Oh deer!

26.5 Miles

This afternoon Sarah and I got a rare chance to sneak off and do a bike ride together.  We decided that since we didn't have a lot of time we'd do a shorter ride to Pictograph Caves State Park.  We finally got out the door around 7:30pm and were soon on our way up the long hill.  As we climbed I noticed several deer and knowing how many deer are in this area I said to Sarah, "I hope we don't see any deer on the way down the hill."  You may be aware that I have a phobia of getting hit by a deer while on my bike.  Maybe its not really a phobia but rather a premonition.  Either way, I've had enough close calls that I try to err on the side of caution when dealing with these unpredictable beasts.  I've always got my eyes peeled for those pesky critters.  I like to get the jump on them before they surprise me.

So back to the story.  Sarah and I climbed  and climbed and climbed until we finally crested the hill eagerly awaiting the steep but beautiful decent down the backside.  As we crested, an SUV passed and then stopped at the gate ahead of us.   Apparently the park closes at 8:00pm and they had just barely closed the gates before we got there.  Bummer.  We had to turn around.  With a nice tail wind, we sped back down the hill.  20mph...25....30....35...38mph  We were flying, taking turns hiding in one another's wind shadow and then sling shotting around to take the lead.  I was in the lead now.  Just then, out of the corner of my eye I saw movement to my right.  Then it happens.  Before I can even grab the brake levers, a big doe bounds over the barbed wire fence and darts out directly in front of me crossing the road only feet away.  I missed her by that much (in my best Maxwell Smart impersonation).  Phew!  But its not over yet.  There was another doe behind her and she was ready to jump that fence and do the same thing.

Stay tuned for our next episode, "A lucky break" or "Russ' last stand."....

At a distance of about twenty feet, the second deer ran along side me on the other side of the fence.  She was getting antsy and really wanted to cross the road.  I reached for the brakes again but didn't know if Sarah was right behind me or if she had dropped back.  I hesitated to react until I had to hoping to avoid colliding with Sarah if I hit the brakes too hard.  I watched the doe carefully when suddenly she hit the skids, turned and leapt in the air directly at me.  I yelled (it might have been a scream) and prayed for the best.  Suddenly, this deer who was flying right at me, tumbled in the air.  Huh?  She clipped the top wire of the barbed wire fence, flipped over with her back hooves in the air and slammed to the ground.  I couldn't see much after that but Sarah saw the whole thing.  Apparently the doe tripped on the top wire causing her to flip over completely, smash into the fence and slip between the wires ending up on the same side of the fence that she started. Terrified, the poor thing got up, bolted away from the fence and then, again paralleled me down the road.

Round 2

I am extremely confused at this point thinking that there is a poor deer behind me caught in the barbed wire fence.  Trembling I turn to look back to hear Sarah laughing hysterically.  All of the sudden, the doe is running with me again and again she is itching to jump the fence and cross the road.  Having a better idea of where Sarah was, this time I didn't hesitate to hit the brakes.  She again bound over the fence, this time clearing it, darted across the road in front of me, leapt the fence on the other side of the road and was gone in a flash.  I'm glad Sarah was there because I doubt she would have believed me otherwise.  I just wish I had the helmet camera with me to document the whole thing.

Round 3

Now, I wish I could say that was my only encounter of the evening, but lamentably, it was not.  As we pulled back into town, I rounded the corner, starling another doe.  This time the deer had nowhere to go.  She was trapped between us and a tall chain link fence.  She took off and multiple times, leapt into the air and smashed sideways into the fence until we finally passed.

Until today, I'm pretty sure that Sarah thought I was being paranoid with my certainty that a deer would finally bring my untimely demise.  I've had too many of these experiences to simply credit it to mere coincidence.  There IS a deer conspiracy and they ARE out to get me!

Shouting Match

20 Miles

I don’t know how I forced myself out of bed this morning and I barely remember riding out to the Y to meet up with Mike.  Maybe I was sleep riding.  I just hope I can adjust to this early morning schedule.  I really need to start going to bed earlier but Sydney and Tara have come to enjoy the night life of summer vacation, thus I can’t go to bed until they are in bed.

Anyway, we went for a nice hill climb this morning up Hillcrest Road.  Mike told me to go up a head to the end of the street and meet him on my way back since my “feet don’t see hills” and his know when there is even the slightest of inclines.  I took off up the hills, exhausting most of my energy.  I slowed to almost a crawl after I hit the flats up top near the end of pavement.  I reached the end then turned around and flew back down the road towards Mike.  The flats weren’t as flat as I thought they were.  When I found Mike a mile back he was stopped to change a flat.  I stopped to help but really to get my wind back.  We finished changing the tire and took off again.  Now Mike is much stronger on the decent than I am.  As he says “F=MA” or Force = Mass x Acceleration.  He has more mass.  Anyway, with much effort I was able to match his speed all the way down the road. 

At the steepest part of the decline approaching the intersection at the bottom of the hill, I watched as Mike approached two deer at the side of the road.  Suddenly a dark figure, probably a wood chuck, darted out in front of Mike and spooked the deer.  I hit my brakes.  Mike screamed!  The deer panicked and took off aimlessly kicking up dust everywhere.  One bolted down the road in front of Mike and the other tried to join her, crossing the street right behind Mike, nearly hitting his back tire.  I thought Mike was having venison for breakfast but somehow he pulled through.  I’m glad someone else got the deer experience for a change.

On the way back into town, I followed closely behind Mike, just to the left of his back tire.  We tried talking while riding and trying to stay out of the lane of traffic.  We hugged the white line as closely as we could.  Suddenly a white sedan erratically swerved around us with horn blasting.  In retaliation, Mike gives him a friendly wave (not sarcasm, seriously just a friendly wave).  Then we see another not-so-friendly wave from inside the vehicle, then brake lights.  Great!  This punk really thinks he’s got a leg to stand on by telling us not to ride bikes on the road.  “YOU CAN NOT RIDE SIDE-BY-SIDE ON THE HIGHWAY!” he yells repeatedly like a broken record.  At this point he is driving next to us swerving in and out of the turning lane, sometimes into oncoming traffic.  The whole time I’m thinking “We weren’t riding side-by-side and you are going to kill someone.”  We tried yelling back but his response was always the same.  What an idiot!  I don’t know what he was trying to accomplish but we weren’t listening and neither was he.  Mike finally yelled “Eat Rocks!” and then we ignored him until he drove away.  I don’t know how my riding near the white line was more dangerous than this guy holding up traffic while swerving all over the place.  What a moron.