although never bit, i did have a rott saliva polish my heel in an apparent attempt to do so. usualy, i can outsprint any dog, so long as it is level or downhill. i even back off after the jump just to allow them a good ol' 'lil run.
but dog chase is no fun. i even know strong cyclists who have all but given up the road due to being chased.
i carry in my jersey pocket, which you must practice at deploying readily.
funny thing is, most dogs seem to avoid me since i carry, they may sense a certain attitude. you also get a sense of when the dog is serious, it usualy comes up without much barking, just fully runnin'.
as for what to carry, there are only two, MACE brand, a 50/50 mace pepper spray, the mace is really only for old times sake as the pepper spray is so effective. do not doubt this. the mace, though, does provide a long term disorienting effect. this is the choice for law enforcment and corrections officers.
then there is HALT, what the postal service carries, pepper spray, a good and cheap choice.
in either case, these are both sprays not foggers. do not consider a fogger as an effective choice, esp on the bike. of course the ultimate is the bear foggers, a damn near 40 oz. can that shoot 40 foot. these can and have stopped 'em all, bear, buffalo, backwoods bob, you name it.
if you must spray a dog, and i do not like to, you will find a short blast to be enough. the exception was this one rott, it seemed unfazed even with a face moistened from a two or three second spray. a fraction of a second will usualy do, in fact the effect seems to happen before actual contact is made, the dog can smell it comin'.
one tip, if you spray in front of the dog owners, do not accompany your spray with comment, this way you can dash with the least amount of disturbance...
cucamelsmd15 said:
I tuck a small can of Mace under the cuff of my right short. Living in the country, people let their dogs run loose, most of which wont hesitate to bite. Ive been forced to use it on more than one occasion because I was concerned with being bitten while riding.
Anyone else?