I took the 93 Scott mtb out this afternoon for a quick out and back 16 miler for a lunch break. On the way back in I was doing 20+ mph down a false flat when I noticed a rattlesnake moving across the road. I was within inches of it's tail and had no time to move over. Fortunately, my foot on the snake's side was on the upstroke as that thing snapped around quicker than anything I've seen to strike. Felt a thump at the rear of the bike and I'm tot sure if it was a rock or if the snake actually hit the back tire but it way to close for comfort. I may have to stay out of the hills until it cools down.

Add that to the bear that crossed the road in front of me in June and the 5-6 point bull elk that jumped off the bank in front of me last week I think I've had my share of wildlife.

carry a gun= free dinner. rattlesnake is quite delicious

Wow, what a coincidence! That same thing happened to me riding through Times Square this afternoon. Not to mention getting chased by that elk through Central park.

seriously though, what a story
Joe NYC

Might want to practice aiming in the saddle for a while, first, General Custer.

That wasn't an elk, it was a rat carrying a branch.

Next time, make sure you're riding Kevlar tires and ...aim for the head.

Sprayed my keyboard over that one.

Similar story: ran over a water moccasin on Saturday afternoon, the damn thing must have been six feet long so I can't begin to explain how I didn't happen to notice it stretched halfway across the road. Dunno if it struck or not, but it sure as heck squirmed into all kinds of pretzel shapes after I hit it. On my end, I felt like I might need to clean my shorts when I got back home again.

What! No picture?

Damn, Scott - is this something I should be prepared for during October's metric century?

This is the only wildlife I've ever seen up here on a ride - coming back into my driveway after the maiden test-ride of the Sparrow:



It was like I was being welcomed home!

DD

Tastes like chicken.

^ Only took 12 posts...

DD

Actually, I just remembered that I did in fact see a snake on my commute home to Brooklyn today. No, really! Some guy was carrying some kind of big albino snake on the Brooklyn Bridge. No idea why.

one of these crossed the path infront of us when we were out riding yesterday:



i wouldn't have noticed if she didn't point it out to me.

It's not as menacing and scary as a rattlesnake though.....

Don't be so sure, ever see Monty Python's Holy Grail??

Good ol' E-burg!

All I ever get is nice squishy road kill possum.

Trust me - when I take the camera - no snake. When I haven't got it - two snakes in the past couple of weeks. I had the camera with the elk and the black bear but they dropped out of site so fast in the forest there wasn't a chance. Let alone that I wasn't real eager to go after the bear just for a photo.

I figure if I see it when I'm going slow enough I'm aiming for the head - a knobby, 2.1" tire should do the trick. However, today I was going just too fast to even pick up that it was there until I was right on top of it. Surprisingly they blend in to gravel and dirt quite well.

the only kinds of wild life I see on my rides are crack heads and pigeons

Makes you feel alive, doesn't it.



Now, Javelinas are another matter. I imagine like hitting a 60 lb cube of meat, complete with tusks.

Unless it decides to play double dutch with the spokes in your wheels. Didn't that happen to someone on here before??

That's definitely bigger than the one today. If it had been that big this afternoon I would have been checking my shorts like Azorch.

smaller ones can't control venom release, much more likely to kill you, just fyi

i was felled by a skunk running onto a bike path a few weeks ago.. when it raised its tail right in front of me i swerved and fell. luckily didn't get squirted, though i did bleed all over my bike