Big fan of the carpet mill. Actually most carpet mills out there today are more of a belt mill than a carpet mill. The older type carpet mills were shag type carpets with a heavy jute backing sliding across a sanded plywood surface. A lot of the end rollers were just PVC pipe for the carpet to slide over not necessarily roll over. Lots of resistance. They served, and can serve there purpose.

The carpet mills of today are using belts or lighter carpets with some sort of polymer/plastic sliding surface with end roller set ups. They provide a good resistance but allow the dog to open up and run top end. The dog can sprint under load. For me, that is a great tool to have in that proverbial 'tool shed'.

Benefits and downfalls are just like any other piece of equipment. Used correctly it is the best thing out there. Used incorrectly and the dog is left stale or even injured. Pretty much like anything else we "teach/allow/encourage" the dogs to do. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing.

Personally, I prefer sprint work on mine. The sprints can go from 15 to 20 seconds to as much as a minute. I stop him, pause and let him go again. I am using the mill for the explosions that come from start-stop-start training. I use the mill from three to five times per week. EWO