More Biking with Dogs

We have very two fit, young beagles. They do all sorts of sports from agility and flyball to lure coursing and long daily walks. But these things are nowhere near enough for a beagle - they need lots of off-lead play.

The trouble is, ours used to be so adventurous when off-lead together that we've had to work very hard on training them to stay close. We've succeeded! However, the downside to staying close to a couple of decrepit old farts is that you soon end up in as poor shape as them!!! They used to sprint around the meadows at top speed getting a HUGE amount of exercise each day. It's hard to recreate this whilst keeping them close. We play fetch etc but it's not the same as repeated flat out 1 - 2km chases.

We've tried running, cani-cross etc but we're too slow for them. A fellow Beagle owner recommended mountain biking and I have to say it sounds like the perfect solution for our two. And in actual fact pack beagles were traditionally trained for the hunting season by having the pack run with a cyclist!

Our shiny new mountain bikes are being delivered tomorrow. We've ordered both the walky dog attachment and the clix deluxe ones with the spring. The former looks safer but the one with the spring looks more comfy for the dog?

We've got cycle paths and mountain bike courses within minutes of our home and we plan to take the dogs further afield to make use of all the lovely safe cycling routes around Scotland.

Any tips for a couple of novices? Our first step will be to learn to ride a bike!!!!!! I last rode a bike aged 6 and my husband has never been on one. We need to get fairly competent before our dogs get anywhere near the bikes! No idea how long that's likely to take!

All tips welcome!