Dumb Deer

It?s that time of the year. Stupid deer think they have to be moving around the same time I?m going to work. Friday morning I?m riding in. The roads were just a bit damp from late night showers. I live out in the country so I?m riding past open fields and tree lines. I?m doing about 45mph, with some other driver close behind, that?s really annoying. Sure enough I see a large doe with three fawns trailing, running at a good pace right across the road in front of me. I knew I was not going to stop with the roads the way they were. With the guy behind me so close, I would have had him in my back pocket if I could have stopped.

I decided my only option was to try to steer a path through the herd or lay over the tank if an impact was unavoidable. I was able to slow down enough that I could see that the doe and #1 fawn was going to clear my path by the time I got there. There was a gap between the second and third deer so I aimed for the butt of the #2 fawn as it was crossing. I cleared it by about 3 feet and got the impression of the #3 fawn rearing up on it?s back legs just as I shot past it?s nose at about 4 or 5 feet.

After I took a few breaths calm down I realized I had cleanly bisected the herd. I looked back and 6 o?clock Charlie was way back there. He may have had a closer shave that I did. At least I hope so.

Stupid Deer! Stupid tailgaters!

Glad you were able to steer through the small herd. We had a similar almost incident last year. We both missed the deer and the tailgater didn't seem me be in as much of a hurry after we split the 3 deer crossing the road.

Excellent timing! Congrats at only sacrificing your underware and not your bike!:clap2:

Dang deer. It's probably not the one you see that you are going to hit.

Dont know if they work or not, but, one of the PO's of my bike put the deer whistles on the bike. I havent been able to ride where there may be deer yet so not sure. but maybe worth a shot to keep you safe.

Wow... that is scary. Out of curiosity, did you lay on the horn? I was given this advice by someone a couple of years ago and it has saved my hind a few times. One of the issues with deer is that they do travel in multiples and just when you think that deer will pass before you get there, and as you stare at the deer, the second or third one started across and you didn't think to look there and BAM!

Blowing the horn makes them all scatter. I've used this a few times when deer were standing close to the road, just to make sure they weren't going to head for the road in front of me. Really does make them scatter.

Search mdturely sp? and dear whistle on the forum for a dear strike count. His freight train isn't known for making sudden unexpected turns and the ones around here anyway aren't particularly quiet. Also consider the size of a typical deer whistle and what physics says about the frequency of sound they can make and the frequency deer ears can actually hear from people that incredibly get paid to study this...

OP glad is was just a near miss.

tmds3 said:

Dont know if they work or not,

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If they did work every insurance company in America would require their use....here in Minnesota it's a billion dollar industry to repair/replace deer damage...............

Great job avoiding the deer! Good reminder too, to more/less aim for the rear of the deer. Hopefully by time you get there, they would've passed. Too often I think people go the opposite. Understandably, but not always the best route. Of course, so many variables. Different every time.
My near miss was before I got the ST. Did the same thing. Steered toward the rear of the deer. Seemed awfully close though. Scary. No doubt about it.


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I didn't hit the horn. Too panicked to think about it I guess. These four deer were already in a full loping gallop when I first saw them. They were so tuned into where they were going I don't think the horn would have altered their path. In fact I was kind of counting on them keeping their pace so I could pick my slot between #2 and #3. If they had slowed down, my timing would have been off and...crunch! Stupid Deer!

My Dad is a retired CO for the MDNR. They did some studies years ago about deer whistles on car bumpers. The determination was that they are too stupid to know what the whistle means. Flyfisher is right. If they worked, the insurance companies would be all-in.

This is why we have antler-less permits. I'm just sayin'...

Good to know, as a city slicker I dont get to ride much where there is a worry about hitting deer. Idiot drivers on the other hand, is a different story.

Eagle59 said:

They did some studies years ago about deer whistles on car bumpers. The determination was that they are too stupid to know what the whistle means.

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Why yes.. one of my bullet points on the changing curriculum of the schools these days.

Deer are not being taught to stop and flee on hearing the whistle. So the new generation just aren't learning it in school and the parents are absent and not handing down knowledge and teaching today's youth the basic things.

Sorry to hear about the dumb deer... the dear around here are smart... they wait until you're not looking to run out in front of you!:soapbox Live in an area where they are active all year... rut is the worst time. Wonder what folks are going to do when electric bike get real popular... wont hear you coming.

Do you hunt deer?
Are you going to start?

Glad it turned out OK for you!

Eagle59 said:

I didn't hit the horn. Too panicked to think about it I guess.

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You should make that an instinctive reaction... but kudos on keeping calm and in line there!
But you'd also need to slow down (with that stupid tailgater at your license plate a really difficult situation...), as Netfan said will blaring the horn scare them away, but their second instinct could be "going home", so they might cross the road again, right in front of you... BTDT and if I'd not decelerated significantly the critter would have jumped right into me...

Already hit the horn and have 'em stop dead where they're at and just look at you. They don't all react the same way.

Good job avoiding the collision, still waiting on the heat seeking camera option now showing up on some high end auto's to be made available for a motorbike.

Glad you were able to avoid the deer and getting rear ended. After my deer strike last month in Fla, everything in the fields during my morning commute (still dark) looks like a deer. I guess I'm still a little deer shy

The best thing you could do was not panic, you did great keep your head on straight and made it through that mess with only some soiled shorts!!

So a question on this. I've been told that the best way to handle deer is to slow down as much as possible, avoid the impact, but if you can't avoid the impact, to roll on the throttle at the last instant to try to keep the bike up. Fortunately, part 1 and 2 have been sufficient for me so far, but i'm curious to hear opinions on the last.