Ruffwear on the RUN!

January 17, 2012 in New | Tags: , , , , , | by | 2 comments

From dog days on our local mountain to tail wagging drives through the deserts of Utah, Ruffwear is ramping up for a great year.

To start, last week we took a special sneak peek into the lives of our local Mt. Bachelor Avalanche Rescue Team. It turns out that working like a dog transcends casual water cooler banter as these four-legged powder hounds start and end their day with a singular mission – to save lives.

A short ride from town to Mt. Bachelor’s Pine Martin Lodge will bring you to where it all begins. Four enthusiastic labs, and a group of passionate handlers form a super team of Avalanche Rescue.  Here at Mt. Bachelor, Kenai, Makita, Riggins, and Wyatt are only the first in a long list of international teams that work hard to keep the chaos of the mountains at bay.

As we follow our team, we watch Riggins; the youngest of Mt. Bachelor’s pack, dive nose first into the snow to dig out one of the handlers during a drill. What Mt. Bachelor is doing well, aside from endless hours of precise training through scent and repetition, is building a loyal pack of dogs who ensure the everyday safety of skiers and snowboarders who visit the Bachelor butte.

Our day with the Mt. Bachelor avalanche dogs came to an end with a fun visit to the newly unveiled off-leash dog park sponsored by Ruffwear. It was here that the Avi dogs punched their time cards, and let loose to RUN, PLAY, and JUMP. Tug of war was the name of the game until slobber covered Hydro Planes were finally retired for the evening and the dogs loaded up, ready to eagerly return tomorrow.

 

As we continue with our productive start to 2012, we’re sending off part of the Ruffwear pack to the Outdoor Retailer show this week in Utah. With an early morning exit, the Ruffwear van drove into the sunrise and away from Bend. Fifteen hours of quality road time left with a lot of fun to come.

Stay tuned all week for updates from our team at one of the biggest gear shows in the country.

Ruffwear & Mt. Bachelor Ski Resort Open Off Leash Dog Park!

January 13, 2012 in New | by | 7 comments

We’re excited to introduce the Ruffwear Dog Park at Mt. Bachelor outside of Bend, OR. The Ruffwear off-leash dog park  is located at the far west end of the West Village parking area. It will have everything from Ruff Wear dog toys, a groomed ‘snow-play’ area, to dog waste bags.

During a visit to Mt. Bachelor yesterday, we shot a couple photos of the park open and IN ACTION!

Mt. Bachelor Ski Resort guests are encouraged to take advantage of the Ruffwear Dog Park and let their four-legged friends run free!

About Mt. Bachelor

Mt. Bachelor is the largest ski resort in the Cascade Range, offering 3,683 acres of lift-accessible terrain. The mountain features 10 lifts, seven of which are Express Quads, plus two tubing lifts and two beginner carpets and an average annual snowfall of 370 inches. Mt. Bachelor also features 5 terrain parks, 2 half pipes, 56K of groomed and tracked cross country trails, snowshoeing, tubing, sled dog rides and summer attractions. For weather conditions, news and events visit www.mtbachelor.com.

A Rainbow of Ruff Wear

January 10, 2012 in New, Working Like a Dog | by | 5 comments

Lindsey Clark, Ruff Wear product designer and colorist, shares some insights into the color selection process

The best part of my job!

I am very motivated by color. In fact, I think most people are, whether they are aware of it or not. There are deep psychological connections that can’t be denied: we are calmed by shades of blue, cheered by yellow, excited by red. Here at Ruff Wear, we consider a variety of factors when choosing colors for our products: from visibility, to environment, to long-term durability.

Fun

Our colors are fun! Ruff Wear gear is designed for your most enjoyable outdoor activities: those you share with your dog. Bright, saturated, lively colors make those fun activities even better.

These two don't seem too calmed by all their blue gear...

Visible

Speaking of bright and saturated, visibility is an important factor that we consider when coloring our products. Does your dog enjoy hiking off-leash during hunting season, or jogging with you near traffic? Bright, attention-getting colors on your dog (and you!) will keep you both visible and safe.

You're hurting my eyes!

Durable

Our leashes and collars are designed to last the lifetime of your dog – and your best friend loves the outdoors as much as you – so of course they get dirty. You won’t find any pastel colors here; darker, yet colorful webbing hides dirt and washes really well!

She plans to look this good five years from now.

Cooling

Some of our products are designed specifically for use in hot environments, like the Singletrak Pack™. Both colors of the Singletrak Pack were carefully chosen to minimize heat absorption from the sun, yet not get dirty too easily.

Hot weather = long tongues. Good thing they are packing water!

Inspiring

All of our colors come straight from nature, and we have named them accordingly. Cinder Cone Red, Twilight Gray, Overcast Blue, Campfire Orange, Alpenglow Purple, Obsidian Black… these are the things that inspire us in the outdoors, and when we make gear for our best friends.

Jack chose those boots to match the Deschutes...

meet our ambassadors – mt. Bachelor avalanche dogs!

January 6, 2012 in New | by | Leave a comment

Across the board, Ruff Wear has been a long time supporter of Search and Rescue dogs. From rubble to rapids, these canines are selected for their proven ability to alert their human colleagues to scents that can save lives. Many of the teams across the United States are proud Ruff Wear brand Ambassadors, including our home team at Mt. Bachelor. The Mt. Bachelor Avalanche Rescue Dog Team works closely with Ruff Wear in Bend, Oregon as they continue to build their valuable skills through hard work and a lot of training.

You’re probably wondering how these handlers successfully train their dogs to save lives through scent. As simple as it sounds, many of the handlers use reward-based training by utilizing treats or toys. With dedication from these human-canine teams, each dog meets their rescue certification by locating three buried people in seven minutes.

Thankful for such an amazing group, Ruff Wear is fortunate to be able to use feedback from teams like the one at Mt. Bachelor to build products with a purpose. Our Web Master™ Harness and DoubleBack™ Harness are great examples of what we’ve been able to design with input from these hard-working rescue teams.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll look forward to learning more about our Mt. Bachelor Avalanche Rescue Dog Team as we highlight the hard work that Kenai, Makito and Wyatt put forth every year.

Do you have a SAR dog team near you?

Gordo and His Christmas Wart

January 4, 2012 in New | by | 1 comment

Over the Christmas holidays we experienced a bit of our own Christmas Story. While our holidays were absent of Red Ryder BB guns and little kids screaming profanities, we did experience something similar to Ralphie leaving a bit of his tongue stuck to the lamp post during his double dog dare.

A few years back, Gordo had a wart emerge in his whisker area, I have been known to call it his impersonation of Mae West:

Anyway, while following me outside to dispose of the Christmas dinner turkey carcass, Gordo was quite excited and as we returned to the house, he clipped his snout on the 4″ x 4″ iron support for our shed roof. When we got back inside I saw a few drops of blood and we attended to the site of the now absent Mae West wart on Gordo’s snout.

As we reconstructed the scenario to understand what could have possibly occurred, I suggested looking at the 4″ x 4″ iron support for any clues.Well sure enough, there she be, sad and lonely and without her host, the Mae West wart left out in the cold, stuck to the 4″ x 4″ iron support…sort of like when Ralphie left part of his tongue stuck to that frozen metal sign/lamp post in the Christmas Story.

The good news is that Gordo is less one of his warts and no one is the worse for it.

Christmas is truly a gift giving experience and yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

Happy Holidays Y’all!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P37xPiRz1sg

The Kruse’s

A day in the Life…

January 3, 2012 in New | Tags: , , , | by | 2 comments

Professional box packer gone customer service guru turned social media marketing wiz.

Since early 2009 I’ve zipped my way around Ruff Wear gaining new positions, titles, and duties along the way. In November of 2011 my feet finally landed at their final destination – Ruff Wear’s Social Media Marketing Coordinator.

From the distinct moment in my youth when I realized I had to pick a career, I knew that it had to include two things: Dogs and the Outdoors. Early on, I had wild dreams of becoming a heroine of animal needs as the traveling Amelia Earhart of Veterinarians. Later I documented every tail wag I saw across the world behind my camera lens but there still seemed to be something missing. For someone who loves the outdoors as much as I do, the aHA! moment finally occurred when I landed my dream job; writing about dogs, the outdoors and everything in between for Ruff Wear™.

Big Hug Mug

Big Hug Mug!

Over the past two months we’ve ran together, jumped together, and played together all the while living our lives for those moments that take our breath away. Together, we’ve opened the door to the calculated chaos that we call Life with Dogs. So in the spirit of formal introductions, here’s a bit about myself, my passion for outdoors and every dog I encounter along the way.

Zephyr in Red Rocks, Penny at Smith Rocks, Falcor in Red Rocks, Boone in Bishop

After surviving a relatively stagnant  youth, it was no surprise that from  my very first day on the sharp end of a climbing rope, I clung on and never let go. At 25, rock climbing seems to have unfolded into a full-blown passion, lifestyle, and definition of who I am. From the seemingly miraculous re-growth of my raw fingertips to learning how to overcome both failures and successes, climbing has taught me the tenacity of personal endurance; A true emotional test for even the most driven athlete. With no rock left un-turned, I realized that climbing is even one of the most dog friendly sports out there. Because most climbers love dogs just as much a I do, we’re lucky to share each day with the unconditional wags waiting as we lower down off of each pitch.  It’s that moment when we become unleashed and all organization or planning ends that our true experience will begin.

Tsunami 5.12c, Doritos 5.12c, Kiss Fight 5.12b, Racking up our Gear

So at the end of the day, my checklist seems crossed off. I write, I shoot photos, I climb, and I play. Every step of the way, sharing it with the four legged friends who make me a better person, and make every day count.

Here’s to sharing the experiences with our dogs that make life worth wagging about.

Do you have a passion? How do you share it with the dogs in  your life?

Do you have something to bark about? We’re all ears!

We want to hear about your stories, see your photos, and share the adventures that you’ve had with your canine companions.

To submit a story to Tales from the Trails, please email photos/video/text to tara@ruffwear.com. One story per month will be selected to be featured on our Ruff Wear dogblog and shared with the world!

Each selected blogger will receive something special from Ruffwear as our thanks for sharing your story!

Click HERE

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WHAT WE BARK ABOUT

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