First Time Skijoring

I was so nervous to try this out! If Denali wasn't doing well it would have been no problem to let her off leash, but Kaytu can't be off yet. Her recall has come a long way in the the 2 and 1/2 months we've had her but it's nowhere near good enough to stand up against the great outdoors.

 

A lot of things were concerning me. Kaytu took to biking really well but has only done that once and was pretty distracted. She only met her friend snow last night but that was like a fish to water so I wasn't too concerned about that being a factor. I haven't been cross country skiing since I was 12. I wasn't expecting disaster, but it wouldn't have surprised me if it was a struggle.

I left her head collar on just in case things weren't going well so I could swap from harness to that if needed. However, she was perfect! Even Denali was really pulling. If we lived in Colorado I'd certainly get a skijoring belt but visiting family for the holidays once a year isn't enough for me to justify buying one. Hub was fine with Nali, but Kay pulled hard the entire time and despite swapping hands now and then I was certainly feeling it by the end. We all had a blast!

Denali is wearing the Urban Trail adjustable harness from Apline Outfitters and Kaytu has an X-Back Sledding Harness from Black Ice Dog Sledding Equipment. Both harnesses work great. The X-back fits properly when the dog is pulling, and as Nali doesn't consistently pull the Urban Trail style harness works better for her.

I'm having trouble getting the videos to upload here, so I'll link to Youtube. First is Kaytu running with me, then Denali with hub, next is Denali being impatient and excited, and last is both dogs pulling me.

Kaytu

Denali

Denali is excited!

Kaytu & Denali together