Sleds

[pumbaa]

I keep thinking about building a sled for carrying kit in . It does help that my pup (the bacon hunter) is a rotty and has the weight and muscle to pull such a thing .
I wouldnt get him to do anything i couldnt do myself , so i am looking at the pros and cons of using one localy . The picture i have in mind is kind of like the ones used for arctic expeditions . Localy we have a mix of sand , mud and gravel so that is what i would mainley use it on . I figure something like the narrow "halfords" roof boxes would be about the right shape and size , but am not sure on what to do with the runners . I figure wheels would be more effort than they are worth having pushed a wheelchair through wareham forest . So i am thinking a full length runner on eight inch legs running either side would possibly make the thing workable . I have never used anything like this before ,but i am thinking that something of this sort of design would traverse tree roots and gravel easyer than a wheeled cart .
What do you think ? All input greatfully recived .
Cheers
Pumbaa

 

[running bare]

not to genned up but to my way of thinking wide ski type runners would be better on soft ground as with a wider footprint it will be harder for them to sink in too wide and they could create too much friction on dry ground. so its a compromise really. if you are putting them up on legs might be an idea to splay them out over making the sled more stable on uneven ground. either way good luck with the project

you could make a cheap mock up out of mdf to see how the design works and then change various aspects til you have a good working model then go for the Halfrauds top box

Tom

thats the way i would try it first

 

[JonnyP]

Pumbaa.........You had better tie the kit down well, because if Codie smells bacon and starts running, there could be your gear everywhere. I would of thought of bigger wheels would be best, to cope with the terrain better. Remember that it is easier to pull a wheelchair than to push it over rough ground, Codie would be pulling.................Jon

 

[Polestar]

I remember seeing pictures of the mushing sleds with three large wheels, they use for huskeys in non-snow conditions ... wish I could remeber where I saw the pictures. Might work.
David

 

[Carcajou Garou]

Maybe a wheeled travois style would be in order. Place the wheels in a mid section to balance the load so the dog does not have to bear the whole weight other than pulling. Possibly use wheels from an old mountain bike to give the proper ground clearance and allow the dogs harness to have a human drag strap to help it out when the pulling is harder. CG :yo:

 

[Greywolf]

I had a quick google around and have looked at some photos of the training carts used in mushing. It apears they have carts with fairly thin wheels for racing on hard surfaces (mountain bike wheel width) and for 'offroad' they use wheels more like those on a quadbike. Designs of training cart vary quite a bit between manufacturers, but a 3 wheel design seems to be a fairly common one.

Have a look at this link, it might give you a few ideas

http://www.bewe-sleds.de/english/index.htm

Hope that helps


Greywolf

 

[pumbaa]

Those training carts look like fun One of those and a chunk of bacon on a stick should get me miles and miles !
But seriously , mountain bike wheels could well be the way to go . If thats what the sleder's use for practice . A wheelchair wheel pivot should be strong enough to bolt them on . Better practice my ally welding !!
Cheers
Pumbaa

 

[Motorbike Man]

I'd definately go for wheels rather than skids due to friction. How's about kite buggy wheels , you can even get Bigfoot wheels that are designed especially for soft ground.

 

[leon-1]

Pumbaa, I am with the others on this.

The sleds that they use on expedition (pulks) are very heavy when laden and they are hulled like a boat (think rigid raider for this one). Effectivley the friction of moving them creates a little water for them to glide on over ice and compressed snow. When they stop they are an absolute git to get moving again.

Wheels and obviously the wider the better and as many on a side as you can comfortably fit and still have it able to manouvre would be the way to go.

 

[arctic hobo]

I may be spouting utter rubbish, but I thought that pulling loads with your dog had been outlawed in the UK?

 

[pumbaa]

I may be spouting utter rubbish, but I thought that pulling loads with your dog had been outlawed in the UK?

Oh !!
Any ideas where i can find out for sure ?
Cheers
Pumbaa

 

[Motorbike Man]

I may be spouting utter rubbish, but I thought that pulling loads with your dog had been outlawed in the UK?

If that was the case, Husky Racing would be illegal

 

[sourdough]

Hi Folks

There is a large community of Husky Mushers in the UK. As well as sleds with wheel rigs and sleds, you can also panniers.

It is a lot of fun racing the dogs.

A couple of good links are:
www.dogsportscotland.com
http://adventure.visitscotland.com/providers/dumfriesandgalloway_dogsports/dog_sledding
The latter link is the only full time sled dog centre in the UK (I think).

Sourdough

 

[JonnyP]

Hi Folks

There is a large community of Husky Mushers in the UK. As well as sleds with wheel rigs and sleds, you can also panniers.

It is a lot of fun racing the dogs.

A couple of good links are:
www.dogsportscotland.com
http://adventure.visitscotland.com/providers/dumfriesandgalloway_dogsports/dog_sledding
The latter link is the only full time sled dog centre in the UK (I think).

Sourdough

I bet the dogs love it too..............Jon

 

[Carcajou Garou]

Actually dogs love the racing but more than that they love to please and be usefull just as the musher keeps the limitation within reality. They are very well cared for by both the mushers and the vets that are on course, they spend a much healthier productive life than overweight, out of shape apartment dogs with no exercise and no variety in life. Never seen a sled dog that wasn't full of life and excited to be on the trail, they were a very important part of aboriginal life, they ate before the human owners as they were their lifeline to security in many ways. They provided transportation, predator warning, companionship (better than most humans they don't make value judgements just love you thats all), heat, humour.
Best investment man has ever made CG :yo:

 

[sourdough]

They do love it John,

However it is not just Huskies that race, some people use various other Spitz type dogs like the Greenland Dog or the Alaskan Malamute, but perhaps more bizarrely, earlier tonight I was watching a DVD of the 2004 Iditerod race in Alaska, and there was a chap there who was racing the distance with BLACK LABRADORS!!!

Sourdough

 

[pumbaa]

I am quite supprised that there is such a dog sledding movement in the uk .
My only insight is a book called Winterdance . Its about a bloke who races the Iditerod . Even though some a lot of teams drop out etc. and people are losing toes through frostbite , it makes you wish you were there !!!
thanks for the links .
Pumbaa

 

[John Dixon]

the dogs love it... just a word to the wise get a harness that fits your dog properly. if ill fitted you will injure your dog and scare him away from the task. I would recomend a H harness or an X harness. These are made to measure. Not all dogs pull well with weight on. And the down side of training your dog to pull is you may never get them to walk to heal on a lead again.

However there is nothing like having your dog/s pulling you along, natures way of travelling like surfing a wave in.. Totaly awsome

In fact i have two trips out to canada this winter to sled, cant wait.....

 

[BorderReiver]

I may be spouting utter rubbish, but I thought that pulling loads with your dog had been outlawed in the UK?

I think that only applies to roads.

The law is against using dogs as draught animals and probably has gone out of use as has the horse for milk and coal delivery.

 

[Heathenpeddler]

And the down side of training your dog to pull is you may never get them to walk to heal on a lead again.

The thing to remember here is to ONLY train the dog to pull when in harness. Dogs don't generalise like we do, they will see the two things as different. Just be sure you have a dog you can control before you start thr training, you really don't want them haring off after a rabbit with a rig in tow. But as long as you keep up the normal walks with the lead they will be fine.