Struggles and Successes in Training

We just barely missed actual sunrise this morning. My migraine-preventative medicine makes getting out of bed feel like I'm trying to escape quicksand - a huge frustration for me but it's better than having constant migraines. Fortunately, when we finally burst onto the trails, the sunlight was still soft and reddish. I love that time of the morning.

I keep thinking that maybe, just maybe, we'll get one or two more autumn-like days but Mother Nature has not cooperated. This morning was cold (10°F) with high winds out of the west. Shyla turned her back on them and her hat's toggles aligned with the gusts.

It's funny that this is the only hat that she doesn't act upset about wearing. She's squinting due to the sun in her eyes... but, generally, she doesn't mind this hat. I love how it acts like a wind gauge, aligning with the gusts.

When the wind became too cold, we retreated to the edge of the forest that protected us to some extent. And my girl relaxed on one of her favorite perches.

Our big accomplishment for the morning was making it to Hug Hill, a tough snow bike ascent right now. Thankfully, the wind died down, ever so briefly, while we played up there. The mountains are now fully cloaked in snow and very often have shrouds of winter clouds surrounding them. I guess it is now fully winter.

Going to Hug Hill feels like running a gauntlet these days. We've recently run into some hunting dangers near there so I insist that Shyla stays right next to me as I pedal uphill. She understands "heel" but, since becoming gaining more confidence, she gets tempted away by scents. A big part of our recent training breakthrough was working on "leave it" intensively. Now, as she starts to drift toward a scent (and away from me), an upbeat verbal "leave it" brings her running back to my side. That has solved almost all of the behavioral issues that we struggled with over the summer.

I also noticed that, when I felt that I was losing control of Shyla over the summer, I'd get a panicked or angry tone in my voice. By returning to our trainer's advanced drop-in classes, I've relearned the importance of sounding "fun" to Shyla. She is so sensitive that any stress in my voice makes her less likely to respond to me.

I'm sure that this won't be the last training challenge we'll face because both Shyla and I are constantly changing. Most of all, I'm grateful that her confidence seems to keep on growing!