Using a scooter or a mountain bike is allowed without permit.

If you had a cross breed!!!!! then you can start thinking about perhaps some sled dog registers or some open events that are coming up later in the year but you will have to have experience and your dog must know commands etc or else you will not be allowed on the trail also you will only have 1 dog so be prepared to be sitting last in your class as you will be racing against hound crosses, huskies etc that do an average of prob 20 - 25 miles an hour!!!!!!!!

its a bit late now in the season but really you should leave your dogs at home and go to a rally, keep your eyes and ears open and watch and learn!

This is not strictly accurate - it is the fact that you are using a dog to pull you that is against the law in public places, not the mode of transport they pull you on.

"I cannot find any law that states it is illegal to run your dog on a bike or a scooter"


One dog can not run in an open class (certainly not for the organisation I run with who allow some non purebred sleddogs to run).

"The only open class register is with ABSA which wasnt what i was referring to as i said an Inuit could not be raced in any events at present but there are open classes that you can. These are at events such as Brandon Forest, November, Wyedean Quest next year and there will be more, you obviously havent heard about them yet but seeing as i have cross breeds myself i do try and keep up to date with whats going on and if you wanted to get really into it you can run in scotland because you can run whatever you like there!"


The last rally of the season was today, there will not be anymore now until October.

"There are still a couple of fun days and stuff in march and april as i was at the AMWA rally today and it was pointed out there is a trek (AMWA) and i know ABSA have one and there is another in September at Thetford. These days may well have training or teach ins available"

Lupus - the Pawtrekker is a good scooter, just check the suspension. The one I tried was very 'soft' but I hear they have improved this now. There are a variety of different scooters available, I would advise you to try them out if possible before purchasing one. I prefer a 20" front wheel however I know others like the 26" front. For 1 dog a scooter is fine, I have run 3 on a scooter and that can be a little hairy! We normally train two on a scooter, anymore and I take the rig out.

The type of harness you go for is really up to you. The pawtrekkers have a brushbow (a front attachment which you harness the dogs up to) and due to the line of pull I would suggest an X-back harness with these types of scooter (or a rig). Some people prefer the shoulder harness which works better if you are attaching the dog higher up (either to the headstock or to yourself via a belt). There are many different makes of harness, my personal favourite is the Bjorkis harness however there is only the one distributor of these in the country. The ManMat harness also look decent.

The only other piece of equipment you will need is the gangline, it is up to you whether you get a 1 dog or 2 dog line (if you are planning on running two together in the near future you can always just buy a 2 dog line and wrap one tug around the other when running a 1 dog (the tug is the smaller line that comes off the gangline and attaches to the dogs harness). If you are running a 2 dog team then you will also use a neckline, these normally come supplied with the gangline if it is for more than 1 dog. Some suppliers do a dedicated scooter line however I find a 1 to 2 dog gangline more effective.

Am I right in thinking you want to attach the springer to the scooter? We have a springer which we use for general fitness but have it attached to a bike.

If its against the law for a dog to pull you in public would i be better suited to a scooter and springer? ... Would i need to worry about training him to pull weights or anything like that with a scooter? and are there any restrictions on him pulling in front if i do decide to go with ganglines etc? would i need to take him on private land for example?

Greyhawk thanks for the advice, what you've told me is pretty much what i had researched, its the fact i live on an estate which is the problem not alot of areas in which to do the job!

"I cannot find any law that states it is illegal to run your dog on a bike or a scooter"

"The only open class register is with ABSA which wasnt what i was referring to as i said an Inuit could not be raced in any events at present but there are open classes that you can. These are at events such as Brandon Forest, November, Wyedean Quest next year and there will be more, you obviously havent heard about them yet but seeing as i have cross breeds myself i do try and keep up to date with whats going on and if you wanted to get really into it you can run in scotland because you can run whatever you like there!"

"There are still a couple of fun days and stuff in march and april as i was at the AMWA rally today and it was pointed out there is a trek (AMWA) and i know ABSA have one and there is another in September at Thetford. These days may well have training or teach ins available"

Matt not only races on a rig but trains on a scooter as does his wife.