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Even though I've been taking Pico and Norrin out on the bike this fall, it has been with no little trepidation each time. Given Pico's proclivity to bolt after any distraction and the general instability of a bike on a rough dirt road with two powerful animals attached to its front fork, I feel my hesitation is justified. An injury at this point could put a damper on the snow season.

After the arrival and settling-in of the DewClaw dogs, part of me wanted, badly, to take Norrin and Reese out to see how they would do together and mostly how Reese would do in lead. However the thought of hooking up and even bigger and unknown dog to the bike was unsettling. It took me a week to ramp up my courage, but I finally gritted my teeth and (with assistance from Peter, since I don't have a snub line on my bike) hooked my two big boys up.

Reese knows his job. He and Norrin ran out of the driveway and down the road like they were born striding along together. At the bottom of the hill, where Norrin still insists on breaking right despite the fact that we have NEVER gone that way, I was pretty sure Reese started to take my "haw" command before Norrin's bulk stopped him. I got off and redirected the two of them to the left, and we were on our way again in seconds. The two boys ran without further problems, Reese ignoring several driveways with just an "onby," taking two more "haw" commands - which Norrin was more amenable to follow. We passed a few yards with barking dogs without hesitation. We were flying, and I was elated.

Then we passed the horses. Pico has had some trouble with the horses, but has always managed to pass them with only some rubbernecking. Reese, however, must have a major weakness for the huge, fuzzy four-legged beasts because the second he caught wind of them his whole demeanor changed. He charged down the driveway to their pens, nearly flipping my bike and completely ignoring my pleas to pass on. I dropped the bike and hauled him back to the road, but where horses were concerned he suddenly had a single-minded, border-collie like focus. There was nothing else in his world. Norrin, a little freaked out by all the chaos, managed to back halfway out of his harness (a trick I'd heard of but never seen) and create a remarkable tangle for just two dogs in the midst of it all.

The horse's owner, at this point, was standing on his porch laughing at the spectacle on the road as I struggle to untangle one dog and break the zen trance of the other so we could move on. The minutes dragged on and Reese was still in another world. Norrin, now untangled and relatively straight on the road, finally decided he'd had enough and bodily dragged Reese by his neckline back in the right direction. Norrin succeeded where I had failed, and Reese turned and began trotting again as if the horses had never existed. The rest of the run went without incident, and I was heartened by the general success as much as I was concerned about the sudden and utter loss of focus.

I have been trying to find an ATV to borrow for the rest of the fall and first part of the winter, so that I can run all the dogs with less risk to my own limbs, until the trails have enough now pack to safely use the sled. After much asking around, my boss' husband was generous enough to lend me his, and I brought it home last week. Our first ride was a rousing success. With a team behind him, Reese took his turns and ignored our equine neighbors like a champ. Although he didn't respond to "Gee/Haw" commands, if I tapped the brakes and said "NO" when he started to take a wrong turn, he immediately corrected and lead everyone in the right direction. Even if it isn't the power steering I got used to last year with Leo, it is certainly leadership I can work with!

(Don't be fooled by Norrin's perfect "haw" - he just recognizes the driveway!)

Once everyone was settled back into the yard, I noticed that Reese was favoring one of his wrists. I brought him inside for the rest of the afternoon to keep him off it, rubbed it down with an emu oil that Jodi had given me when I picked up her crew and tried without success to find a cause. Although I know that injuries are a part of running, seeing him limping (and after only one run!) got me a little worked up. I felt awful! After some consultation with Jodi, we decided on a treatment course of rest and more rest. With my one probably-leader off the table for at least a week, the success of future ATV runs was certainly, at least in my mind, in doubt.