Originally Posted by
old's'cool
No, wait,... I've seen it in the cartoons, when the Roadrunner gets his legs really really revved up, they describe an elliptical path...

On a serious note, all mammals' feet make an elliptical path when walking or running. The stride is invariably longer than the lift, unless a conscious effort is made to do otherwise. Only when we restrict the natural gait by mechanical means, do we impose a circular motioin. Be it a roadrunner or a Old's Cool, we naturally make ellipses.