The sun was going down and this one was laying parallel to the trail in an area that has heavy canopy cover thus he was nearly impossible to see till I was right upon him. At which point I started to swerve away towards the other side of the trail hoping to stay away from it. The gator made a quick 90 degree turn, lunged and bit down on the middle of my bike stopping me instantly and sending me over the bars. It is very rare for an alligator to attack someone and though they are occasionally seen on that stretch they usually scuttle off when sighted.