CAF Story | When running with your dog is more than just a hobby
Video / February 20, 2025
Transcript
(EL) Canicross is running with the dog pulling in front of you. So, the difference between marathon running and canicross is that I had to adjust how I train. There's also the «training my dog» part and then you bring it together, and you get canicross. It's more sprint. So it's a lot of intervals running. There's also the bond with the dogs, so working with the dog. If he wants to pull naturally or if it's something that he has to learn. So, it's a teamwork where you develop something together.
I don't need multiple dogs for this sport. It's a passion, I love it, it's a way of life. They're my family, so they're kids to me. We do everything together. So, it's more of a choice than a need, but they also get me to compete in different type of races. So, some of them are gonna be better at long distances, others at sprints.
I started running when I was pretty young. It's a family thing. I used to run with my dad. He was a marathon runner. I did my first marathon at 19 years old. I got injured so that took a little while to heal properly. So, I started physio. There was a lot of exercise to do to stabilize my ankle. After about 3 years, that's when I started to run again with my first dog Whisky. So, he's really the one who got me back into running. The hardest part was really mentally to know how I was and now I could barely do 1k. So, mentally, it was challenging to keep running. And I started the process of running again from the beginning. Walking, a little bit of run, and then slowly building it up. And it's really my dog who got me to keep going.
I discovered canicross because of two friends. We did a weekend in a specialized place for this sport. They got me to try one of their dogs. They taught me how to train.
I am Captain Élisabeth Leblanc. I'm in aerospace engineering. My current position is the Aerospace Maintenance Officer at 3 Air Maintenance Squadron. The military supported me in two different ways. The first one is with time. So, they allow three hours of personal training time where I can run with my dogs. Some of my training is happening on the military familial housing. So, there's a trail there. Most of my training is done here, and another part is done on other trails to get them a different experience. And then the second one is financially. There's a program with PSP that supports athletes competing on an international level. So, they help me financially to get there.
Racing in Spain was the World Championship with Emma. So, a big part of what was amazing to do this experience was the exchange with the international community, so to exchange with different athletes and high-level athletes, to get their input on how to train, how to improve. And to see what they were doing, how it was for them, that was very amazing for us. During the competition, the first day, my dog was a little bit jetlagged. She was not feeling her best, so I did my best and we did a good time. The second day was the opposite. I was a little bit tired and my dog took over and she gave me her best. So, it was a good teamwork together. We placed 27th out of 34. It was our first year. Next World Championship is going to be in the U.S. With my younger dog will be doing bikejoring, which is biking with the dog. And we aim to be in the top 20 by next year.