BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

The thing I most regret not dodging is snakes on the GAP. There is this one spot, near the overlook about halfway between Ohiopyle and Connelsville, where they always seem to sun themselves.

Rabbits, lots of rabbits. Once, a red fox. Unintentionally ran over some small mammal on the South Side trail, I looked back and didn't see it. My wife, a couple days ago said that she and another cyclist got buzzed near Anderson "dinosaur" playground by a red tailed hawk. She said she felt the wind of its pass, within arm's length and missed the other guy going the opposite way by a foot or so. I told her she should've yelled "four feet"!

Snakes eat rats, *please* dodge them. Gooseshit, I hate riding through gooseshit because I park my bike in my office sometimes. Co-workers hate the gooseshit tire tracks through the office. Groundhogs are notorious for waddling out in front of me too, holy crap those things are big.

On Memorial Day weekend, I overhauled my bike's drivetrain and then went for a test ride. My partner and I were riding from the Oval, up Negley Run, and then through East Liberty back to Wilkinsburg. We saw no less then 8 groundhogs--luckily they were all off the road in the bushes and tall grass. Those things are huge, I would hate to have to swerve around one of them. Occasionally, on my way to work I've had to dodge dead birds. I'm not sure if they died from contact with the wrong part of the overhead powerlines or if they were poisoned somehow (rat poison, insecticide, etc...), but they are usually intact yet lifeless. I think I've seen one or two that looked like they had been prey for another animal. The best animal dodging story is the time I almost hit a deer. I was leaving work late in the evening, racing down a hill. It was dark enough to need a light, but of course mine wasn't working at full strength. I vaguely made out the form of something in front of me from maybe 100' away. Then I realized--at 34 mph--that something large was simply standing in the roadway blocking my path. As I put on the brakes, a car came from behind me and scared the animal away. I can only imagine what sort of gore-fest I would've been involved in had I careened into a deer at that speed. Fun times.

I had to dodge this feller on the North Shore this morning. We pushed him (carefully, because he's a snapper) into the knotweed so he'll be safe.

Bananna peel on liberty ave bike lane, thought I was playing mario kart.

I once had to go around a duffel bag full of dildos. True story.

"I once had to go around a duffel bag full of dildos. True story." Sorry, I thought I had those secured better. . . . . . . . I couldn't resist.

i lol'ed

Suicidal baby bunnies - so unpredictable and zig-zaggy! I haven't hit one yet but I have multiple close calls on the North Shore Trail (particularly between the casino and science center) each year.

Today's Punk-Band-Name-Of-The-Day: "Duffle Bag Full of Dildos".

Turkeys. It seems that male turkeys think that people on bikes are out to get their harem and they will charge at you without warning. This happened to me on the Junction Hollow trail commuting home from work. It was so totally unexpected that I ran off the rail and fell off the bike. Turkeys are BIG up close.

An enraged goose (following dodging a ton of gooseshit, naturally) around the pond next to the art museum in Cleveland. Also, bunnies on Washington's landing. I forget, two or three years ago? More bunnies than I've ever seen. Holy heck was that a lot of bunnies. After a little while zig-zag riding at 5mph I just got off the bike and started laughing.

Wow, more turkey attacks. I've read plenty on the turkeys attacking people over the years in Schenley Park and now that I ride through there, I started reading more about what to do when they come after you. The best defense against the turkeys is to *stand your ground*, they become emboldened when we run/ride away. If you encounter an aggressive turkey, stop, YELL at it, get off your bike, get the bike between it and you (because they have those nasty, sharp spikes) and *don't back down*. If they're not threatened by us, they'll go after a small child next and those nasty sharp spikes they have are right at a kid's eye level. "Do not allow turkeys to be comfortable in the presence of people; chase turkeys away from your residence. Don't let turkeys intimidate you. Don't hesitate to scare or threaten a bold, aggressive turkey with loud noises, swatting with a broom or water sprayed from a hose. A dog on a leash is also an effective deterrent." http://dnr.state.mn.us/livingwith_wildlife/turkeys/index.html

^... or chase the turkey with an oven pan, basting brush and some stuffing.

^ Clearly I have underestimated the importance of turkey pans for biking http://www.instructables.com/id/Bicycle-fairing-from-a-foil-turkey-pan-for-commuti/

Maybe if I don't lose my duffelbag full of dildos again, I can chase the turkeys with one of them. ....Sorry, couldn't resist.

Kid you not... I had to dodge *this item* this morning near Friendship Park:

Sometimes, you just never know what's going to hit you, though, and it's all a matter of luck. This little couple-second video has gone viral in the last couple of days.

@Rusty REd " Kid you not… I had to dodge *this item* this morning near Friendship Park " Did it fall off your bike?

I would not take a pic of that but i would take a pic of someone else taking a pic of that ! lol

Sometimes, you just never know what’s going to hit you, though, and it’s all a matter of luck. This little couple-second video has gone viral in the last couple of days.

holy shit. that made me duck watching it...

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/us/2014/09/22/pkg-jet-blue-plane-piece-falls-out-of-sky.kcal-kcbs&hpt=hp_c3&from_homepage=yes&video_referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F#/video/us/2014/09/22/pkg-jet-blue-plane-piece-falls-out-of-sky.kcal-kcbs

Like RustyRed, I almost ran over a turtle, although this one was of the non-snapping variety and in Frick Park. I stopped and moved him over to the side of the trail, and paused to check out a snake sunning himself on the wall by the trail. Truly a day that made me glad to be able to bike to work! Also had a collision with a small rabbit on the Southside trail yesterday as I was racing through that early morning pea soup on the way to work. I say collision because I didn't run him over, but he did hit the side of my left foot on the down stroke. For some reason they were out in force yesterday morning, must have flushed out around 10 of them between the Glenwood Bridge and Station Square.

Animals Animals and more animals: Over the years I've dogged too many deer and even hit one ( i ride at dusk and dawn a lot). I've dragged several snapping turtles off the road. I've hit one Canadian goose and had a ground hog jump and try to bite me.

Not so much 'dodging', but I once came to a screeching halt in the middle of Henderson Avenue when, coming down the ~10-12% grade at around 30mph, I came around a curve and discovered a deer standing broadside in the middle of the road. She of course stood perfectly still, staring at me, until I had come to a full stop, then snorted with disgust and leapt off into the woods above Allegheny Dwellings.

When I first moved to Pennsylvania I heard people refer to deer as "giant rats". Having grown up with deer being cute Rudolphs, I didn't quite get it. I've since learned better. Deer and humans don't mix that well. (Just to be clear, where I grew up bears were the issue. Which definitely don't mix.)

Funny that you should mention bears Ahlir. Just last Saturday, my wife and I were riding from Cumberland to the Mason-Dixon line on the GAP. Since it was the final section that we had yet to traverse, we were intent on finishing the trip in spite of the first real signs of cold, non-summery weather we had that day. As one particularly strong headwind/dustbowl approached us, I yelled back "Bear down!" It then occurred to me that despite the combination of uphill grade, cold weather, and headwind were sucking at the moment, hearing "Bear down" on a bike is probably a better option than "Bear up".

Outside of OhioPyle once, I had a flat jsut as it was geting dark. There was a jogger coming down the trail as I was about to take my wheel off and fix it. As the runner passed, breathing really quite hard, he said "Bear! Ambling in this direction." I decided that maybe I didn't want to push on to Confluence. I'm such a wimp. As I walked back to Ohiopyle, pushing my flat-tired, trailered bike, I kept looking over my shoulder. If I had seen any dark shape moving (like, say a big dog or deer or anything) I decided that I could probably check out how well a bike with a trailer cruises on a back rim.

Runners in the dark, Used to ride laps of North Park on the bike/walking trail in the dark before work. Runners four abreast in all black clothing forcing me onto the road.