RFEngineer

Have you ever hit any animals on your commute? I'm getting worried about the deer lining the MUP I use in the morning. There are tons of them and they can act so unpredictably. There are tons of rabbits too, but I wouldn't mind killing one of those as they have done some damage around my yard over the years. I wouldn't like cleaning my bike off, though.

I just found this too and I'm getting more freaked out:

https://www.lohud.com/article/2013051...t-who-hit-deer

Do any of you have to deal with deer, especially, on your commutes?

Alan

AusTexMurf

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Freak accident, I would think, although sometimes the bucks act crazy when in rut.

Bikes are pretty quiet. I might put a set of sleigh bells on my bike, so that they ring passively, for the deer to hear before whizzing right into them........so as not to startle them so much......they hear you coming and move back into the tree line, maybe.

Do you use McAllister park MUP to commute in from north SA ?
Lots of deer, indeed, out there.
Once found several baby rattle snakes crossing the trail many years ago there.
Ride lots, have fun, be safe.

cvskates

I have deer on my commute - lots of them. I wouldn't be too worried about them hitting you. I find most of them just stare at me as I go by or run away. The only isue I can see would be if you startle one, and it runs the wrong way and crosses your path.. This has never happened to me.

If you manage to hit a deer, the only way I can see doing it is whizzing along with no headlight (or a poor headlight). Deer often don't hear me coming, and when I ride into work at 4:45 am they're frequently on the road - if you don't see them you don't have time to slow down and avoid them.

bigbenaugust 

The deer here get out of the way.

In the bast, I have hit raccoons, cats, and some miniature something or other dog when I was a kid.

GeneO 

I ride the trails and often see deer and have several run across the path in front of me. I am more worried hitting one driiving my car than with my bike though. Only animal I ever host eas riunning over a chipmunk

Surrealdeal

I see a fair amount of creatures in my travels and the ones that worry me the most are the geese. They are too stupid to get out of their own way, even when they see me coming from a long way off.

cycle_maven

I had a stalemate with a flock of turkeys on the American River trail one time. Those things are *big* and pugnacious.

FenderTL5

I occasionally see deer. Last week there was a doe right beside the road that snorted at me as I passed. I also see wild turkeys in a field just off the roadway. The short section of MUP I use is loaded with rabbits.

My biggest concern though, is skunks. I've seen them, had them cross in front of me, and this morning barely missed the carcass of one that was hit by a car last night. I'm not afraid of injury or property damage - but oh the smell.. that could linger a while. It'd definitely ruin a work day.

whosthatgurrl

I had a couple of stupid squirrels run out in front of me while I was riding through the park. I swerved to avoid them and almost rode into a tree. The squirrels in that park are psychotic.

MMACH 5

I see bobcats, coyotes and other land critters on a regular basis, during my commute.

The only time I've "hit" an animal was on a rainy ride home, one night. I was on a MUP that runs along a creek. On this night, the creek had spilled over it's banks and flooded the MUP, so I was riding through about 6-8 inches of water. Suddenly, a huge carp hit my front spokes and came flailing up out of the water. It scared the crap out of me.

eofelis 

Not commuting, but a few years ago my bf and I and another friend were doing a summer night ride on rural roads. We had good headlights, there was no traffic, etc. A huge raccoon jumped out of the ditch right into the rear wheel of my bf's bike. Took the bike right out from underneath him. He went down, was knocked out (had helmet). Trip to ER, Grade 3 concussion, minor brain hemorrhage, bruises but nothing else broken.

Surrealdeal

Yikes. And that was just what happened to the raccoon. But seriously, I hope that your friend is OK.

That reminded me of when I was a kid and a sparrow came out of some tall grass and went into my back wheel. It didn't hurt me at all but of course it ruined the sparrow's day.

Also noted above the remark re: wild turkeys. There are turkeys in areas that I pass through but at this point their number pales in comparison to the sheer number of geese that we have. There's one stretch that every fall during the migration becomes like a Woodstock/hippie love-in type event for geese. And they use the MUP as their toilet. Birds and I just don't get along I guess.

lsberrios1 

I ran into a bee last sunday... I didnt crash but it did sting me in my shin bone

squegeeboo

I've never hit anything, but my brother had a squirrel damage some spokes.

And at a previous job there was a group of 3-4 of us who would commute together, I startled a groundhog, that decided running across the MUP was a great choice, the guy behind me hit it. Didn't crash somehow, just hit it like a speed bump, then came to a stop and we all had a laugh at the wtf moment.

MikeM21

I've only hit two animals - a squirrel and a goose - and both survived. I regularly see groundhogs, rabbits, geese, and deer on the MUP commuting and even the occasional wild turkey. On my evening rides the deer are more plentiful and more reckless. I had a doe stare at me last week as I approached her and got within 10 ft before she decided it was a good idea to leave the path. They pop out of the brush on the side sometimes and that's really unnerving. There are stretches that I know not to go too fast because of the deer.

Lately I've been being bombarded by birds and cicadas. Hit two cardinals this week - just bumps so neither were hurt. Yesterday a cicada hit my shoulder HARD. It hurt but at least I had the satisfaction of hearing the bugger's last screech as he hit the pavement!

ItsJustMe

After 8 years and 30k miles, this spring I whacked a rabbit. It ran out from the verge and ran under my bottom bracket for about 10 feet. I was trapped between a passing car and potholes and could neither speed up nor slow down, or even pedal. He eventually tripped or something and went under the rear wheel. I circled back but his back was broken.

I've had animals almost take me out several times. Several deer have nearly run into me, and a few birds have decided they didn't like me and swooped at my head. Once I had some kind of raptor scream from just behind my head at about 4:30 AM in the middle of winter in the pitch dark. Yikes.

lawnerd

I've seen deer, rabbits, squirrels, turkeys, and geese on my rides. Deer worry me a bit, so I slow down as soon as I see one. Rabbits worry me because they are the most unpredictable and I have come VERY close to running one over. I think I would crash if I did. When I lived in Boxford MA the turkeys were so bad that I had to turn around! Geese are all bark and no bite. But I am sure the Turkeys would have attacked me.

CandSAdventures

I dodge skunks frequently. I think I flatspotted my tires this morning trying to avoid a young one. The only animal I have actually collided with was a duck. It was being chased by another duck and did not see me coming. It tried to turn at the last minute and bounced off the front wheel.
Scared us both.

enigmaT120

I see deer, turkeys, sometimes dogs and cats, but the only thing I've run over was a possum. He came running from my left, and I thought I would get by before he intersected my path. I was wrong, he came in right in front of my rear tire and I bounced right over him. I don't know if he was hurt; it was dark, raining, and I've seen their teeth. I kept going.

RGNY

close calls with deer, coyotes, otters and rabbits; but have only ever run over a snake. still felt bad.

rommer25

I didn’t hit it but the other day I passed an opossum. There is a one mile straight with a fence on the right and for 100 yards, a wall on the left. I came up on the animal as it was jogging along (best description of how he was moving). As I started to pass, I thought about dogs and how some like to chase and try to bite riders. As I passed he looked right at me and opened his mouth (large teeth). I sifted and used my reserve to pass as fast as I could.

ItsJustMe

I scared some chickens that had gotten through the fence and wandered up next to the road. They were in tall grass and I didn't see them - they scared me as much as I scred them.

downwinded

Had a deer bolt out of a neighbors yard last year. There were 3 of them, blocked from my view in the side yard. I saw a flash of brown just as I went behind a van that was parked on the street. Thought it was a big dog and prepared for flight because he had the angle on me. When I rolled out from behind the van I saw that the little buck was headed toward the street and my Momma's little boy! Scared the bejeezus out of me. Jumped on the brakes hard and avoided a crash...barely. Dunno what made him bolt. My front blinky maybe?

There was a u-tube showing a guy getting mowed down by an Impala. (four legged, not four wheeled) Looked pretty bad.

RubeRad

My son ran over a 4ft garden snake once, he was coming around a turn on a trail and had no time to react other than to scream as he thump-thumped over it. It seemed dazed, but 30sec later it slithered away and didn't seem harmed. And I have a friend that says he runs over rattlesnakes all the time. He says when they're not coiled, they can't strike, so if it's stretched across the trail you got nothing to worry about.

I hit a pigeon on the sidewalk once, in Seattle just north of UW. But it got away, I think I just ran over its tail.

As for deer, just ziptie a rapier to your stem and you'll be fine. Just make sure your rack is rated for 300lb to haul it back and you've got a year's worth of venison!

1242Vintage

Hit a raccoon last Winter. I spooked him with my headlight as i was coming around a corner and he ran right into my pedal and under my rear wheel. I kept the rubber side down and he ran off after I rolled over him. Tough critter. Hit a few squirrels on my commute too. Unfortunately those were fatal collisions for the squirrels.