BABE’S BIKE RUN from Stephanie Ash on Vimeo.

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I’m always trying to explain to people how much stability our dog bike leashes give the rider. Usually the first thing people say when I tell them the business I am in is: “You sell what?! That would never work for my dog. He/She would pull me over instantly”. The thing about the 2 dog bike leash models we sell is that they are designed with the laws of physics in mind to give the rider the most control possible while also making the ride safe for your dog. It is hard to understand this until you actually get on the bike and try it. That is why I try my best to convey this through the many videos on my website. My dog Parker is an extremely strong 75 lb Lab mix and I try to push the limits constantly with him – testing every scenario I can think of to see how well the WalkyDog and Bike Tow Leash perform.

75 lbs is one thing, but what about the largest breed on the planet – the Great Dane…. When my friend Ross first suggested we give it a try, I have to admit that even I was a little hesitant. Ross has a 170 to 180 pound Great Dane named Diesel. This dog is huge! One day he was running full out and broke a 6 inch diameter fence post off clean at the base like it was a toothpick. So anyway, I decided to give biking Diesel a try today. I figured that if I felt comfortable biking him, then there wasn’t a dog out there that couldn’t use our leashes. As you can see in the video, Diesel is actually as big as the bike so I knew that the WalkyDog wouldn’t be the best option because it wouldn’t be able to clear his back. So I decided to try the Bike Tow Leash. The Bike Tow leash does a little better job absorbing the pulls of extremely powerful dogs anyway so it was going to be my best option.

No offense Ross, but Diesel is not the best walker. He was lunging like crazy when we were taking him outside to hook up to the bike. It was all I could do to hang on. Luckily I was using my trusty EzyDog Cujo bungee leash. At this point I was really starting to have second thoughts, but once we attached him to the bike he started to calm down a bit – probably because it was so new to him. I walked next to the bike with him to get him used to the idea and then hopped on and we were off. The video above is the very first run and he did amazing. Even better was that I felt in total control during the whole ride. Ross was so surprised to see how well Diesel did and the amount of control I had, that he decided to try it out himself – sporting his stylish Newberry Automotive shirt and all. So in the end I spared myself a trip to the ER and got some great video instead. I am positive this would have never worked just trying to hold on to a normal leash. This definitely drove home for me that we are carrying the absolute best gear on the market for biking your dog. Hopefully Diesel will continue to be a guest star for The Dog Outdoors in the future. Okay – I’m done rambling now.

Before offering this bike leash at our store I put it through the same rigorous tests that I do for all our products. On one particular test run I decided we had to offer our customers this leash. Here’s what happened….

Wet conditions, uneven terrain, crazy powerful dog on the scent of a deer …

So I was riding along and saw a good size buck about 50 yards out. Parker had caught his scent but hadn’t seen him yet. For some reason the deer wasn’t moving at all and I figured now would be the best chance I had to really test this thing. I kept getting closer to him until I was about 10 yards from him. Then I yelled to Parker – “Deer!” and he looked up and saw him. He bolted for him as if he had the strength of 2 dogs, but to my surprise I kept perfect control. I never even had to stop to put my feet down.

Dog Scootering isn’t anything new apparently. I started researching it after giving it a try and found that people actually have organized races. They tend to use bikejoring gear and have the dog out in front of the scooter pulling them like a mushing dog. The WalkyDog actually works great for this setup too. You can have it coming off the front of the scooter and the internal springs act as shock absorption. Not only that, but the WalkyDog actually helps keep the leash or bungee cord out of the tires. Although this is fun for open areas, I really like dog scootering with the WalkyDog coming out to the side of the scooter like in the above video. Why not transform your regular scooter into a dog scooter. I would love to hear feedback of anyone else that is trying this. Have fun out there!

He also happens to be an incredible singer and ucalayli player

Bikejoring is a dog mushing activity where a dog (or dogs) tow a bicycle rider. A special bungee line is attached to the front of the bike and the dog is hooked up via a dog harness made for pulling. Bikejoring is mainly practiced for recreational purposes and just as a fun way to exercise a dog. However, there are some dog sporting organizations that provide bikejor racing classes at competitive events. Here is a great video showcasing exactly what bikejoring is:

Biking a Dog With a Dog Bike Leash – What does it mean?

Unlike bikejoring, where the dog runs in front of the bike, there is also the activity of biking a dog using a dog bike leash that comes out to the side of the bike. The WalkyDog is an example of a dog bike leash that attaches under the seat of the bike and keeps the dog to the side of the bike. A bicycle dog leash is a great alternative to bikejoring and can be more practical in areas that are not as open. Both are great ways to exercise your dog and release energy. The WalkyDog features a patented internal spring system that acts like suspension when your dog pulls – this is similar to how a bungee line works with bikejoring. Here is a video demonstrating how the WalkyDog bike leash works:

-More information about the WalkyDog and dog bike leashes http://www.TheDogOutdoors.com

-More information about bikejoring http://bikejor.blogspot.com/

-Bikejoring equipement http://www.skijornow.com/bikejor.html