My 675-riding buddy had a close encounter of the furry kind last night. He was riding home from work about an hour before sunset and got that 'something's not quite right' feeling. He consequently slowed down, then spotted a large group of deer by the road. Before he really had time to process the sight, he felt an impact. A deer had jumped in front of him, and from his description, it sounded like the head and neck of the deer rode up over the right mirror, hit him in the arm and helmet, and then flipped off. He caught a glimpse of a breakdancing mule deer in the road behind him with his left mirror. Hooves everywhere. He stayed upright and on the road (cue applause) and pulled over to check things out. He had a lot of fur and snot on his jacket (his daughter told us this morning that he looked like a teddy bear when he got home), and the mirror was the only visible effect on the bike. It's the lowest-consequence deer strike I've ever heard of. The deer ran off; he couldn't find it to exchange insurance information. He still had some fur on his jacket when we rode into work together this morning. Like the good, supportive friend that I am, the sight made me laugh myself stupid when I pulled up next to him.

This happened on the scenic route home, and we see some form of ungulate about one day in three on that road. He also saw some elk after he collected his wits and rode off. They aren't an uncommon sight either.

So, who do we call about encouraging higher hunting limits for deer?

Keep a sharp eye out, folks!

__________________
We are young, wandering the face of the earth
Wondering what our dreams might be worth
Learning that we're only immortal for a limited time.