (I try to be respectful of people's privacy and not post pictures without consent) but I did get one while Pecan was doing all the work.


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## Anida

Love your story. So amazing what our doggies are capable of. Thanks for making me cry


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## Pecan_and_BB

Got out on the weekend and did a bunch of bike trails along the St. Clair river. Very nice area, lots of dedicated bike trails, waterfront, little towns with quaint shops where Pecan was welcome. The more we go out, the more she understands pace and she has regulated her energy level out of the gate. I can still get her to turn it up though with a quick command and couple of hard pedals, but most of the time she is now settling in on a fast trot in the 17-18km/hr range. Any faster and she has to break the trot and go into a full run. She and I are comfortable now going into the mid to high 20s when we go fast, but no full sprints as it's just too dangerous on a public trail where other bikers and walkers could cause a collision.

She stuck to the grass with all of the dedicated trails and with the cooler temperatures, I didn't use her trailer for a large chunk of the day so we stretched her distance out to 35km for the day. She was pooped by the end and was happy to see the trailer again when we came back to the road section. Her paws were fine, and with the slow pace, she was ready to go again the next day.


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## petrol

Pecan_and_BB said:


> einspänner said:
> 
> 
> 
> look up down tube fenders.
> 
> 
> 
> Those are great for mountain bikes where the cable management is run along the top tube and the cyclocross & gravel grinder frames that have internal cable management. Unfortunately this Brodie uses the down tube for the cable management and those fenders tend to interfere with the cables and the braze-ons. If I had internal cable management on this frame, I would definitely go with those though.
Click to expand...

I got around that problem by opening up the cable-stops and running full length cable housings


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## petrol

What a great read! Love it!
Durango LOVES going on what I call my "Hoods-n-Woods" rides

Example: https://www.strava.com/activities/809689911

In fact, I've probably only "walked" him a handful of times this year, lol


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