Saturday was a fine day to get out on the bike (well, what day isn't?)...After doing some bike maintenance earlier in the week, it was time to take the shiny clean bike out and dirty it up! I hopped on the singlespeed and decided to ride from the house with a loose plan of linking trails from Phils up to Tumalo Falls and then see how the legs felt and what would unfold.
I kept the plans open-ended since I had not been out on the bike for a while and was unsure whether I had been able to kick the bug (that kicked me around for a while) to the curb. I had 2 water bottles and no idea where the legs were.
Once I got to Tumalo, I decided to head up North Fork and ride it to Happy Valley and then ride down Mrazek and back home. It ended up being a stellar day on the bike, although there was one really bizarre episode that unfolded.....
As I got to the top of North Fork and was about to get on the connector trail to Mrazek/Farewell, a black lab found me and exuberantly became my buddy! He gregariously came up to me full of energy and tried jumping up to give me his full greeting. Fortunately I was able to see this coming and was able to dodge the paws as he whiffed the air. I stopped for a little bit and gave him some attention and then went on my merry way. The dog owner had driven up to the top of the trailhead and was busy on his phone as his dog ran amok.
While riding downhill, I could hear the panting of the dog behind me. I just figured either the owner would call him back, or he would get tired and lose interest in hanging with a smelly rider....About a mile later I realized he found his new best buddy and would not leave me side. Being a dog owner (or more accurately, owned by dogs) I thought the right thing to do was to turn around and take the excited pup back to its owner. I passed a couple of guys going downhill as I was trying to get back to the junction and of course the pup gave them the same exuberant greeting which was generally met with a 'wow, you are an excited pup'. I quickly threw out the disclaimer that it was not my dog and he started following me...the last thing I wanted was to be reprimanded for something I was not responsible for!
I got back up to the junction and the dog-owner was now off the phone. I ran into a couple more riders at the junction and asked the owner who was over by his car if the dog was his to which he replied in the affirmative. The dog gave them the now customary jump/slobber/paw combo while we were there too. At this point, I figured I had done the right thing and it was time to enjoy the hard earned downhill. I got about 50 yards down the trail and heard the familiar panting and dog steps behind me. I stopped and asked the owner if he could call his dog and keep him close so he did not follow me...AGAIN? The thoughts rolling through my mind was that this guy was not being the most responsible owner but those perhaps were too kind when he blurted out 'Most guys ride fast enough so he can't keep up'.
What??? Now that my fragile ego had been insulted I told the guy 'OK, I did what I needed to, it is now your problem'. I rode off and of course the dog was on my wheel as we headed downhill. After about 2 miles I stopped at the next junction and the dog was about ready to collapse from all the running so I stopped, let him cool off, and gave him some water. During this rest, the two riders that were up at the junction to witness all this rolled up and said 'Can you believe how much of an ASS that guy was?'. The irony was that I had passed them on the uphill and they mentioned how I had passed them like they were standing still and not only was the owner an ass for saying that, but he probably did not realize he was talking to perhaps not the slowest dude in the world (certainly no where close to the fastest either). We all pontificated about what a jerk the owner was and he did not deserve a dog like that and that his dogs had more smarts and manners (taking into account the over-exhuberant greetings) than his owner, etc.
At this point my plans for the day were changing because I figured the best thing to do was take the shortest way back down to Tumalo Falls where I could give the pup to someone (hopefully a ranger) that would take care of the situation. The last thing I wanted to do was call the dog owner as he was a total ASS-clown. A couple more riders showed up and at this point my little plan started to hatch.....I figured the pup would probably follow whoever left first and so I lingered and 'let the pup rest' until the riders took off. Sure enough, the pup followed them and I decided to exit stage left going the other direction (my original plan).
I am sure the dog made it back down to Tumalo Falls with the riders but for his sake, I hope his owner either learns to be more responsible, or that the dog finds better suited parents!
As for the moral of the story....I guess sometimes it pays to be a good samaritan and other times, not so much.....I still feel like I did the right thing be returning the dog the first time - we can't be accountable for other people's stupidity.
I kept the plans open-ended since I had not been out on the bike for a while and was unsure whether I had been able to kick the bug (that kicked me around for a while) to the curb. I had 2 water bottles and no idea where the legs were.
Once I got to Tumalo, I decided to head up North Fork and ride it to Happy Valley and then ride down Mrazek and back home. It ended up being a stellar day on the bike, although there was one really bizarre episode that unfolded.....
As I got to the top of North Fork and was about to get on the connector trail to Mrazek/Farewell, a black lab found me and exuberantly became my buddy! He gregariously came up to me full of energy and tried jumping up to give me his full greeting. Fortunately I was able to see this coming and was able to dodge the paws as he whiffed the air. I stopped for a little bit and gave him some attention and then went on my merry way. The dog owner had driven up to the top of the trailhead and was busy on his phone as his dog ran amok.
While riding downhill, I could hear the panting of the dog behind me. I just figured either the owner would call him back, or he would get tired and lose interest in hanging with a smelly rider....About a mile later I realized he found his new best buddy and would not leave me side. Being a dog owner (or more accurately, owned by dogs) I thought the right thing to do was to turn around and take the excited pup back to its owner. I passed a couple of guys going downhill as I was trying to get back to the junction and of course the pup gave them the same exuberant greeting which was generally met with a 'wow, you are an excited pup'. I quickly threw out the disclaimer that it was not my dog and he started following me...the last thing I wanted was to be reprimanded for something I was not responsible for!
I got back up to the junction and the dog-owner was now off the phone. I ran into a couple more riders at the junction and asked the owner who was over by his car if the dog was his to which he replied in the affirmative. The dog gave them the now customary jump/slobber/paw combo while we were there too. At this point, I figured I had done the right thing and it was time to enjoy the hard earned downhill. I got about 50 yards down the trail and heard the familiar panting and dog steps behind me. I stopped and asked the owner if he could call his dog and keep him close so he did not follow me...AGAIN? The thoughts rolling through my mind was that this guy was not being the most responsible owner but those perhaps were too kind when he blurted out 'Most guys ride fast enough so he can't keep up'.
What??? Now that my fragile ego had been insulted I told the guy 'OK, I did what I needed to, it is now your problem'. I rode off and of course the dog was on my wheel as we headed downhill. After about 2 miles I stopped at the next junction and the dog was about ready to collapse from all the running so I stopped, let him cool off, and gave him some water. During this rest, the two riders that were up at the junction to witness all this rolled up and said 'Can you believe how much of an ASS that guy was?'. The irony was that I had passed them on the uphill and they mentioned how I had passed them like they were standing still and not only was the owner an ass for saying that, but he probably did not realize he was talking to perhaps not the slowest dude in the world (certainly no where close to the fastest either). We all pontificated about what a jerk the owner was and he did not deserve a dog like that and that his dogs had more smarts and manners (taking into account the over-exhuberant greetings) than his owner, etc.
At this point my plans for the day were changing because I figured the best thing to do was take the shortest way back down to Tumalo Falls where I could give the pup to someone (hopefully a ranger) that would take care of the situation. The last thing I wanted to do was call the dog owner as he was a total ASS-clown. A couple more riders showed up and at this point my little plan started to hatch.....I figured the pup would probably follow whoever left first and so I lingered and 'let the pup rest' until the riders took off. Sure enough, the pup followed them and I decided to exit stage left going the other direction (my original plan).
I am sure the dog made it back down to Tumalo Falls with the riders but for his sake, I hope his owner either learns to be more responsible, or that the dog finds better suited parents!
As for the moral of the story....I guess sometimes it pays to be a good samaritan and other times, not so much.....I still feel like I did the right thing be returning the dog the first time - we can't be accountable for other people's stupidity.
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