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A deer has ended a promising year of commuting

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Old 03-22-15, 10:20 PM
  #26  
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That sucks. Get well soon & maybe slow down a bit eh?

- Andy
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Old 03-22-15, 11:49 PM
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Get well soon. I truly glad it was not a bear!
Cheers,
David in Alaska
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Old 03-23-15, 12:36 AM
  #28  
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Wishing you a quick and complete recovery.
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Old 03-23-15, 01:32 AM
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Originally Posted by md11mx
Get well soon. I truly glad it was not a bear!
This. If you must hit a large mammal at great speed, at least be thankful it was a vegetarian. Heal well.

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Old 03-23-15, 06:31 AM
  #30  
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Sorry for your accident and hope you heal quickly. I worry about the same thing happening on my route because we have a lot of deer and hilly terrain. I don't agree with some who are criticizing you for going too fast. My route is pretty hilly and it's hard not to top 30 mph on many hills, and who wants to ride the brakes on the big descents? Besides, deer can jump into the road just about anywhere at random.

Once I was almost hit by a large wheel that came off a truck while going about 30 mph down a hill. Was that because I was going too fast?
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Old 03-23-15, 06:36 AM
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Somewhere on a forum for and by deer...

"Uncle Buck was right! Some of them are cray cray enough to hit you. I jumped on the path and stared him down. His brakes were squeaking loud-like, but sounded more like a whistle. It was weird, man. And then, 'Wham!' His tire caught me in the ribs. He must have been going faster than most on that path go. That mark will be there a while. But I can tell you this, he won't be out on that path for a while either."
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Old 03-23-15, 06:44 AM
  #32  
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Thank god you're here, deer hitting commuter man !
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Old 03-23-15, 06:56 AM
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Sorry for your injuries and time off the bike. How did you come up (or down, it was a hill) with this number? "I was doing about 36MPH down a large hill..."
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Old 03-23-15, 07:24 AM
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Sorry to hear that. Take it easy and heal well.
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Old 03-23-15, 07:42 AM
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Heal up. I'm a big fan of really bright lights and disk brakes. I find I need a really long throw on the lights in order to not out run them.
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Old 03-23-15, 07:46 AM
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get well soon, what happened after the crash? did someone drive to the ER?
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Old 03-23-15, 07:56 AM
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Originally Posted by choteau
Sorry for your injuries and time off the bike. How did you come up (or down, it was a hill) with this number? "I was doing about 36MPH down a large hill..."
From the black box analysis. The GPS showed the story there was 36.67 speed I had just started pedalling as the road had straightened out and was coming out of the trees. The next two data points were at 26MPH and then 7MPH followed by a pickup of speed to 12MPH as the GPS separated from the bike or as the deer and I parted company. Not really sure why on that one.
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Old 03-23-15, 07:58 AM
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Originally Posted by rumrunn6
get well soon, what happened after the crash? did someone drive to the ER?
A very kind gentleman (a nurse at a hospital 45 minutes away) stopped when I waved him down and drove me and my bike into work. I would have had him drive me to the ER, but the adrenalin had not yet worn off, so I thought I was in better shape than I was.
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Old 03-23-15, 08:00 AM
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Originally Posted by Leebo
Heal up. I'm a big fan of really bright lights and disk brakes. I find I need a really long throw on the lights in order to not out run them.
I agree and have both. In the past, it has turned quite a few potential high speed impacts into low speed near misses.
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Old 03-23-15, 10:17 AM
  #40  
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I am sorry to hear about your accident, wish you a speed recovery, and hope you'll be commuting by bike again when you're healed!

That said, I tend to agree with the "too fast" comments. That kind of speed scares the bejeezus out of me in the best of conditions. I only go that fast when I can see the road hundreds of feet in front of me. I'm not criticizing, or saying you shouldn't go that fast; but me, I just can't do it. Too scared.
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Old 03-23-15, 10:35 AM
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Originally Posted by tarwheel
who wants to ride the brakes on the big descents? Besides, deer can jump into the road just about anywhere at random.
Someone who wants to lower their risk of plowing high speed into an animal that could jump into the road at random in the darkness.

I want to be clear that I am not criticizing hyegeek. And yes, sometimes stuff happens. Even so, we all have the ability to analyze our behavior and reduce our risks.
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Old 03-23-15, 11:14 AM
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Originally Posted by AlmostTrick
Someone who wants to lower their risk of plowing high speed into an animal that could jump into the road at random in the darkness.
I've had about as many animal close calls in the light. Hidden animals are still hard to see. I've actually hit more potholes in the light than I have in the dark. In those cases, the light has given a false sense of security. Shadows and bright sun can hide a pothole every bit as well as darkness. Things happen.
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Old 03-23-15, 11:28 AM
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The lesson here is that deer sometimes "take the lane" too, ergo one must choose a speed appropriate for potential changes in "traffic" conditions.
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Old 03-23-15, 11:40 AM
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Originally Posted by spare_wheel
So 36 mph descents are too fast because a deer might suddenly pop out and collide with a cyclist?

and .


********************************************

To the OP: heal up and don't worry about freak deer collisions or the judgement of speed nannies.
So what happened to "pedestrians always have the right of way"? Poor deer might have simply been jayprancing.
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Old 03-23-15, 12:00 PM
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Originally Posted by hyegeek
I've had about as many animal close calls in the light. Hidden animals are still hard to see. I've actually hit more potholes in the light than I have in the dark. In those cases, the light has given a false sense of security. Shadows and bright sun can hide a pothole every bit as well as darkness. Things happen.
Things happen, especially when going too fast for conditions, in the light OR in the dark. Maybe maximum speed at all times isn't always the best idea.
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Old 03-23-15, 12:17 PM
  #46  
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Spend your recovery time watching trick riding contests at rodeos. Next time, you'll be able to jump off the bike and onto the deer and ride it the rest of the way home.
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Old 03-23-15, 02:10 PM
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Originally Posted by kickstart
So what happened to "pedestrians always have the right of way"? Poor deer might have simply been jayprancing.

I support the right of deers to jayprance so I admit that I'm wrong and it's not ethical to bomb down deer-inhabited hills. My daily commute is pretty much deer free, however.
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Old 03-23-15, 02:24 PM
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Deer don't have horns, the males have antlers and at this time of year, they have shed.

I have so many deer where I live that I would never ride 36.7 mph at night even with the very best lighting system.....the fields are full of them and you can't seem them until they jump out.

Deer are really tough and hard to kill. You are very fortunate to be alive. You probably hit a fawn. If it was a decent buck even w/o antlers, you'd be dead.
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Old 03-23-15, 02:31 PM
  #49  
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Originally Posted by RR3
Deer don't have horns, the males have antlers and at this time of year, they have shed.

I have so many deer where I live that I would never ride 36.7 mph at night even with the very best lighting system.....the fields are full of them and you can't seem them until they jump out.

Deer are really tough and hard to kill. You are very fortunate to be alive. You probably hit a fawn. If it was a decent buck even w/o antlers, you'd be dead.
I hit a deer with a (small Japanese) pickup once, it did like a somersault tuck and roll over the hood and scampered off. Took my side mirror with it
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Old 03-23-15, 02:44 PM
  #50  
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Pics of the bike gore?

Glad you're ok. Heal up!
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