# The Ozzie and Tyler Pulling Thread



## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

One of the things I like best about DF is being able to follow the progress of members dogs in their various endeavors. You guys are really inspiring!

So, I decided to start my own thread about my progress with the Boys. I never even knew dog powered sports such as skijoring/bikejoring existed until a few months ago, so that gives you an idea of how green we are! 

Step one: Read Ski Spot Run. (check)
Step two: Order X-back harnesses (check)
Step three: Learn commands (meh... almost) 
Step four: Get out there! 


First time in harness: The first time I just wanted them to get use to the feeling and having it put on/taken off. A stand/stay is very useful for this! That same session I began working on 'line out' and managed to get a decent response.

Second time in harness: I was quite anxious and decided to hook 'em up to the bike and see what happened. Both Boys were tentative about leaving the heel position but with a lot of encouragement I managed to get them out front somewhat. As soon as any pressure was felt though, they slowed down. Tyler seems nervous about having the bike behind him, so this is something I am going to have to work on. 

Third time in harness: I wanted them to get use to feeling pressure in the harness and to learn to pull. They did really well with pulling the sled by itself. When they seemed confident with that, I added weight. I went too fast and added too much weight at first , but after reducing it down to 5 pounds, I got both Boys to pull with encouragement. Tyler pulled 10 pounds (plus the weight of the sled) and Ozzie pulled 5. 

What amazed me was how 20 minutes pulling tired them out! They weren't exhausted but I could tell they were done pulling. Tomorrow is another day.  (and my throat is shot from encouraging them so much!) 

Pretty excited about the prospects. Ozzie is doing much better than I had ever hoped and it looks like he will make a good bikejoring partner! 

Pictures from today:








Ozzie doing 'line out'







My Puppah isn't quite sure ...







This thing is going to move itself, right?







Come on sled... this way.







Future Sled dog extraordinaire! xD


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## Tofu_pup (Dec 8, 2008)

You weren't lying about the construction worker thing. XD
At least the boys will be nice and visible. 

You should totally rig up a camera like Sassafras when you start hitting the trails.


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

Yeah, I wanted them to scream 'here we are! get out of the way!' xD Visibility is key in these parts as I imagine we'll be 'joring a lot in the woods and well.. people with guns.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

I love the third picture, Maisy does the exact same thing where technically she's lined out, but she's looking back at the scooter.

I'm excited to see how things progress. I use a Gorillapod for my camera so I don't have to hold onto it to take pictures, fyi.


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

sassafras said:


> I love the third picture, Maisy does the exact same thing where technically she's lined out, but she's looking back at the scooter.
> 
> I'm excited to see how things progress. I use a Gorillapod for my camera so I don't have to hold onto it to take pictures, fyi.


Thanks Sassafras! You and your team were my biggest inspiration.  I love when you update your threads and I am definitely going to have to get a gorillapod once we hit the trails.


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

It was rainy all today but I still managed to get the Boys out for a little 'joring practice. I had a helper on the bike with the towline and I was on another bike with a leash attached to the collar. 

Ozzie seems hesitant to start, but once he gets going he seems okay. He doesn't feel comfortable going too fast yet but he was able to get out front without too much pulling/ coercing from me. Though, he did seem a lot more interested in the neighborhood lawns and barking dogs than on running/pulling. However, if I dropped the leash he immediately stopped no matter how much coaxing I did from out front. 

Tyler is still nervous about having the bike behind him. The noise from the wet brake pads freaked him out. He took a little bit longer to convince it was okay but got into the rhythm after about 5 minutes. It just kind of 'clicked' and he put a smile on his face and his tail went up. The leash was completely slack and the towline was taut. Helper said that he was pulling her! Yay! I tried dropping the leash twice but he would only take about 5 more steps and then slow down and stop. 

Neither Boy seems to understand 'lets go' and require encouragement to start pulling. Ozzie more than Tyler. Both are not sure about what we are doing, but I think it will come with more practice. 

I wish there was a way that I could practice without the help of another person... 
I also don't know how I am going to get a solid 'lets go' without another person in front. 

Oh, and the neighbors think I am completely crazy.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

> Oh, and the neighbors think I am completely crazy.


Heheheh, now I usually go to a nearby state park (which has its own share of gawkers, usually school kids on field trips or bicyclists) but when I was first starting out I just went up and down our alley or around the block... I'm sure the neighbors thought I was nuts, although it did lead to some nice chats about what I was doing.


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## Greater Swiss (Jun 7, 2011)

AWESOME +two I LOVE this!

Oh, and Sassafrass.....you have vids!! I have to go look for those! When you have vids +two you have to show us all!!

Now I want to do this even more! My DH and I have been putting it off in favor of some more basic obedience. This and the feed store are two major omens in my book....oh yeah, i went to the feed store and the HAVE a skijorning belt AND pulling harnesses! IN STOCK! they are actually there hanging up!!!! All together it'll be max $100, well....$150-200 if I want a fancier pulling harness. They have well padded leather ones I think made locally by people who make horse saddles and such...very impressive, maybe a treat if we actually get somewhere with the pulling, fancy equipment may just be putting the cart before the dog  even worse I do need to finally order the book too. Was going to, but figured if we did there would be no concentrating on basic obedience. Oh I'm excited....Obedience Schmedience....lets pull!


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

Greater Swiss said:


> Oh I'm excited....Obedience Schmedience....lets pull!


! YEAH! That's what I am talking about.  Caeda would be a natural. Check out alpine outfitters for harnesses too. They are much much cheaper than I ever expected. I got 2 x back harnesses, 8 boots, a towline and bikejore attachment strap thingy for under $100. And they threw in a collar with my number stitched in. I would go the cheaper route at first to see if you like it (I am sure Caeda will!) and then get a nice harness when she is around 1.5/2 and fully grown into her beautiful self. 

And I would definitely order Ski Spot Run. It has been indespensible to someone as green as I and without a mentor/trainer. 

After work today I am going to hook 'em up and see how things go...


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## Tofu_pup (Dec 8, 2008)

Your PM box is full!


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

Due to a snow storm last week my 'joring training took a backseat. Now that the majority of the snow is gone we are back out there. Unfortunately I am having multiple camera crisis' all at once so I have no pictures to share. 

Tyler did awesome! We started out doing a little pulling around the front yard. He wasn't very enthusiastic and I think I am still putting too much weight on him. I decided to just hook him up and see what happened and I was pleasantly surprised. We started down a quiet road that we never really go down and he seemed confused and kept wanting to stop and turn around. I thought our bike path would be too dangerous but no one is out today and he knows the bike path very well. I pointed us in the direction we usually take our walks and gave the 'lets go!'. He started jogging and then moved right out front.  This has been our biggest struggle to date since he is a little weary about the bike being behind him. He wasn't pulling me really but he kept the line tight the entire ride! I am totally hooked on this sport now, it was so much fun and Ty seemed to really enjoy himself. 

Next came Ozzie... I decided to skip going down the quiet road which now had several children and loose dogs running around and head to the bikepath where for the last few days he has been really gunning on our 'regular' bike rides. I thought for sure he would just take off. Well, not the case. About a dozen huge trucks drove by (clean up crews from the storm) and Ozzie shut down. After that it was game over. I brought him back to the house and we did some pulling, which he really seems to enjoy. I think he actually likes doing weight pull more than Tyler, which surprises me. I hook up a tire to the harness and he will pull it all around the yard very happily and determined. I have yet to get Tyler to be able to pull the tire. 

So I am optimistic but still need to work on getting them to not just throw on the breaks to mark. I also need to figure out how to transfer Ozzie's energy during our regular rides to 'joring.


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

So the other day I managed to rig up a homemade Gorilla Pod (sorry for the crappy quality) and decided to try and get some video of our daily 'joring practice. I thought Tyler did exceptionally well! He still isn't really pulling me, but I don't have to pedal either. I doubt I will ever get him to really pull hard, but he has a good slow and steady pace that I think we could do some miles with. 







And then there was Ozzie. This video makes me laugh because this is pretty much how its been going for us. He will somewhat get out front but he just seems too distracted. However, if he is out of harness and riding with me at a heel, he really moves! He is also doing much better than Tyler at pulling weight, so i don't think he is having a problem with the act/feel of pulling. I can see how if we were to get good at this, it would really build the big guys confidence. So we aren't giving up, yet.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

I think Tyler looks good, just sort of truckin' along. 

I love how Ozzie speeds up... then waits for you to catch up... then speeds up... lol. Kind of reminds me of the time I took Pip and Squash out together and Pip was just sort of along for the ride.


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## Niraya (Jun 30, 2011)

Looks like they're coming along really well 
I have to Bella a new harness. Biking is killing the one we have now .


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

I know it has been almost a year since I've updated this thread. A lot has happened but the Boys and I are still 'joring. Even though I initially bought the gear because I thought Tyler would enjoy it, it seems Ozzie is actually the one that likes it more. Tyler doesn't really do it anymore; he prefers taking leisurely strolls to the hotdog stand and getting his belly rubbed. 

Ozzie and I will be attending a dry land mushing seminar at the end of the month and I hope we get some tips! His favorite 'joring partner is much faster than him, so we are working on creating a more cohesive team. Overall though we are just having a lot of fun. 


The temperatures dropped the last few days and Ozzie has been running better than ever. Here are a few pictures from today:


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## Sibe (Nov 21, 2010)

Awesome! I'm super excited for the lowering temps. I wish I was in Colorado still!! Denali basically learned to mush at Garden of the Gods and on slushy muddy dirt trails. It was amazing.


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

Oooo Sibe, I forgot you use to live in CO. Maybe you can give me some tips on where to go? We usually head west and go to Chatfield though we have tried out Cherry Creek too. I've actually never been to the Garden but I've heard its a great hiking spot.


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## Sibe (Nov 21, 2010)

Hmmm outside of the Springs I'm not really sure! There are hiking trails everywhere, but I never really was paying attention to if they'd be good for mushing until after I got a dog, and then I was down in the Springs. Chatfield sounds lovely since it's mostly flat. I grew up in Highlands Ranch. A quick google search turned up this site http://www.colomtnmushers.org/ you could probably email them and tell them where you live and ask about nearby trails.

When we visited my husband's parents in Montrose last winter we did some skijoring up in Crested Butte, they have a big oval track in the winter. Also Grand Mesa, that was a blast.


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