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#1
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
Looks like one MTB'er was killed by a mountain lion out
in CA yesterday, and another attacked. I don't really know the details yet. It's probably pointless to ask, but I'm actually quite curious. What would you do if you were on your MTB and out in front of you stepped a mountain lion? Generally you won't have the time to think, since these critters are typically ambush type predators, hitting you from behind (a pussy cat trait in general, and why people living in India where man eating tigers are present, wear masks with a face on the back of their heads). Depends on terrain, but do you think you could accelerate up to 25 mph on a flat smooth trail pretty quick? I'll bet I could! Do you even attempt to run/pedal away? Do you ward off the beast somehow with the bike? Abandon the bike and make a grab for a bike stick or stones? Stay perfectly still and hope "Big Tabby" goes away? BTW, I've only been in and out of this group lately, so I was wondering, has there been a helmet flame war yet this year? (I noticed we've gotten right into the SUV debates already.) No??!!! Well... I'll bet that biker would be alive today if he'd been wearing his helmet! [wink, wink] SMH |
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#2
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
Stephen Harding wrote:
: I'll bet that biker would be alive today if he'd been wearing : his helmet! funny you should mention that. the cat had been dragging off one of the two surviving mountain biker's by her head (the other was playing tug-of-war over her with the cat at the time). it would stand to reason if she was wearing a helmet and it had stayed on that it probably would have prevented scalp laceration. she may have been wearing one for all i know. cnn didn't say one way or the other. -- david reuteler |
#3
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
Stephen Harding wrote in news:3ffeee6e$1@news-
1.oit.umass.edu: Looks like one MTB'er was killed by a mountain lion out in CA yesterday, and another attacked. I don't really know the details yet. There's a report he http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/West/01/0...ion/index.html The first thing to realize is that your risk is very low. Maybe 10 humans have been killed by mountain lions in California over the past 100 years. The last person killed was almost 20 years ago. Compare that to the number of humans killed by Ford Explorers. |
#4
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
A bike helmet is probably like an egg shell to one of those cats.
Andy |
#5
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
"AJRBJR" wrote in message ... A bike helmet is probably like an egg shell to one of those cats. I would expect some protection. I was bitten by one on the hand ages ago. 4 punctures (two in the palm, two in the back of the hand), and none of them came out the other side. definitely not as deep as the thickness of the helmet. So I guess I'd rather be wearing my bike helmet (and cycling gloves :^) in a lion encounter. If only the bike helmet provided proper protection when I crash... |
#6
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
There's a report he http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/West/01/0...ion/index.html The first thing to realize is that your risk is very low. Maybe 10 humans have been killed by mountain lions in California over the past 100 years. The last person killed was almost 20 years ago. Compare that to the number of humans killed by Ford Explorers. I've heard if confronted by a Mountain Lion one should use the bike as a shield/weapon and keep it between you and the cat. Can anyone confirm if this is sound advice? Chris Neary "Science, freedom, beauty, adventu what more could you ask of life? Bicycling combined all the elements I loved" - Adapted from a quotation by Charles Lindbergh |
#7
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
"Chris Neary" wrote in message ... There's a report he http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/West/01/0...ion/index.html The first thing to realize is that your risk is very low. Maybe 10 humans have been killed by mountain lions in California over the past 100 years. The last person killed was almost 20 years ago. Compare that to the number of humans killed by Ford Explorers. I've heard if confronted by a Mountain Lion one should use the bike as a shield/weapon and keep it between you and the cat. Can anyone confirm if this is sound advice? I went to get my hair cut a few weeks ago and my hairdresser happens to be a mountain biker. She was telling me about her exploits with a mountain lion on the trail the day before. (Her heart rate still hadn't gotten back to normal.) It was a lovely day, she was riding alone, she goes over a hill and there the mountain lion was standing 15 yards in front of her in the middle of the path. She braked (and didn't fall, she's alive to say) and put the bike between her and the large cat and stared it down until it walked away. When it was far enough away to quit turning around and looking back she turned the bike around and high tailed it back to her car. So I don't know if the bike as a shield/weapon is sound advice, but it was all she could think of and worked in that particular instance. |
#8
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
Stephen Harding wrote in news:3ffeee6e$1@news-
1.oit.umass.edu: Generally you won't have the time to think, since these critters are typically ambush type predators, hitting you from behind (a pussy cat trait in general, and why people living in India where man eating tigers are present, wear masks with a face on the back of their heads). Was thinking the same thing. You could paint eyes on the back of your helmet, I guess. Depends on terrain, but do you think you could accelerate up to 25 mph on a flat smooth trail pretty quick? I'll bet I could! Do you even attempt to run/pedal away? Coincidentaly, was reading about mtn lions the day before this happened. Apparently they are powerful sprinters but not good over long distances (low lung capacity, or something like that). The advice was not to run. If I had a clear downhill path, I'd take it, though. On flat not ground...maybe not. I think the lion can accellerate a lot faster then you. Do you ward off the beast somehow with the bike? Abandon the bike and make a grab for a bike stick or stones? Stay perfectly still and hope "Big Tabby" goes away? Make yourself look as big as possible, which to me means, grab the bike. At least you could use it to fend off a pounce to some extent. Supposedly, crouching down further makes you look like a prey animal, so bending over to pick up sticks or rocks might be risky. One suggestion I've never seen (perhaps because it's stupid), would be to ride right at the cat. After all, some prey animals, like deer, will try and defend themselves by charging, and I think the cats are cautious of that. I guess that goes back to your original question...If came around the corder and you saw a cat standing there on a single track, what do you do? Turn around the other way and run for it (turning your back is probably a bad idea)? Or charge full speed toward the cat, and hopefully right by at? |
#9
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
Maybe 10 humans have been killed by mountain lions in California over the past
100 years. What I'm getting from this thread, though, is that ATTACKS and ENCOUNTERS are not really so rare, even if DEATHS are. It seems there are many more encounters than may be showing up in the "official" statistics. I have heard that in brushy and forested areas of California, there may be 5-7 cougars for every 100 square miles (that's a box 10 miles square). It would seem that, especially if you take your kids with you for MTBing, trail running, or hiking, you should be prepared for a possible encounter. Where we live in the foothills, I hear of a local cougar incident maybe once or twice a year. |
#10
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Mtn Lions and Bikes
On Fri, 09 Jan 2004 18:51:15 GMT, Chris Neary
wrote: There's a report he http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/West/01/0...ion/index.html The first thing to realize is that your risk is very low. Maybe 10 humans have been killed by mountain lions in California over the past 100 years. The last person killed was almost 20 years ago. Compare that to the number of humans killed by Ford Explorers. I've heard if confronted by a Mountain Lion one should use the bike as a shield/weapon and keep it between you and the cat. Can anyone confirm if this is sound advice? This is good advice, but remember they are ambush predators and will probably be on you before you realize it, perhaps at a scenic view, rest stop? I'd probably put a canister of Bear-Guard pepper spray on my wrist on a strap if I was in Mt Lion country, and I'd definitely have my Zounds Air horn on the bike. g Seriously, the best protection is to ride with a buddy and have you both armed with the horn and the spray. Yelling at the cat and hitting it with a little branch isn't going to deter it. You need something decisive. Wilderness biking? Always carry a bandage wrap and pressure pad and some ace bandage for splinting, and some line for fashioning a drag litter, and you've got it covered, except for some sugar tabs, a flare(?), fire starter, a space blanket and a knife, if you're really gonna be in back country. The gear guys call this a kit and have it made up and in the car. It's also called a 'bug-out' bag, as in head for the hills. Oh, and each carry a cellphone and check you're in range. But basically, partner up and you'll be fine. Oh, forget the firearm. You're more likely to shoot your buddy than the Cougar/Bear. g My 2 cents... -B |
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