Tucker, a black Labrador retriever, and his master, Steve Niles, led the pack at the Bayside Trail 5K Race through Portland Sunday.

But at one point the odds didn’t look so great for the duo. Tucker had the sudden need for a pit stop and Niles then had to stoop, scoop and find a trash container.

Still, the two won by a comfortable multi-second-lead in a race designed for both human and canine teams and dogless runners. It helped that Niles commutes by bike on the trail from his North Deering neighborhood into downtown Portland. Other runners less familiar with the path took a wrong turn, costing them valuable seconds.