Keep an Eye on The Woods Your Hand Upon Your Brake Lever

I was recently reading a post over at Your Crazy Uncle, where Unk recounts an encounter he had with a deer on June 8th. Unk lives in the boonies, so you can expect a deer or two to cross your path every now and then. That doesn't diminish the effect of having a deer pop out right in front of you whether your in a car or a bike. Nine out of ten times you won't get but a half seconds warning of an impending collision. This experience left Unk with his heart rate way higher than he likes to have it.

This doesn't happen to me on a regular basis, but it does happen way to often for my liking. I live in the most populated part of my State (Michigan) so one would gather having a deer cross your path is a pretty rare occurrence. I leave for work pretty early, and not too long ago I turned the corner from my sub to head to the main drag and there standing right in the middle of the road was a good sized Doe. As I approached he she jumped the fence and then wound up on a trampoline in the backyard she was in looking at me.
Each year I usually see two or three deer a year round the neighborhood and just recently spotted one in the clover leaf of the northbound I-75 entrance ramp at Fourteen mile. That is about the last place I would expect to spot a deer as this is one of the most densely traveled areas in South East Michigan.

The thing that gets the hair on the back of my neck is, riding in North Oakland County, Macomb, Lapeer, Livingston or Monroe counties in the early morning or late evening hours. With Oakland county, the one I reside in, having the second largest instances of deer vehicle collisions. These areas are literally infested with our delicious four legged friends. I really prefer to do my deer hunting with a bow, not my bike.
So when I'm riding in these areas, I am always scanning for signs of movement near the side of the road. This doesn't always work because of the dense foliage on quite a few of the back roads I like to ride. And if you see one and you think your in the clear think again, like most bikers, they like to travel in groups. So if you see one, slow down, cause more than likely there are a couple more waiting in the wings to jump out in front of you. This activity really picks up in the fall, but like alien abductions, can happen any time of year.

The video at the beginning of this post kinda runs trough my mind as I ride in the evening. It doesn't stop me from riding, but makes me bring up the rear in the group.

Till Next Time...........