I'm curious. Some may have better endurance / heat dissipating ability (marathon) vs. raw speed (mile, 5k)
I'm sure greyhound will excel in the mile, probably 5k too. I assume around 25-30 MPH for 5k?
I'm not sure about marathon. Maybe the husky dogsled dogs would come out on top here? Though, to those dogs a marathon isn't necessarily a long event, especially if they aren't towing some fatty in a sled over snow.
Keep in mind that weather plays a huge factor here for a lot of breeds. My huskies struggle to run 3 miles if it's warmer than 60 F out, but can go 6+ in the winter while pulling me on skiis.
My Bichon Frise ran a 2:33:05 in her debut marathon. Once she's done doing 5/10Ks this summer, I'll probably have her work on longer intervals and tempos. Perhaps that in combination with her dropping from 9 pounds to 7.5 (becoming more "distance runner thin") she'll hit 2:26 this fall provided the weather is decent on race day.
Battle of the Breeds wrote:
My Bichon Frise ran a 2:33:05 in her debut marathon. Once she's done doing 5/10Ks this summer, I'll probably have her work on longer intervals and tempos. Perhaps that in combination with her dropping from 9 pounds to 7.5 (becoming more "distance runner thin") she'll hit 2:26 this fall provided the weather is decent on race day.
10/10 Not sure if you're trolling or serious but either way bravo!
qkumbr wrote:
I'm curious. Some may have better endurance / heat dissipating ability (marathon) vs. raw speed (mile, 5k)
I'm sure greyhound will excel in the mile, probably 5k too. I assume around 25-30 MPH for 5k?
I'm not sure about marathon. Maybe the husky dogsled dogs would come out on top here? Though, to those dogs a marathon isn't necessarily a long event, especially if they aren't towing some fatty in a sled over snow.
7 pound dog running 2:26? Ya, right.
V1per41 wrote:
Keep in mind that weather plays a huge factor here for a lot of breeds. My huskies struggle to run 3 miles if it's warmer than 60 F out, but can go 6+ in the winter while pulling me on skiis.
Agree with this guy. With no sweat glands and only panting to cool them down, dogs are probably not very good at anything over 800 meters to a mile on a cool day. They are more the sprinter types. Although wolves can trot at a relatively slow pace for very long distances so they may be good ultra runners too on cold/cool days.
Weather is absolutely a factor. When I run with my dog in cooler temps he keeps 7:10 pace for around 6 miles without break. Once it comes up, he slows way down.
Also, I think Greyhounds are a real sprinting dog. Those sons of bitches really are lazy after a sprint.
I used to do some longish trail runs accompanied by a border collie mix, and sometimes a black lab too. I'd say the border collie mix was a little better suited to it. They were both able to more than keep up with no problem as long as we crossed plenty of streams where they could get water. I never took them out in extreme heat. I would estimate that they covered about 50% more distance than me with all their little side trips chasing various furry things. I once took them on a trail run of about 30 miles (for me), and the extra time/distance didn't seem to faze them.
It was hard to tell what pace they could have handled if they were sufficiently motivated. I'm pretty sure they must have covered 40+ rugged, hilly miles in ~4hrs when I took them on my 30 miler. I would usually pack a couple of treats for them to eat en route, but I didn't get the impression that they particularly needed to refuel.
I had an ultrarunner friend who also had a border collie who ran with him on his long runs. He said his dog was able to cover 50 miles with him no problem, even demanding to play fetch with a frisbee as soon as they got home afterwards.
Greyhounds in the US generally race 5/16ths of a mile, so it is pretty hard to extrapolate what their track times would be for an overdistance race (How fast could Jeremy Wariner run an 800m?)
Mr. Obvious wrote:
Greyhounds in the US generally race 5/16ths of a mile, so it is pretty hard to extrapolate what their track times would be for an overdistance race (How fast could Jeremy Wariner run an 800m?)
Their long races are short of 1/2 mile and average about 44 seconds, I found.
Gamera wrote:
I used to do some longish trail runs accompanied by a border collie mix, and sometimes a black lab too. I'd say the border collie mix was a little better suited to it. They were both able to more than keep up with no problem as long as we crossed plenty of streams where they could get water. I never took them out in extreme heat. I would estimate that they covered about 50% more distance than me with all their little side trips chasing various furry things. I once took them on a trail run of about 30 miles (for me), and the extra time/distance didn't seem to faze them.
I had an ultrarunner friend who also had a border collie who ran with him on his long runs. He said his dog was able to cover 50 miles with him no problem, even demanding to play fetch with a frisbee as soon as they got home afterwards.
I too ran with a Border Collie and she had no problem running 5:30 pace for 18 miles. We often did a number of track workouts - like repeat miles about 4:40 and she could do those no problem. She would run in front of me and stay the right distance in front without ever looking back. Quite remarkable. The only bad thing is if she saw a squirrel and she was off chasing!