4-Paw Drive: Running with Sherpa

Who needs a Garmin when you have a four-legged running partner! Our lab Sherpa loves a good run-walk-job mix around our neighborhood streets, paths or trails.

Pros & cons of running with Sherpa:
+ her natural sense of pace
+ her company when I need it
+ her dog vision for night running
+ her scary growl/bark to protect me if I need it
- the poop bag
- her sense of smell
- holding the leash

I'm not sure if dogs' gaits are described like horses' gaits, but when I run with Sherpa, I consider her gaits & speed levels to include:

1-paw drive - the walk: a slow four-beat gait; pleasant, time for Sherpa to smell things and to explore as my legs warm up for my run-walk-jog.
2-paw drive - the trot: a two-beat gait; as I pick up my speed, she shifts into a slightly quicker pace but it's "no big deal" for her to stay ahead of me, she appears bored.
3-paw drive - the canter: a three-beat gait; as I top out my speed, she seems surprised & excited to run alongside of me.
4-paw drive - the gallop: a faster, four-beat gait; a rare mysterious speed that shocks us both.

Active.com Expert Gale Berhardt recently blogged about running wih her dog Meeka & shared tips for running in the heat. Running With Your Dog in the Summer: & see her cold-weather tips as well Cold Weather Running With Your Dog:. Also see Active's article: 10 Races to Do with Your Dog.

And find tips for handling scary dogs on the bike or foot in my earlier post "Chopper, sic 'em boy!" (includes a classic Stand By Me clip.)

Questions for you:
- If you have a dog, do you like to run with him/her? What speed/gait do you reach?

- What tips do you have for running with a dog?

- What bothers you most about other runners who bring their dogs along?

Chopper, sic'em, Boy! - Things I Wish I Knew

#4 Chopper, sic'em, Boy!
Series: Things I Wish I Knew as a New Triathlete.

In the 1986 movie Stand by Me, a kid named Gordie gets caught taking a shortcut through a junkyard. Milo, the junkyard owner, demands answers and Gordie runs. Milo calls to his dog, "Chopper, sic'em, Boy!" But Gordie hears, "Chopper, sic balls!"

The chase begins.



I'm a dog person. I grew up with dogs as pets. Our family has a Lab named Sherpa . But, as a triathlete, spending miles on the bike and run, I hate dogs. They stalk, chase and terrify me.

The Choppers I've met on the road aren't sweet-hearted Retrievers like in Stand by Me. Instead, my Choppers are nasty, aggressive biters and like Gordie, I run and scream.

I've tried:
- outrunning/outriding the dog(s),
- screaming like a crazy person,
- pretending I'm not actually scared (we know from Jerry McGuire that dogs and bees can smell fear), and
- sacrificing my husband (Ken), making him ride past first.

Ken's not scared. He barks back and thinks that's funny (though he did get bit by a Golden Retriever!). Other triathletes say squirt loose dogs with water.

Read these suggestions & then tell me how you handle a Chopper:
- Stay calm, don't smile & don't run. If Chopper gets you, curl into a fetal position, stay still and don't scream. More tips here.
- No eye contact! What if the dog jumps? Tips here.
- Don't pet the dog.
- BeginnerTriathlete discusses dogs.
- Even Chihuahuas give a good chase.
- An old but good discussion thread from bikeforums.com.
- Dog vs Bike in the Tour de France here and here.

Tell me, what works for you? Anyone try Crocodile Dundee's custom move? (2nd half of the clip)

In Stand By Me four kids setoff on a journey hoping to find the dead body of a missing boy. The film's trailer says, "For some, it's the last real taste of innocence. And the first real taste of life. But for everyone it's the time that memories are made of."

Like Stand By Me, triathlon is an adventure, filled with memory-making moments. While my bike and run miles may not be Chopper-free, I hope to deny Chopper his first real taste of me.
Bite me Chopper.

Triathlon is a rewarding sport for people of all ages and abilities. 2009 is your year to taste triathlon. As a triathlete, you'll surprise yourself as you face fears and set personal bests. You'll be more confident, have more energy and smile more often. People will be drawn to that difference. Triathlon is a rewarding sport for people of all ages and abilities, wearing underwear is optional. Sleestak sightings rare. Dogs, many.

Check out Why You Can series:Common excuses:
1-I have no time. 2-I can't afford it. 3-I'm too old. 4-I'm afraid. 5-I'm not an athlete.

Also see Series: Things I Wish I Knew As a New Triathlete:
#1 My swimsuit was see-through.
#2 Go Commando: Things I Wish I Knew
#3 Land of the Lost Training

And visit me in active.com's triathlon community. Come say hello, I'm a volunteer moderator!