Most dangerous animal on the road.

Frank the tank

Apart from white van man.

Which animal have you found most problamatical when it comes to getting in your way when riding. I must say Pheasants seem particularlly blazey (SP) when it comes to the road. On Sat'day I had one nearly bring me off my bike by casually walking across the road and almost into my front wheel only to take flight at the very last second and somehow just missed my head.

Blooming menaces, thats what they are, no wonder you see so many of them dead in the road.

N4PALM

Dogs...

The ones with the owners that just dont give a damn and let them run riot. I hit one some time ago, the owner didnt seem to care. Luckily I stayed on my bike and the dog wasnt hurt.

shmo

I'll go with dogs, especially if you count the dog, owner and leash as one unit. Can be like a mobile road block.

Happened upon some dopy cows too. One was parked right across the road on a very steep decent and wouldn't move its fat arse no matter how politely I asked. Just glanced at me with that disinterested look and went back to staring into nothingness. Got out the way for a 4x4 though, anti-cyclist punk.

JPJ

Kangaroos...

Believe it or not! :shock:

I work on a minesite in Western Australia, the plant is about 10km's from the village, there is a nice dirt singlespeed track, with jumps and berms etc that allows a fast run back to camp on the mtb..

At dawn and dusk, the bl**dy skippies go to and from their feeding and drinking area across the bike track, they are without a doubt the dumbest animal out there, when scared or startled they just bolt, straight line, straight out of there, do not be in the way!!

I've had a few close calls and I've known people to be smashed over by them, these aren't your little sweet furry wallabies, but a good few kilo's of rockhopping red! :evil:

dilemna

The beast with a mobile glued to it's ear, a fag in it's other paw and riding a Vauxhall Nova or Vectra with the music pumping out.

pottssteve

Rabid, semi-wild Chinese village dogs who have a fascination with my rear deraillier.. :evil:

teagar

Almost ran over two frogs/toads today.

CTML

Cats!! They look at you, notice that your coming, prepare themselves to dash and then proceed to stay in the same position. But hey who cares when they look so cute :roll:

Bhima

Squirrels are a nightmare, especially where I cycle, down in rural Cheshire. I've heard stories from MANY cyclists about how they seem to be fascinated with fast-spinning wheels and want to jump straight towards them for some reason! :shock:

Ash_

Dogs, without a doubt.

This view is somewhat affected by events last Friday when riding my cross bike. A sodding dog managed to get a bite in on me at the top of my ankle. He was big enough to get his jaws all the way around so, although brief, was able to put enough force into the bite to make several small puncture wounds.

As I'm in Hungary at the minute, dogs can carry all sorts of nasty diseases, so it was off to the doctors for a tetanus booster, precautionary rabies jab, a strong course of antibiotics and Normaflore to counteract the fact the antiobiotics will leave my gut barely able to function. I'm still on this cocktail for another two days...

The dog was with it's owner as well, who was massively ineffective. After it happened she said the usual "he's never done this before..." sort of line. Doesn't actually make things better for me, does it?

However, I have also been spooked, but not attacked, by other fauna too. Hares can be quite scary due to speed and bulk and general nuttiness. Squirrels, as mentioned, can be a menace far greater than their tiny size. However, the most scared I've been was when I came across a wolf. However, it took absolutely no interest in me (in fairness it was never closer than about 30 metres away).

I've yet to come across a boar, which are still present around here in reasonable numbers. They are supposed to be properly vicious when they are protecting their young. I don't fancy encountering that. You can also get Lynx too, though extremely rare, which although supposedly timid, would be a pretty intimidating sight.

loughor

Saw a 10 foot cobra in the lantau island (hk) country park last weekend. Hoooge thing, but at least they get out of your way.

hisoka

Pidgeons, the damn things fly eitehr at your face, or in my case once through my front wheel whilst going at speed. Well the bird didn't get all the way through, I still remember the sounds and feeling as I slammed on the brakes.
ergh.

greasedscotsman

Bhima wrote:

Squirrels are a nightmare, especially where I cycle, down in rural Cheshire. I've heard stories from MANY cyclists about how they seem to be fascinated with fast-spinning wheels and want to jump straight towards them for some reason! :shock:

I've had a squirrel jump into my front wheel once. It did a couple of revolutions before flying out over my shoulder!

cakewalk

Bhima wrote:

Squirrels are a nightmare, especially where I cycle, down in rural Cheshire. I've heard stories from MANY cyclists about how they seem to be fascinated with fast-spinning wheels and want to jump straight towards them for some reason! :shock:

#

Too true. A big problem in brum as well. I'm convinced I'll be totaled by one soon.

A mate of mine had one go round the wheel - then run off!

passout

If you are in Kenya then Elephants don't like cyclists for some reason (little known fact there). Otherwise dogs.

Ruari

Definitely hippocrocoducks. They lie in wait for a passing cyclist... and then Bang! Bite into your tyre and try to bite your ankle as you flounder away.
Nasty things.

spen666

without a doubt IMHO the most dangerous animal to us cyclists safety is the human

Tempestas

cakewalk wrote:

Bhima wrote:

Squirrels are a nightmare, especially where I cycle, down in rural Cheshire. I've heard stories from MANY cyclists about how they seem to be fascinated with fast-spinning wheels and want to jump straight towards them for some reason! :shock:

#

Too true. A big problem in brum as well. I'm convinced I'll be totaled by one soon.

A mate of mine had one go round the wheel - then run off!

I hit one in a road race and shredded the thing in my nice bladed spokes, I was covered in squirrel claret and asked the guy next to me for some of his water (I had energy drink in my bottle), he passed it over and I attempted to wash it off, but he had 'clear' energy drink!!! So it kind of lacquered the claret to my legs. I finished in 3rd and everyone commented on how well I did considering my crash and injuries.....I had to laugh as I didn't come off and it was just squirrel 'bits', but to be honest it made me feel sick with all the gooey stuff over me....

chriskempton

The enormous dragonflies of Whakarewarewa forest in New Zealand. I was menaced by one the size of an owl and ended up a bloodied heap.

BenS999

Riding along a dirt road the other day, a dog on the left and the owner on the right towards me, so i move into the middle. Owner panics as i get closer (its a gentle up hill so im not going very fast) and calls the dog across the path. No collision but i cant believe the intelligence of some people...

Ruari

Oh, and kids playing footie in the road...
Little beggars clocked me, but didn't stop 'passing' the ball across my line of travel. Road over their ball and squashed it, much to my delight (mostly at not coming a cropper), and their dismay!

wolleur

+1 for pheasants, they seem to be completeley unaware that they are seconds away from death and just stand there thinking 'oo look a big mechanical beast thing coming to run me over, no need to move then'

Then you decide to change your course to move round, which is when pheasant decides to come and inspect your bottom bracket.

Some of the lanes around Meriden seem to have dozens of 'em lurking around to nobble cyclists.

Natural selection doesn't seem to make a dent on this species, they seem almost suicidal!

chriskempton

[quote="wolleur
Natural selection doesn't seem to make a dent on this species[/quote]

Natural selection has nothing to do with pheasants - they're reared in boxes by farmers and estate managers expressly to be blown out of the sky by posh people with guns.

Get stuck in.

Ruari

chriskempton wrote:

Natural selection has nothing to do with pheasants - they're reared in boxes by farmers and estate managers expressly to be blown out of the sky by posh people with guns.

Get stuck in.

Which leads to the inevitable question - Stop and pick it up for the pot?!

markos1963

White Van Man, a particulary nasty species who have a genetic dislike to any cyclist. They try to use the camoflage of a plain van with no markings to mix in with the general population and then wait to attack their prey at junctions and narrow roads.

whyamihere

Rabbits. I'm pretty sure the ones in Sutton Park are auditioning for the next edition of bunny suicides. They sit in the middle of the road in my path. I head right to avoid them, they head right. I veer left, they head left. I stop, they hop towards me.

chriskempton

Ruari wrote:

chriskempton wrote:

Natural selection has nothing to do with pheasants - they're reared in boxes by farmers and estate managers expressly to be blown out of the sky by posh people with guns.

Get stuck in.

Which leads to the inevitable question - Stop and pick it up for the pot?!

Pheasant au tarmac pressé de cycliste à sa petite sauce de PSP22. Yum.

bobtbuilder

In terms of frequency, I have to go with pigeons. I can't remember the last ride I had without one exploding out of the hedge to my left, flying straight at me before veering off at the last minute.

In terms of abject terror, it would have to be Bighorn Sheep. I was descending off the Sunwapta Pass in the Canadian Rockies, watching my speed tick up to around 54mph in an aero tuck, the road was wide, beautifully surfaced, and devoid of traffic, until a herd of Bughorn walked onto the road........and stopped. I must have gone through a set of brake blocks as I hurtled towards them, before shuddering to a halt about 15 feet from them. :shock:

dibdab

on a local cycle path near to me it has to be small children on bikes, no concept of whats going on behind them, and their mums and dads are just as bad :!: add a dog to the mix and it can get really dodgy

Anonymous

I once had a rabbit pretending to be a pingpong ball and bounced off the white line in the ride and shot back, , he nearly ended up in 2 parts as my wheel just missed slicing him in half , damn fast things as I was going nearly 25mph at the time and in that split second he went to the center of the road and back!

On the transpennine trail the worst thing is kids on bicycles though, they seem to be less intelligant than animals as they actually steer right into your path when you are just like 5 meters from then.

I was cycling along with this girl to a TT once and she was at the side of me and the kid did not look and pulled out, he never went anywhere but his bike was hit hard and flew about a meter and he nearly got hit.

mgcycleguy

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