Running with a dog feels a little like flying. The line goes tight, four paws dig in, and—boom—you both roll down the trail. For thousands of teams across the United States and Canada, that thrill comes from one hub: North American Canicross, LLC (NACC).
Below is everything you need to know about the group—how it began, what it offers today, and where it hopes to take dog-powered running next.
What Is North American Canicross?
North American Canicross, or NACC for short, is the main club for folks who like to run trails with their dogs out front. Think of it as the friendly HQ for the sport in the United States and Canada. The group is run by members, so people who race also help make the rules, plan meets, and welcome newcomers.
NACC keeps things simple and open. Any dog—big, small, mixed, or purebred—can join as long as it’s healthy enough to pull. Kids as young as twelve can do canicross race with a grown-up nearby, and there’s no top age limit for humans or pups. Slow joggers, steady walkers, and rocket-fast runners all share the same start line.
Here’s what NACC does day to day:
Writes the rulebook. It covers safe gear, trail manners, and fair starts.
Runs the titling program. Every mile and race time you log can earn Bronze, Silver, or Gold badges.
Sanctions events. From small park meetups to big national races, NACC gives each one an official stamp so everyone follows the same standards.
Hosts an online hub. Members swap training tips, trade used gear, and cheer each other on in a busy Facebook group and forum.
Offers free learning. Short videos show how to fit a harness, teach left-right cues, and keep paws safe on hot days.
Because volunteers handle most of the work, dues stay low and any extra funds roll back into better race timing, free youth entries, and updated safety guides. In short, NACC is the glue that holds the North American canicross scene together—welcoming, organized, and always run by the people (and dogs) who love the sport most.
How It All Started
Back in 2019, three friends—Alexis Karpf, Jacqui Johnson, and Lizzie Hill—kept bumping into each other at agility trials and fun-run fundraisers in the Southeast. Every chat ended the same way: “Why isn’t there one clear group for canicross here?” So they made one.
They grabbed coffee, opened a laptop, and sketched a game plan on the back of a race flyer. Within a month they:
Wrote a rulebook at Lizzie’s kitchen table. They copied the must-have safety bits from the International Sled Dog Federation, then trimmed the rest so weekend runners could understand it fast. They added heat-index limits, gear checks, and a way to earn miles virtually—handy for folks in hot southern states or far-flung towns.
Built a tiny website on a free platform, posted the rules, and linked a Google form for team sign-ups. By week’s end, more than 200 people had joined.
Opened a Facebook group so new runners could swap tips on harness fit and trail maps. Alexis handled the late-night questions; Jacqui kept spam out; Lizzie brainstormed events.
Word spread fast. A VoyageATL interview the next spring shared their story of meeting through dog sports and “seeing the sport’s big potential,” which pushed membership past a thousand.
Their first official action was simple: mail out numbered challenge coins to every team that logged 50 safe miles. The metal coins felt heavier than paper certificates and gave runners (and kids) something to show off at the start line. By the end of 2020, the trio had added sprint, 5 K, and half-marathon titles, plus an Ambassador Network that let volunteers host free group runs under the same rules.
From a single coffee-shop idea, North American Canicross grew into the rule-keeper, cheer squad, and record book for dog-powered running across the continent—and it’s still run by the same three friends who wanted a place for everyone to clip in and go.
A Simple Mission
Make healthy running with dogs easy, safe, and fun for everyone.
The founders repeat that line in interviews and at races. They back it up with three pillars:
Events: 5 K sprints, ten-kilometer challenges, half-marathons, and virtual runs.
Education: free clinics, gear demos, and a detailed online FAQ.
Community: regional meetups plus an ambassador team that answers “newbie” questions daily.
Races From Coast to Coast (and Beyond)
North American Canicross either hosts or sanctions dozens of events each season. Courses range from sandy desert loops to hardwood-forest single-track. A few favorites:
Race Around Red Top – fast pine-needle paths and gentle hills.
Steeplechase Stampede – open equestrian park lanes perfect for two-dog teams.
Cryptid CaniQuest – twilight start, glow sticks required, surprises on course.
Many teams also travel to the ICF World Canicross Championship, most recently held in Bardonecchia, Italy, in October 2024. Athletes who earn NACC titles often use them to prepare for that world stage.
The NACC Titling Program—Heart of the Group
The titling program is the part of North American Canicross that keeps everyone excited. It works a lot like scouts or martial-arts belts—each new badge proves you and your dog have hit the next goal.
How the titles are set up
Lifetime Achieved Miles counts every mile your dog runs in harness, even the easy jogs before breakfast. First coin comes at 50 miles, then 100, 250, 500, 1,000, and a huge 5,000-mile coin planned for spring 2025. The idea is simple: steady miles build fit, happy dogs.
Race Dog Distance Titles test speed on race day. There are two tracks—Sprint (about one mile or less) and 5 K. Finish five “Q” races in a class and you earn the Novice coin. Ten races move you to Advanced, then twenty for Master, and fifty for Elite. It’s a ladder, so you always know what comes next.
Championship Titles ask for a mix of distances—5 K, 10 K, half-marathon, even a full marathon for the top tier. Teams who meet the checklist pick up Bronze, then Silver, then Gold. These titles show off dogs that can sprint fast and still cruise the long stuff.
What you get when you title
Every time you clear a level, North American Canicross mails two things: a bright certificate that looks great on the fridge and a thick metal challenge coin that feels like real treasure in your hand. Each coin has a fresh design and size—kids love to “coin check” friends at the start line.
Bronze, Silver, Gold… and Junior Runner fun
Titles stack up in Bronze, Silver, and Gold steps, nudging teams a bit farther each season. Runners aged twelve to eighteen chase the very same badges through the Junior Runner Program—no special shortcuts, just extra cheers from the crowd.
Put it all together and the titling program turns daily jogs into a living scrapbook. Every mile, every race, and every coin reminds you how far you and your dog have traveled—side by side, line tight, tails high.
How to Earn a North American Canicross Title
Register your dog ($40 once).
Put in miles. Log training runs or upload official chip times.
Submit your run log— North American Canicross reviews each entry for safe trail grade, distance, and leash rules.
Wait for mail day! Certificates and coins show up quick; most runners frame the coins or wear them on lanyards at races.
Safety and Gear Standards
North American Canicross keeps gear rules short and easy to understand:
Harness: non-restrictive, pulls from the tail base.
Line: bungee section, five to nine feet when stretched.
Belt: padded hip belt, leaves hands free.
Partners like Non-Stop Dogwear and Back On Track USA help newcomers pick safe kits without guesswork.
Virtual Runs—Miles That Fit Any Schedule
North American Canicross designed its Virtual Run system for busy folks and far-off places. If you can’t get to an in-person race, you can still stack miles and earn coins right from your own trail. Here’s how it works, step by step:
Pick a dirt or grass route. NACC follows the sled-dog rule: canicross happens on non-paved terrain. Gravel, forest paths, and farm lanes all count—sidewalks and asphalt do not.
Clip in with approved gear. Waist belt for you, non-restrictive harness for the dog, bungee line between. Same setup you’d use on race day keeps training miles fair and safe.
Track the outing on GPS. Most teams tap an app such as Strava, Ride with GPS, or Garmin Connect. Make sure the screen shows distance, time, and a map trace when you stop.
Grab a quick halfway selfie. One fun photo proves the dog was really there, plus it gives everyone on the leaderboard a face to cheer. (Camera-shy runners can snap a paw print next to the mile marker sign instead.)
Log the run on the NACC site. Use the “Log a Run or Race” button, upload the GPX file, attach the selfie, and hit submit. The system drops the mileage into your totals and pings you when a new badge is close.
Where the miles go
Virtual outings feed straight into Lifetime Achieved Miles and Race Dog Distance tallies. That means every sunrise jog, cani-hike, or cool-evening cruise nudges you closer to Bronze, Silver, or Gold coins—even if the closest official race is two states away. The only program that still needs chip-timed events is Championship Titles, since those compare fresh race splits across the continent for fairness.
How NACC Links to the Wider Canicross World
While NACC focuses on North America, its rulebook mirrors international standards. That makes it easy for members to step onto start lines run by:
International Canicross Federation (ICF) – hosts annual world championships.
United States Federation of Sleddog Sports – handles dry-land mushing and canicross qualifiers.
Many North American Canicross finish-line photos now appear beside European clubs in social media stories, proving the rules line up just right.
North American Canicross grew from one kitchen-table idea into the heartbeat of dog-powered running on this side of the world. It gives us clear rules, safe gear guides, stacked title levels, and an online scoreboard that feels like recess for grown-ups. New folks jump in through virtual miles or local meetups, while seasoned teams chase shiny coins from 5 K sprints all the way to marathon badges. Every time we clip a bungee to a wagging tail, we add another line to the shared story this group is writing—one sunrise jog, one muddy paw print, one loud finish-line cheer at a time.
If you’re ready to trade your lonely treadmill for dirt paths and happy barks, head to nacanicross.com, register your team, and log that first mile. The sign-up is quick, the dues stay low, and the welcome crew answers questions faster than a dog spots a squirrel. Grab a belt, fit the harness, press record on your GPS, and feel the line go tight. There’s room on the leaderboard, coins waiting in the mail, and a whole community eager to shout your name at the next start. Your dog is already pulling—let’s go run together.
