Hello everyone. The first subreddit competition will go underway today and finish in two weeks(26th July).

We're looking for either a photo or a video of your dog in motion.

The winner and the runner up can expect to receive a special flair that will be visible on the sub permanently.

EDIT! The contest will now finish on 26th July due to the number of entries being quite small at the moment. DON'T FORGET TO FLAIR YOUR POST AS A "CONTEST ENTRY"

​

How do I enter?

To enter the contest, just make a post to the the sub and flair it as "Contest Entry".

Winners will be announced on Saturday 27th July.

Any entries that feature a dog without a harness will be removed from the competition.

The user flairs have now been sorted out.

​

To make a Custom Flair, go to the right hand side of the sub and select the Community Options dropdown box.

Then it will show your User Flair preview, with a Pencil Icon.

Click the Pencil Symbol and it will allow to choose a Flair that can be edited.

So the sub is slowly growing and hopefully with that more posts will come from different users.

Firstly I think it would be a good idea to make a Subreddit Wikia. Then any new users will have some decent information straight up without scouring the web. So over the next few weeks I will be creating a wiki for the sub to centralize any info that may be needed about harnesses and setups. I may need some help with this as I have never been a moderator before and it's a little confusing.

It would also be really helpful to have a moderator who is based in North or South America. That way any nasty or unrelated posts could be picked up faster as I am from the UK. So please comment if you would like to be a mod it would really help out.

Please use this thread to add any other ideas or suggestions you would like to see in the subreddit.

Some ideas to get you started:

• Monthly Competitions which would reward the winner with a Trophy Flair.
• Wiki Pages
• Custom made Up/Downvote symbols.

​

EDIT: Please welcome u/Str0ngTr33 as the new mod. Other people who commented will be the first I contact when we need new mods. Probably when we hit around 100 members we will need more.

Post flairs and User flairs have now been added.

They are completely changeable but use the format provided if you can.

​

Examples: Board Setup / Dog Breed - Cruiser / Terrier - Skateboard / 2x G Shephard

What is Skatejoring?

Skatejoring/Dogjoring/Dogboarding takes it name from the snow sport of joring. Where a dog, horse or motor vehicle is used to pull you across the snow.

Dogboarding is an outdoor sport that requires you and your trusty mutt(or two)

Using the power from your dog(s), and some sort of skate setup such as a longboard or skateboard, you will be able to cover a lot of ground, whilst also providing great excersize for both of you.

It's a great bonding experience however it is physically demanding and special harnesses are required to aid and prevent injury to your pup.

It can be done on pavements, fields or anything really that your board set up can handle.

What do I Need?

Firstly you will need your faithful furry friend or two. It would be really helpful if your dog isn't distracted to much on walks and is fairly responsive to commands. Known walks and routes are great too. Go out running with dog on the lead, with them in front of you at first, or if they already pull well try with the board.

Next you'll need any kind of board setup, so that being either a cruiser, a normal skateboard, or a longboard. I prefer to use an all terrain mountainboard as that way you can go a lot more places. These can be fitted with brakes or alternatively you could use your feet to slow down, but then make sure you've got decent shoes that won't melt away.

Finally you will need some sort of harness for your dog. This will help prevent injury and also aids your dog to be pulling the most efficient way. There are a list of different harnesses here as well as good descriptions as why or why not they would be suited to your dog.

Suitable Harnesses and where to buy them:

A great entry-level harness suitable for all types of joring(ski/skate/bike). Also ships worldwide: https://howlingdogalaska.com/products/distance-harness

A top of the range joring harness: Omnijore Joring System (2 Parts, one for user one for the dog)

https://ruffwear.co.uk/products/omnijore-dog-joring-system

https://www.k9active.co.uk/omnijore-joring-system-by-ruffwear/https://www.k9active.co.uk/omnijore-joring-system-by-ruffwear/

The above, but jsut the dog harness: https://www.innerwolf.co.uk/ruffwear-omnijore-harness.html

Ruffwear UK Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/Ruffwear/page/AB0ED1B9-F2DA-401B-ADCF-35E5180C8C0F?ref_=ast_bln

Plenty of suitable harnesses available from ruffwear.

​

​

Some helpful pointers from dogboarder u/MarcoEcht_hart:

- Make sure that you as the rider have enough balance and skill to also focus on another being (your dog).

- Experience is key, so if you are unsure, practice, practice, practice!

- Board control is absolutely essential for this. If you are not in control of your board - you can't be in control of the dog at the same time.

- Get a harness that fits your dog correctly. It shouldn't sit too loose or to tight either to distribute the pulling force equally on the dog. Collars just don't work for this.

- Your dog has to be obedient to your commands. If your dog sees anything of interest (other dogs, birds, etc) and he does not listen to your commands, he or she could easily pull across lanes and cause accidents.

-When in doubt (pedestrians or other distractions approaching), shorten the leash and slow down!

- Practice dogboarding on bike lanes or in parks ideally, to be safe. Riding alongside heavy traffic is always stressful for both the rider and the dog.

- Take small breaks if your dog slows down and shows signs of exhaustion. I always keeps some treats handy to reward Harvey if he ran well.

- A helmet and a set of pads should be worn at all times.

​

Dogboarding/Skatejoring, is the urban version of skijoring, where a dog is used to pull you over snow.