I got my warning today. I'm cruising along nice and easy about 55 mph and I see a deer run out from the opposite side of the road. I grabbed the clutch and both front and rear brake automatically. I felt the rear brake pedal snap or something. I held on the fronts. The deer passed about 5 feet in front of me. That's the closest I ever came to a deer on a bike. The does are releasing their love aromas. The Bucks are loosing all common sense.

The rear brake pedal on my rearset was zip tied up through a bolthole in the footrest mount. I have removed the reservoir and downspout pending installation of an external reservoir. The ziptie is what broke, the pedal is fine. Amazingly, the pedal went back up and there is no return spring on it. There must be some pressure left in that MC.

Time to start winter projects. I'll have that rear brake MC at the top of the list. The busa goes to bed first. The 14 only has 500 miles on it so far this year.

Grn, I think you have me beat on a near miss with a deer but this was as close as I need to get.

Hopefully you all filed both Buck and Doe tags to help with the kull this year and in the future,
I try and do my part end of Oct when the Bucks are crazy end of Oct

I do have some revenge to take for that deer that ran into the side of my truck last year.

I'm still going to ride. I hit a deer at 55mph, it hurt for awhile but neither the deer or I died. I am way more cautious now and especially at night. I avoid night riding and 2 lane county roads. Stick to work and back and weekend rides if I can. Good luck all.

I saw three deer tonight. The bad part of it is I never see them until I get close or until they move. Often, they were standing right off the side of the road and I don't know they are there. Three is a lot of deer to see on a 20 mile ride. It is cold in the late afternoon now and I don't go fast a whole lot anyway. Time to change that oil on a warm afternoon and put the bikes away. 500 miles on the 14 this year. 500! I just hit 50,000 miles.

Glad you are ok Rook. That certainly WAS a very close call. Since I purchased the XF I Don't think I even put 500 miles on it this year either. The first 5 years I rolled up 38,500 miles. Its been way to hot here in Tulsa but now that the weather has cooled down maybe I'll jump on it for a month or two. We'll see.

It blows my mind to hear people say it's too hot to ride! That never happens here. Even a couple hundred miles south makes about one month's difference in the kind of riding I can do.

Understood your comment but when one's head is dripping from sweat inside the helmet that is where I draw the line. Evenings have been about it (still 90 degrees until lately) but I do not ride at night. The bugs here are crazy!
You must be living up North somewhere. I myself am from up North and do miss all four seasons!

but when one's head is dripping from sweat inside the helmet

you call that hot . in south texas the sweat evaporates before the drop hits its target.

Sptember 23, 2010 I was on a trip to Glacier National Park. I rode highway 89 off I-90 during the day.
I got to my motel before dark. I went out to eat and when I came back a guy came into the motel on crutches. His right leg in a cast. His wife unjured.
I ask what happened? He was riding a FJR1300 on the same road (89) in the dark and a Deer slammed into his Bike/Leg. He did not go down, but his motorcycle trip was done.
Larry Grodsky, the Safety Editor for Rider Magazine was killed by a Deer in 2006.
https://www.webbikeworld.com/stayin-safe-lawrence-grodsky/

I made it to Browning, MT in a cold drizzle. I was informed that it was snowing in Glacier Park and the road was closed. I did return in 2016.
I try not to ride at night in Arkansas Forest. People around here feed them Corn. They wander through the neighborhood. One year the City allowed Deer hunting with Bow inside the City Limits.

Deer, Dogs, Large Birds, even Rabbits can wipe us out.

I try not to ride at night in Arkansas Forest. People around here feed them Corn. They wander through the neighborhood. One year the City allowed Deer hunting with Bow inside the City Limits.

I believe expert bow hunters were permitted to kill as many deer as possible inside the city back in my hometown one year. It's the same situation, people feed them and there are no predators. The deer are almost like domestic animals. I hear they taste delicious after eating people food for so long. It's not super lean meat anymore though.

Deer, Dogs, Large Birds, even Rabbits can wipe us out.

Kruz hasn't visited us in years but I still talk to him. He was crashed by a squirrel in his driveway once. I had squirrel run out on me on my last ride. Good thing I saw a deer just a few seconds earlier because I had slowed down. The squirrel turned and headed back into the woods a few inches before he got ran over. I ran one over with my truck a few months ago. I saw it, I felt it and looked back in the mirror to see it flop on the road dead. I don't brake or swerve for squirrels. Then there was the turtle I came a few inches from on my busa a couple months back. I was coming out of a corner doing about 70-80 mph and widened my line a bit and missed him by a few inches. It was not a big turtle but plenty big to slide my front tire out, I'm sure.

that would rally suck to get thrashed by a fcukin turtle

My take on the "hit an animal" scenario..when traveling down a straight section of road, I will not change my of direction. Think about it..If your front wheel is in any amount of angle other than straight ahead and it strikes something, what is the result ? Chances are it will lead to loss of control..On the other hand, no matter what you hit, if your front wheel remains in a straight line , your chances are much better of not crashing. I am not good at physics or math but I think you can understand what I am saying..
In a turn, I would try to maintain the same direction as I was turning altho it would be more difficult, obviously.

If you can avoid hitting something without destabilizing the bike more by steering or braking, that's probably best but the situation usually doesn't offer that much opportunity. I usually brake. I don't have a rear brake at the moment but I'm accustomed to using both front and rear. I automatically went for both although the rear didn't do anything since it has no fluid in it. I guess I remembered that pretty quick after I stepped on the pedal. I didn't bottom it out, I just released it. With the turtle, I just steered. I think braking would have been more dangerous and standing the bike up would have sent me into the oncoming lane in a corner and a hill.

When I almost hit a truck a few years back, I did swerve slightly. In that situation, that probably saved me from making contact. I hope reactions happen for the best automatically.

That's a great way to spell fcukin on the internet, crude. I'll have to use that sometime. Yes it would suck to slide a bike over a 6" long turtle.

What I have noticed after having a good number of near misses with animals here is that they almost always run into the road from the opposite side. If they come from the opposite side of the road and your going avoid them by steering, the best thing to do is steer right at them. If you steer toward the shoulder, you're steering into where they will be when you're about to hit them. I haven't had the presence of mind to steer at any animals in my truck. It might be for the better because I'd obviously be steering into the oncoming lane. Who knows? I had a deer run out of the woods right into the side of my truck. You can't avoid that. That's totally up to the deer.

* Last updated by: Rook on 9/15/2020 @ 5:31 AM *

I ran over a bird is close as I got...boring IKR

Boring is good in this kind of situation.

This is my story and I am sticking too it. 2008 on my 2006 ZX14 riding the interstate at twilight I was playing and passed a deer standing right on the edge of the road next to the wooded median at over 150 MPH. It was over before I could react but nearly pissed my pants.

This is my story and I am sticking too it. 2008 on my 2006 ZX14 riding the interstate at twilight I was playing and passed a deer standing right on the edge of the road next to the wooded median at over 150 MPH. It was over before I could react but nearly pissed my pants.

I'd love to see video of that from the deers perspective. I bet he just stood there not knowing whether to sh!t or go blind.

I was 65 when this happened and I did a lot of dumb s--- when I was a lot younger. Sometimes I wonder how I survived this long. My younger self wouldn't recognise this old man now but I wouldn't take any of it back.

In 2014 I hit a deer on my 14 on my way to work at o-dark 30, in WV. Was going about 45 when he darted in front. Braked hard and then leaned into the impact. Reminded me of a tackle in football. Broke his neck, but I never went down. Guy behind tossed it in the back OF HIS TRUCK to take home and dress out. He and I had a nice meal that night.

Complete right Side fairing replacement. Pulled dear fur out of crevices and crap out of my pants.

Here on the island The deer are worse than mosquitoes in Florida. They wander in the road with no fear of cars. I have seen a family of deer using the crosswalk at the only light in town. Something right out of a tv show, hilarious!

Glad you were uninjured. Good aim with your bike!

Just checking in to see how you guys are doing and saw this.
Glad to hear you're okay, Rook. I'm convinced deer are about the stupidest things on earth. Only had one close call and that was when driving my Blazer at the North Rim G'Cyn. The two deer involved I swear were trying to commit suicide. All they had to do was stay where they were and keep eating. But no, they freak out and come from a good fifty feet off the road to run straight in front of me. Nuts. Luckily for me, there was no oncoming traffic and swerving into the opposing lane saved me from damage or worse.

Well I'm also done for the season but it's because my dog broke my knee. See story in "Off Topics"
I was riding at a...ahem..." spirited" pace on my Breakfast Loop. Come around the corner to find 4 Vultures having a snack in the middle of the road. They all scatter but one does a slow climb out right down the road. Looked like a B-17 taking off. I ducked down and heard his feet scrape down my helmet.
Fun times...

Mad

Hey there KAK, good to hear from you. Yes, I just had another near miss with my truck a couple weeks back. It was night time and I never saw him until he darted out in front of me. I steered right at him and that's why I missed him. If they're going to run, they never stop so I think the safest bet is to point the vehicle where they came from anticipating that they will be somewhere else when you get there. I try not to drive at this time of year. The deer are crazy now.