Most bike riders who want some assistance opt for an e-bike, but did you know that there’s actually an official name for the activity of hooking up huskies to mountain bikes so they can help give your ride an extra bit of oomph? It’s called bikejoring (similar to skijoring), and you can even buy commercially available harnesses.
It’s actually been around since the 1970s when it first gained popularity in – you guessed it – Scandinavia, but it started to spread worldwide in a big way once mountain bikes started to sell in big numbers in the 1990s, and more people could take their bikes off road (bikejoring isn’t very practical on main roads).
And with the rise of social media videos featuring pooch-pulled bikes have been fairly common, but usually the dogs and riders are seen crossing your usual MTB terrain – dusty or muddy trails.
But here’s something a little different, as YouTuber Krilledass – who actually works with huskies, using them as sled dogs at Lulea Adventure, a tourist attraction in Sweden – harnesses a couple of trusty hounds to his chest, then mounts his mountain bike for a dog-drawn ride through the snow.
Even in the fresh snow, Krilledass is able to travel at a decent pace thanks his canine assistance.
“Took out two of our dogs to see if it’s possible to go with the bike on a snowy trail,” says Krilledass. “Worked just fine only a little bit sketchy.”
Amusingly, he even meets a snowboarder being dragged along by two dogs along the route, at which point he declares his hands are freezing and decides to turn back.
We can definitely see dog-assisted bikepacking in snowy regions becoming all the rage in future.
And we bet there are some people who’ll have an ASMR response to the video – there’s something oddly hypnotic about it.
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