Dog-free road riding locations?

[emily_in_nc]

As many of you know, I was involved in a cycling crash involving two dogs running out to terrorize my husband and myself six weeks ago. I'm still recovering from three pelvic fractures. I keep imagining what it is going to be like to ride again, whether I'll be brave enough to do so after I heal completely.

The problem is, I live in central NC and normally ride in a rural area where many people don't think it necessary to restrain their dogs. On a typical ride, there can be several "dog incidents".

Just fantasizing for a moment: does anyone live anywhere or know of anywhere where you can take nice long rides on the road without dogs chasing you - where people actually keep their dogs fenced or chained or indoors? I doubt I'd resort to moving, but you just never know! Right now my imagination is running a bit wild, and while I can't fathom giving up cycling, I can't imagine actually doing it again on our roads either!

So tell me about where you live if the cycling is great and if dogs are not a worry. Low traffic and a great bike club would be a big plus too! I'm probably just dreaming, huh?

Thanks!
Emily

[DeniseGoldberg]

Emily -
I guess I've been pretty lucky so far on the dog front. Usually I have no dog interactions when I ride around home - generally north of Boston, the New Hampshire coast, and southern Maine. Of course now that I say that I'll probably have a dog after me on my very next ride!

The only time (so far) that I fell because of a dog is actually pretty funny. The dog was a large friendly breed, and I think he (or she!) must have been some kind of herding dog. As I got closer to him, he started heading toward my bike. So I stopped and stood up. Like I said, this dog appeared to be friendly, not attacking. I told him to go home, then I started riding again. He headed toward me again - but it was as if he was herding me to the side of the road. I had to stop or I was going to hit him, and I really didn't want to do that. I guess I just wasn't moving my feet fast enough because I ended up on the ground before I got my foot free of the pedals. It was a slow speed fall over as opposed to a real crash. It definitely wasn't the kind of situation that caused your crash.

Neil Gunton - the mastermind behind crazyguyonabike.com wrote and article that you might find interesting about dogs & cycling. It's at DealingWithDogs.crazyguyonabike.com.

--- Denise

[emily_in_nc]

Neil Gunton - the mastermind behind crazyguyonabike.com wrote and article that you might find interesting about dogs & cycling. It's at DealingWithDogs.crazyguyonabike.com.
--- Denise

Thanks for the link, Denise. I read the article. Unfortunately, both my husband and I having HALT did nothing to prevent my accident. The dogs came too fast and were too close to the road to begin with so that we couldn't act fast enough - and my HALT was mounted right on my handlebars, that's how fast they were!

The only time I have ever gotten off my bike and put my bike between me and a dog, I had to use it to fight him off with the bike; thank goodness the owners ran out and grabbed him, or I might have been injured. He was a really mean one!

Normally we just try to sprint as fast as possible, use Halt if they get close enough (and it does work if you can get it out in time), but this time, all our normal methods failed us.

For the future, I ordered a super loud air horn (Nashbar sells these), recommended by a friend who cycles in Texas. She says it startles dogs and they tend to stop in their tracks. I hope so. But even with that and Halt, I know I am going to be scared to hit the road again. I just hope I can overcome that fear.

Emily

P.S. Don't get me wrong; I love dogs under normal conditions and have one myself. I just don't like loose ones when I ride.

[cruziegirl]

Gads, how awful that you were injured that severely because of a dog owner's irresponsibility! I live in the Santa Cruz Mountains in California and generally have very few dog incidents. However, the time my sister and I went down to Hollister/San Juan Bautista for a ride it was like every damn dog in the place was gunning for us. I think we must have had about 8 nasty dogs that went for us in the course of 20 measly miles! I love dogs (I've had labrador retrievers forever) but the sad truth is that many people just don't think they need to contain their dogs. And out in rural areas having a mean dog is like some weird badge of honor. I think the air horn idea sounds great but it does mean having to grab for something, find the trigger and blast it off...none of which is easy when some big, mean dog is flying at you like a missile. Even when it's a small, mean dog...those little terrier things can give you a heart attack! All I can ever think of to do is pedal faster and I know that won't always work.

[emily_in_nc]

I think the air horn idea sounds great but it does mean having to grab for something, find the trigger and blast it off...none of which is easy when some big, mean dog is flying at you like a missile.

Fortunately, the horn trigger will be mounted on my handlebar, and all you have to do is press it! (The bottle part with the air is mounted in a water bottle cage.) So it should be VERY easy to use, easier than Halt, I'll just have to remember to pump up the bottle part with a pump now and then (it runs on air just like a tire, but says you can get many blasts with one pump up).

Thanks for all the well wishes. We just had another cyclist in our club crash badly yesterday, breaking a hip and femur, so I am really jumpy today. His crash was not caused by dogs or a motor vehicle - sounds like it was a paceline collision, but still...it does make me even more frightened to get out there again. I have totally lost the cloak of invulnerability I used to wear while riding, and now I just see danger everywhere. I am hoping that will fade in time, but it's just too early to tell.

I've been thinking more about getting into mountain biking. I'm a complete novice to that; just got my first entry-level mtb this winter for riding gravel roads and trails around our neighborhood, but I might have to get more involved with that. Even though I LOVE riding the roads and doing club rides, and even though I know that crashes certainly happen on the trails, it just feels safer to me right now since there are no vehicles and normally no chasing dogs in the woods.

Emily

[spazzdog]

Another use for that rifle rack we've talked about in other threads...

No, I love dogs and haven't met one on or off the bike that wasn't willing to back down... I can be a "teeny" bit scary. Plus I'm very "Alpha" with dogs (unlike my sweet demure character at other times).

The advice given here is always top-rate. HALT, airhorns, you'll learn which works best... mostly you'll do fine as you get you confidence back. Sometimes a quick call to the police (after you outrun the pups) to report the dogs does the trick. And call them every time you go by the place if the dogs are loose, whether you are on a bike or in a car or on foot.

Looking forward to future ride reports from you Emily!

spazz

[bikerchick68]

I can be a "teeny" bit scary. Plus I'm very "Alpha" with dogs (unlike my sweet demure character at other times).
spazz

LOL... yep that's me too! no one has EVER described me as the passive type... think it's a compliment? Sure hope so...

emily it stinks that your friend crashed too, adding to your angst. I hear of accidents as well, and have heard that most people have an accident about every 5 yrs... ??? Crap, I'm 3 yrs in... sigh... statistics stink! I'd say get out there and just take it easy for a while... I ALWAYS carry pepper spray and if I see a dog anywhere that is unleashed, whether they appear friendly or not, the spary is out and ready to go... even a friendly dog that runs into a bike doing 18mph will cause you to go down unless you're a really good bike handler...

[Selkie]

Emily - I live in Arlington, VA and the county has a very, very strict leash law. In addition, DC and Fairfax County (which surround Arlington) have similar laws. I've encountered a "problem" off leash dog only once so far---more of a "obstacle" than a threat. I pass a lot of dogs and their owners when I ride and I make it a point to say "Hi puppy." I'm a big dog lover, as I have three beautiful golden retrievers.
I completely understand your fear of loose dogs, however. A couple years ago, I was walking Agnes (my big girl--96lbs) in our neighborhood and a vicious dog attacked Agnes, dragging me and the dog's owner across the street (talk about major road rash). Yes, both dogs were leashed. I thought the dog was going to kill Agnes, so I kicked the SOB. Ended up that I was the one w/bites and Agnes got off without a scratch. I preferred that outcome, if one of us had to be injured. Anyway, I won't walk my girls anymore because of the irresponsible owners who insist on having aggressive dogs whom they won't control. I don't live in the "hood," either, so who knows why yuppies need these beasts? Thank goodness I've never had one come after me while I'm biking. Sometimes, if you just scream at them--GO HOME or NO, they turn tail and run (so I've heard).
Arlington is an urban area and I limit my street/road riding. We have an awesome system of paved trails in the DC/MD/Norther VA area--it's a good thing because a lot of the drivers here aren't "bike friendly." Also, it's crowded beyond belief here and there are way too many people who live in the DC metro area. It's changed a lot in the 18 years I've been here and it's not for the better. 13 more years til I can retire and move somewhere less crowded, with weather conducive to year round riding!
I really miss Pittsburgh, PA, which is my home town. People are nice there.

[bikerchick68]

emily... man, I'd be nervous as heck after that experience too! In 3 yrs riding I've only been chased twice... and both times my adreneline kicked in hard... good thing I don't have high blood pressure or I'd have had a heart attack!

Overall, San Diego is a great place to ride... but really, stupidly expensive to live... sigh...but a great place to ride... we normally only get rain about 10 days a year!

I hope it all works out and you never, ever have to go thru this again...