Ever hit a bird while cycling?

cee

seen a swan push a cyclist in to the canal once.....

laugh?? I nearly pooed masel

Stewie Griffin

Neither of mine are while cycling, 19 years old in my first car (19 years ago now ), had all the windows rolled down on a hot summers day. Just about to pull up outside a friends house when I caught a blur from the corner of my eye. Just turned my face away from this blur which turned out to be a Sparrow hellbent on bashing me up! It hit me right in the face, I jumped out of the car and saw this mental little bird bouncing aroung the inside of the car trying to get back out.

The last was while driving from London to the Rose Bowl (lovely Cricket ground) a few years ago, middle lane on the M4 behind a motorbike at motorway speed when I saw another blur, this one however didnt have it in for me but the side pannier of the motorbike in front of me. There followed such an impressive explosion of feathers and me preparing for an emergency stop at 70mph to avoid a sliding motorbike and rider. The motorbike rider didnt notice any of this and carried on his merry way.

RimTape

Just to give non antipodeans some idea of the risks of cycling in spring in NZ/AU check out this helmet cam video taken on the Port Hills in Christchurch NZ.

It is fairly typical of a ride anytime between August and the early November.

http://www.vorb.org.nz/video-view-76436.html

Velox

Cyrenne

A magpie flew into my spokes once when out with a small group. It was carrying a sandwich from a popular country pub over the road.
It all sort of happened in slow motion; the sandwich was big so the bird had trouble achieving altitude --- wheel eight was evidently too high. And his speed wasn't that impressive either. We could see it approaching from the other side of the road and it didn't take any evasive action.
A bunch of baby bunnies ran out one spring day too. A mate clipped one, so we went back to see if it was OK. It was scrabbling away with the front paws, but the back end was knackered. Another lad, who 'knew' about these things decided to break it's neck. He was a bit heavy handed and the rabbit's head came straight off. After looking briefly at both bits he casually threw them into the nearby field leaving us to all get a grip at the hideous scene we had just witnessed. My bloody brand new white Carnacs had specks of blood on them after that too.

afctumike

I was hit by a sparrow once. I was cycling along a road in a built up area and the bird came through the gap between two lines of terraced houses on the left hand side. Hit me on the side of my face, bent my glasses and drew blood. I thought for an instant I'd been hit by someone throwing a stone.

SteveR_100Milers

OffTheBackAdam wrote:

I've slapped a couple on the ass as I rode by, does that count?

I was about to post "No, only after drinking Stella" but you beat me to it...

Roger_This

I ran over a snake a few years ago in Germany, right across its middle. Didn't feel too good about that. Don't suppose the snake did either.

BigStu2

Got wiped out by a baby wallaby a few years back, little bugger just got and and hopped away.
Have bunny hopped a redbelly black ( snake), but the worst was riding through impenerterable Spider webs that cover your upper torso, head, helmet, gloves and allmost rip you off the saddle with their tenacious ........ahhhhhhhhhhhhh , get it off me get it off me!!!!!
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rogerzilla

Yes - I cut a pigeon in half with my back tyre on the A420 one afternoon. It was one seriously suicidal bird - it shot straight out of the hedge and under the back wheel. Feathers and blood all over the tubes :x

oldwelshman

Not hit a bird, but whistled at a few 8)

smitty

yes once years ago a starling took a hit off me and my mate first though my front wheel then straight through me mates who was right behind me

Diogenes

Couple of years ago a pheasant shot out from cover at the side of the road and lodged itself in the triangle between my water bottles, the bird got a free ride for about 200 yards whilst I try to extricate the panicked best.

D

Hasufel

I have hit on them. You know the sort of thing - offering them a draft then rising out the saddle periodically to show off calf muscles and buns. Not the sort of thing you meant? I'll get my coat...... :oops:

:twisted:

The emu

When I was about 9 years old, I was idling along on my old deadly treadly, got swooped by a massive magpie (well seemed large at the time) and copped 3 stitches in my head.

Wind the clock forward 20 years, and a similar thing happened to me except this time I was hurtling down the road doing about 45km.

Scared the sh*t out of me as I didn't see it coming but thankfully my helmet saved me a trip to the hospital 2nd time around.

Where on earth do you get attacked by magpies I hear you ask?

Australian suburbs at September - October each year.

As do most Australians, I hate the black and white f*ckers with a passion :evil:

chuckcork

Rather smaller in size but more painful, got stung on the lip by a bee. That'll teach me to cycle too close to the hedgerow when the blackberry is flowering....

Emu, ever thought of the old trick of painting eyeballs on the back of your helmet? Not that I ever tried it....

will3

Ran over a pigeon once.

dondare

Boybiker says he hit a chavinch.

Couples on tandems sometimes stop for a shag.

dbb

magpies is one thing i definitely don't miss from Aus now that i'm living in the UK.

i used to work in a bike shop in Canberra. one day a guy came in with his brand new zefal pump that was broken. he quickly explained that it wasn't faulty it was his weapon of choice for the magpie that attacked him. he though that the 30buck was well spent and he quoted "that bird won't be attacking anyone else!"

i have even heard of some magpies getting smart after helmets and started going for shoulders!

i hit a sparrow once. i was riding along at about 35km on my road bike. it flew into my front wheel at the bottom and exited from the top - plop. it was thrown about 10 metres away. i guess it was killed instantly.

i also nearly hit a kangaroo once when riding mtb in a forest. a group of about 6-10 crossed the downhill track i was riding and i went straight through the middle of the group. it all happened too quick for me to take much evasive action. that could have been ugly!

neeb

A couple of times I've felt an abrupt impact on my leg which I can only think must have been a bird bouncing off.

In the evenings here, hares cavorting on the roads are a worry. Hate to think what would happen (both to me and hare) if one got caught in a wheel...

Saw some Elk the other night. Wouldn't want to hit one of those....

dbb

BigStu2 wrote:

Got wiped out by a baby wallaby a few years back, little bugger just got and and hopped away.
Have bunny hopped a redbelly black ( snake), but the worst was riding through impenerterable Spider webs that cover your upper torso, head, helmet, gloves and allmost rip you off the saddle with their tenacious ........ahhhhhhhhhhhhh , get it off me get it off me!!!!!
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i can relate to all of these but even more important, i can relate to your avatar. you have really made me feel homesick (as an Adelaide boy) for a Coopers.

Nivacrom

I once hit a pigeon as it was about to take off. A kid by the side of the road called out 'Nice one!'.
Whilst decending a hill had a pigeon fly out of tree and hit my forks before landing in my lap. It then threw itself back into the hedge.

Hit a rat once. It did a strange sort of backward somersault which involved twisting in mid-air before it landed in the gutter. It didn't get up.

I've also been hit in the eye by a bumble bee - I saw stars.

passout

Hit a couple of birds before now. Also a tourist in the Lake District who ran across the road after pinching a girls hat and sprinted across the road without looking. He tumbled town a grassy slope and landed in brambles (only minor cuts, bruises and loss of pride). Amazingly me and my bike were fine, bars didn'f flinch - a glancing blow i guess. I did stop but her insisted he was fine. Everybody knew he asked for it! The only crash I can think of which I enjoyed.

chuckcork

I used to cycle to a night class in Richmond from Kingston, and in the winter with Richmon Park still open to walkers I used to cycle through the dark with my lights off, as I could see better with my night vision than with the puny LED lights that I was using at the time (now use a SON Hub dynamo and Schmidt lights).

Only problem was that occasionally the park deer herd would be on or very near the road! Never hit one but gave them (and myself) a bit of a fright at times and came very close to hitting them more than once.

Still better than the road through Petersham though.

D@VE

I got buzzed by a barn owl on my commute home in the dark.
Inches from my face :shock: backlit by my light, Amazing!
Didn't scare me one bit,a silent white ghost from knowere :oops:
I'm a Man not a Mouse !!!

The emu

Emu, ever thought of the old trick of painting eyeballs on the back of your helmet? Not that I ever tried it....

Apart from looking like a bit of an idiot, I think the little basa's are beyond that olld chestnut these days, as I've come across some big mothers in my time that aren't afraid to take you head on, even when swinging things at them.

i can relate to all of these but even more important, i can relate to your avatar. you have really made me feel homesick (as an Adelaide boy) for a Coopers.

That makes two of us! Still, I find I can get Pales and Sparklings over here no probs, but I often finding myself yearning for a farmers union iced coffee!

Savage magpies, snakes (of the poisonous kind), spider webs...we're not really painting a good picture for those wanting to ride in South Australia 8)

shockedsoshocked

I hit a crow and a weasel in the same ride once.

dbb

The emu wrote:

Emu, ever thought of the old trick of painting eyeballs on the back of your helmet? Not that I ever tried it....

Apart from looking like a bit of an idiot, I think the little basa's are beyond that olld chestnut these days, as I've come across some big mothers in my time that aren't afraid to take you head on, even when swinging things at them.

i can relate to all of these but even more important, i can relate to your avatar. you have really made me feel homesick (as an Adelaide boy) for a Coopers.

That makes two of us! Still, I find I can get Pales and Sparklings over here no probs, but I often finding myself yearning for a farmers union iced coffee!

Savage magpies, snakes (of the poisonous kind), spider webs...we're not really painting a good picture for those wanting to ride in South Australia 8)

yeah - but the Coopers and Farmers Union iced coffee make it all worthwhile. i went home in April and just had to catch up on a few of these. i also made sure that i got some rides in up the old freeway, Old Belair Road and along the beach to the roundabout at outer harbour and then back to Glenelg for a coffee with my cycling mates.

i must admit that i pick up the odd slab of Coopers every now and then - but at 28 quid it's a bit of a treat.

The emu

Oh no, please tell me your not one of those who parks the shiny (and barely ridden) pinarello whilst sitting out the front of the coffee shop with your buddies all wearing the red (Cibo Cycling Club) jerseys

Must be a good feeling riding with mates back home - as a Londonite, miss having the hills and open roads on my doorstep with a passion.

Sorry, just realised I'm hijacking this thread :oops:

chuckcork

The emu wrote:

Must be a good feeling riding with mates back home - as a Londonite, miss having the hills and open roads on my doorstep with a passion.

I'm from Brisbane myself, a long way from the suburbs to any open roads, and such roads as there are, are usually populated by the less articulate and intelligent extras from mad max 1, 2 and 3.

Usually too bloody hot anyway. Must have been nice riding in Adelaide by comparison?

Miss the cheaper Coopers, my local bottle shop carries it but thers a pretty hefty markup.

boybiker

I wouldn't hit a girl
Which reminds me, What do you do if a bird craps on your head?

...... Don't ask her out again


I thangyooo