What do you do when someone hits a deer?

[jellyrug]

A certain person commutes 5:00am in the morning, country road, then tells me once sometimes twice a week a deer was almost hit.

So I wait for it to happen, until it happens and a car is totaled.

Then, when trying to find a solution, for the future, it becomes an argument for blaming them for something which could not be prevented neither foreseen.

Is it me, or am I missing something here?

 

[Sandow]

What's the question? I don't get it....

 

[jellyrug]

What's the question? I don't get it....

If you almost hit a deer once or twice a week, will you be surprised once you hit one?

And, if someone tries to give you advice, such as a different route, or slowing down, taking extra precautions, will you get upset and say it happens, it cannot be prevented and don’t blame me for it, it was not my fault?

 

[Sandow]

If you almost hit a deer once or twice a week, will you be surprised once you hit one?

And, if someone tries to give you advice, such as a different route, or slowing down, taking extra precautions, will you get upset and say it happens, it cannot be prevented and don’t blame me for it, it was not my fault?

Oh lol. Well...there is so little common sense in this that I didn't get it at first.

Of course you are right!

 

[Mythos]

Oh lol. Well...there is so little common sense in this that I didn't get it at first.

Of course you are right!

The person will be very surprised when they hit a deer whether they anticipate hitting one or not.

Don't worry, he's taking your advice now, he just doesn't want to admit it. If it's like around here though, hitting deer is almost inevitatable no matter how careful you are. It's just a matter of time. If you have to drive in the early morning, or during hunting season it's going to happen. Ride a bicycle or drive an old beater with a deer catcher, that's all you can do. Pray when you ride your bike.

 

[ZeePopo]

A certain person commutes 5:00am in the morning, country road, then tells me once sometimes twice a week a deer was almost hit.

So I wait for it to happen, until it happens and a car is totaled.

Then, when trying to find a solution, for the future, it becomes an argument for blaming them for something which could not be prevented neither foreseen.

Is it me, or am I missing something here?

I simply avoid the deer hours. The killing hours it's just too high a chance of running into something. I high beam it constantly and never ride in 2nd gear, freaks them out. So far so good

 

[WuzzaCBXRider]

I simply avoid the deer hours. The killing hours it's just too high a chance of running into something. I high beam it constantly and never ride in 2nd gear, freaks them out. So far so good

My insurance company told me that ‘Comprehensive’ covers hitting animals, not collision so FYI if that’s the case where you live. Would be awful getting your bike banged up thinking ‘Collision’ would cover the repairs if you didn’t have Comp. Same goes for theft, Comp covers that too.

 

[c10]

Deer are bad for us . Ive hit two on motorcycles , and several close ones ( one posted here on video ) My good buddy recently was taken out on his Tenere 700 by a unseen deer jumped from woods right into him knocking him out . I personally keep a eye out for them .

 

[WuzzaCBXRider]

Deer are bad for us . Ive hit two on motorcycles , and several close ones ( one posted here on video ) My good buddy recently was taken out on his Tenere 700 by a unseen deer jumped from woods right into him knocking him out . I personally keep a eye out for them .

You have to scan the sides. Deer are the same color as their surroundings. I had a big Elk come up to my right and paced me about ten feet away as I slowed way down. I honked and revved but he stayed with me for maybe an eighth of a mile. I guess I coulda just accelerated ahead but I was so astonished and he didn’t seem to care so I paced him. After a while he veered off the way he came. With deer, seeing just one can often mean they’re more to follow. I’ll avoid anything if I’m able but I won’t crash to avoid something that’ll fit on a dinner plate.

 

[BlueBacon]

The road to my work is right off of a military reservation so it regularly has deer, boar, and rabbits wandering about.
I've come close in car and on the bike, but a 3-4 coworkers have totaled their cars in the last year...and our deer are TINY compared to the rest of the USA.

 

[Zerks]

30 years ago... about 12.30 am

I hit a small deer in 1991 on a V65 Sabre at about 25 mph near Clearlake California on my way home from work in the Geysers. It was night time and I scrubbed off as much speed as I could from about 60 or 65 mph before impact. Because I was under hard braking and the deer was running to my left the bike went up and over and landed perpendicular to the road and then landed upside down, then it bounced over onto the wheels, then fell over on my right foot. That impact blew the laces out of that boot. My heel was tender for about 3 months. I estimated I flew about 20 to 25 ft before hitting the pavement head first like Superman with arms outstretched. The left side of the Sabre never touched anything during all of this. The gauges, levers, grab bar and handlebars were all badly damaged. The only light around was my headlight and I saw the deer amble away with a kink in his spine right in front of the hind quarters where I hit him.

I was pretty roughed up... the helmet definatly saved me from serious injury or death... when I heard it contact the pavement the thought "thank God" came to mind instantly. My knees looked like bloody hamburger and the wind on them during the drive home was memorable. The neck trauma lasted for months. I picked the bike up and got it underway in 3rd gear for the last few miles to get home. When I walked into the bedroom my sweetheart asked what happened. I slept until I woke up and then went to the ER to get the knees scrubbed out... I was too tired that night to go to the ER and wait for hours late at night to get medical attention. I took 6 days off and then was told to come back to work or be fired. I ended up making special protective bandages to keep my knees free from any contact so they could heal... it was a painful period...

My life lesson... when enjoying the familiar twisties of a regular commute at night in critter territory... slow down... a couple 10ths of a second can make a big difference.

A friend of a friend has hit 3 of them... he calls them forest rats.

 

[kml]

I'm all in favor of mitigating your risk with proper riding techniques to avoid dear, but I was talking to an insurance adjuster in the province of Saskatchewan and he told me 1/3 of all dear strike claims he processed were to the side of the car.

Sometimes when your number is up there is not a lot you can do.

It's the only thing that really worries me. I'll take a left turn driver over a deer any day.

cheers
ken

 

[Bumblebee]

I hit a moose with an armored vehicle once....there was moose pieces all over the place...what a friggin' chore it was to clean that vehicle up...

We went to a ford to try and wash most of the pieces off but there was gore that got into the open hatches...

(knock on wood) I haven't hit any critters with my vehicles yet...(hopefully never).

 

[Mythos]

Deer are bad for us . Ive hit two on motorcycles , and several close ones ( one posted here on video ) My good buddy recently was taken out on his Tenere 700 by a unseen deer jumped from woods right into him knocking him out . I personally keep a eye out for them .

I've narrowly missed deer that ran straight out across the road 3 times in the past four years. They come out of nowhere. They're either stupid or they're running after/away from something. One of them hit the side of my truck, one I avoided by two feet and I think that one four years ago was missed by inches in my car.