Does anyone skijor?

    • Gold Top Dog

    Does anyone skijor?

    I will be training Zeke do skijor soon, we just have to practice some of our obedience a bit more. I just got the package with all my gear, though, so I'm really excited to start! Best of all, the harness fits perfectly, and Zeke does not mind wearing it one bit. He even accepted the booties! He is amazingly unflappable.

    Of course, the other problem with training is it's still just too hot to do much physical exertion like pulling. (Which I remind Zeke of nearly every day when we walk Smile So now I can't wait for winter, and preferably a good one, with lots of snow. Last winter we had three snowfalls, which does not work if one wishes to ski.

    I wish I could watch someone else skijor before I start, but there are not any clubs close by Sad I should look further, though. Unfortunately, I picked a sport that is not very popular in this region. Maybe I should move to Wisconsin or Minnesota...

    • Moderators
    • Gold Top Dog
    Careful what you wish for: If I were smaller or Piper were bigger, I would try it.
    • Gold Top Dog

     I know of one online friend who do this with her huskies -- she lives in Alaska.  Sure looks like fun.  You will have to get someone to snap photos so we can see you!

    • Gold Top Dog

     DougB, That snow looks awesome! Is that a regular occurrence? We get snow like that a couple times usually, but it the problem here is that the snow we get never stays the whole winter. I'm guessing that is not a problem for you?

    How big is Piper? Dogs at least 35lb can skijor fine. It's more a matter of how much effort the dog puts in vs what the skier does. Zeke is near 50lb, so I won't have to do much Big Smile!

    Freedom
    You will have to get someone to snap photos so we can see you!

    I'll do my best, but that won't be for quite a while I'm afraid Sad. Speaking of which, I still need to upload some pics of Zeke. Maybe I can finally get some film developed soon.

    • Moderators
    • Gold Top Dog
    Yes, that is a regular occurrence. Our Possible Snow Season is October to May. PSS is a religious time, when many Minnesotans indulge in Hibernation, a quiet and introspective time. Regular chanting of "cold enough for ya", punctuated with the occasional "Ufdah" can be heard from people doing the icy sidewalk shuffle while begging for tickets to Florida or for the loan of a set of jumper cables and a shovel. Our problem isn't that the snow stays, but rather that we stay.

    Piper is a 35lb ESS who is a little spoiled. As she is 12, her work load is declining. As I am 65, so is mine. We do a little bird hunting. When we get tired, we go home.

    This sums up MN:

    60 above zero: Floridians turn on the heat. People in Minnesota plant gardens.

    50 above zero: Californians shiver uncontrollably. People in Duluth sunbathe.

    40 above zero: Italian & English cars won't start. People in Minnesota drive with the windows down.

    32 above zero: Distilled water freezes. The water in Bemidji gets thicker.

    20 above zero: Floridians don coats, thermal underwear, gloves, wool hats. People in Minnesota throw on a flannel shirt.

    15 above zero: New York landlords finally turn up the heat. People in Minnesota have the last cookout before it gets cold.

    Zero: People in Miami all die. Minnesotans close the windows.

    10 below zero: Californians fly away to Mexico . People in Minnesota get out their winter coats.

    25 below zero: Hollywood disintegrates. The Girl Scouts in Minnesota are selling cookies door to door.

    40 below zero: Washington DC runs out of hot air. People in Minnesota let the dogs sleep indoors.

    100 below zero: Santa Claus abandons the North Pole. Minnesotans get upset because they can't start the Mini-Van.

    460 below zero: ALL atomic motion stops (absolute zero on the Kelvin scale.) People in Minnesota start saying..."Cold 'nuff fer ya?"

    500 below zero: Hell freezes over. Minnesota public schools will open 2 hours late.

    • Gold Top Dog

     I've never done skijor, and I can't ski, but I am curious to know what kind of boots you got. I'm looking for some for Callie, because she is running with me now while I'm biking. We just started last week. I don't know enough about skijor, but you might try that for training for now. I wait until about 7:30 at night to do it with her, and then it's not too hot usually.

    • Gold Top Dog
    Sounds like a lot of fun. Have you checked out any videos on Youtube? I'll bet there are lots. Good luck!
    • Gold Top Dog

    DougB, That weather sounds wonderful to me. I think I grew up in the wrong climate, as cold weather is really what I like. (And certainly not this heat! ugh.)

    Jen, I got booties made of cordura, which will only be good in snow, as they would disintigrate pretty quickly on pavement. Honestly, I'm not sure I should have spent the money, because they would be really easy to make myself; basically it's just a square fabric pocket. They were on sale though, so I figures all future booties I can copy from these. You can find patterns in dog mushing books, like Dog Driving or Skijor with your Dog, if you are handy with a needle, and then you can make them out of whatever material.

    CoBuHe
    Have you checked out any videos on Youtube?

     I have, but that's still not like seeing it in person!

    I hope I will have fun with this, though people have said it takes a certain disregard for personal safety Wink I'll try to keep everyone updated on our progress as we train.

    • Gold Top Dog

    EZeke
    I hope I will have fun with this, though people have said it takes a certain disregard for personal safety

     

    That sounds like my kind of activity!

    • Gold Top Dog
    Ha Ha, how else do you get the excitement? In times of doubt, I worry about hitting a tree, but the wish to glide along by dog power wins out in the end.