Incredible Experience

Hi Robin, I see you found the group.

I was cruising the waterfront last year when I heard some loud screeching followed by something
falling onto the road in front of me. From the sounds I figured a seagull was involved. At first I
thought the item in the road was the wing from a gull. When I looked around I saw a bald eagle and a
seagull doing some aerial acrobatics.

When I looked back at the object on the road it started to flop around. As I looked a bit closer I
determined that it was probably a flounder from the one of the pools out in the tide flats.

I figured the bald eagle was on its way home with a tasty snack when it was attacked by the seagull.
I watched as the eagle kept trying to get back to the flounder in the roadway. The seagull kept
harassing him. There was a couple of times where the bald eagle was swooping back down only to be
run off by passing cars.

I had considered an attempt at saving the flounder but figured it was probably pretty well messed
up. (Pierced by a talon and dropped 50 to 100 feet onto the pavement.) I casually rode off and
occasionally looked back as the two birds continued their feud out over the mudflats.

Have you ever seen the seals up the river in the fall when the salmon start running? That is an odd
sight for me. Keep an eye out for them when the salmon start running. "Kytmakr" <[email hidden]>
wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

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Not to be kept down by a broken presta valve (see previous post) I stopped

and

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picked up a new tube (and a spare of course) and was ready to go riding

again

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today. I happen to live in an area where I can cycle a couple of miles

and be

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in farm land. Part of my route took me through a river valley. I was

cruising

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along at about 18 - 20 MPH when I looked to my right in time to see a hawk swoop down from behind
me. It came down to about my eye level about 10

feet

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away and just cruised beside me for about 100 feet or so before he swooped

back

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up and landed on a power pole to watch me go by. I have ridden through

this

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area before on a DF and have seen hawks on my ride (probably the same one

since

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they tend to be pretty territorial) but they have never paid any attention

to

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me. The area sees a fair number of cyclists coming through it but there

aren't

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a lot of bent riders around. I can't help but think that the hawk was

swooping

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down to check out this new contraption that was invading its territory.

It was

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a pretty incredible sight!

Have any of you had any "close encounters" while touring around? Please

share

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with the rest of us!

Robin Haas RANS V-Rex

The area sees a fair number of cyclists coming through it but there aren't

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a lot of bent riders around. I can't help but think that the hawk was

swooping

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down to check out this new contraption that was invading its territory.

It was

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a pretty incredible sight!

Have any of you had any "close encounters" while touring around? Please

share

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with the rest of us!

Robin Haas RANS V-Rex

Amost the same thing happened to me last year while riding in my rural neighborhood. The hawk (red
tailed, natch) paced me for about 5 seconds and just before he/she swooped up to a phone pole, he
turned his head and we were eye to eye. I was just plain stunned for a while after it happened. Lots
of simile's and metaphors come to mind and they're all inadequate to the event.

rich, almost became a theist from that experience

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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rich, almost became a theist from that experience

Ever consider Pantheisim? Works for me.

--
Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -

I live in the country and on beautiful moonlit summer nights, I sometimes like to go out for a short
ride in the dark - traffic is almost nonexistent if I go out late enough, so no lights just
reflective stuff. (yeah, yeah - i know) Things were going nicely, just tooling along easily at about
15mph, when I came upon oh maybe a dozen deer standing in the middle of the road! They didn't
apparently recognize me as they just stood there snuffling at
me. I got about 30 feet from them and stopped to watch them mill about in the moonlight for a few
minutes until a noise spooked them and they leaped off across the field. Very cool...

"Cletus D. Lee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

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In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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rich, almost became a theist from that experience

Ever consider Pantheisim? Works for me.

Doesn't that cut into your riding time? So many Gods so little time.

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Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -

"skip" <[email hidden]> wrote in :"]news:[email hidden]:

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"Cletus D. Lee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

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In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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rich, almost became a theist from that experience

Ever consider Pantheisim? Works for me.

Doesn't that cut into your riding time? So many Gods so little time.

Think of it this way: God encompasses everything and everybody. That didn't take so long, now
did it? (~:

Ancient Nahuatl saying: "God is a circle whose circumference is nowhere and center is everwhere."
--

rorschandt <A HREF="mailto:postmaster@[127.0.0.1]"

skip <[email hidden]> wrote:

: "Cletus D. Lee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
: "]news:[email hidden]...
:> Ever consider Pantheisim? Works for me.
:>
: Doesn't that cut into your riding time? So many Gods so little time.

That's polytheism. But even then you can ride from one shrine to the next.

--
Risto Varanka | helsinki.fihpv.htmlOpen ↗ varis at no spam please iki fi

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

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skip <[email hidden]> wrote:

: "Cletus D. Lee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
: "]news:[email hidden]...
:> Ever consider Pantheisim? Works for me.
:>
: Doesn't that cut into your riding time? So many Gods so little time.

That's polytheism. But even then you can ride from one shrine to the next.

I don't think you can do that if you're in Texas, Risto.

I was thinking the counting of Gods worshiped went like this: mono - one, poly - more than one, pan
- all of 'em.

Nonetheless, Robin, William, and Rich it is those kind of experiences that make for me the extra joy
in a ride and not so much the numbers on the computer at the end of the ride. But it hasn't always
been that way for me. Getting older I guess.

skip

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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I don't think you can do that if you're in Texas, Risto.

I was thinking the counting of Gods worshiped went like this: mono - one, poly - more than one,
pan - all of 'em.

Pan is the Greek god of the woods, fields, and flocks. Pantheists are Nature worshipers.

And yes, you can do that in Texas. It just takes a while.

--

Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -

Cletus Lee <[email hidden]> wrote in :"]news:[email hidden]:

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In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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I don't think you can do that if you're in Texas, Risto.

I was thinking the counting of Gods worshiped went like this: mono - one, poly - more than one,
pan - all of 'em.

Pan is the Greek god of the woods, fields, and flocks. Pantheists are Nature worshipers.

By your logic, pantheists worship only frying pans.

From Merriam-Webster OnLine (merriamwebster.comdictionaryOpen ↗)

---
Main Entry: pan·the·ism Pronunciation: 'pan(t)-thE-"i-z&m Function: noun Etymology: French
panthéisme, from panthéiste pantheist, from English pantheist, from pan- + Greek theos god
Date: 1732
1 : a doctrine that equates God with the forces and laws of the universe
2 : the worship of all gods of different creeds, cults, or peoples indifferently; also : toleration
of worship of all gods (as at certain periods of the Roman empire)
---

The "pan" in pantheism has nothing to do with Pan the Greek god, but rather is a prefix meaning
"all". As in, pandemic, pantheon, Pan- American Airlines, etc.

Yes, pantheists worship nature, because nature is part of the whole. They aren't limited to
that, though.

-Bill Hamilton

"Cletus Lee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]... <snip>

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In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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I don't think you can do that if you're in Texas, Risto.

I was thinking the counting of Gods worshiped went like this: mono -

one,

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poly - more than one, pan - all of 'em.

Pan is the Greek god of the woods, fields, and flocks. Pantheists are

Nature worshipers.

Druid and Neopagan come to mind when I think of nature worship. But there must be others too.

Even though I'm not claiming to be a Druid I can certainly identify with Philbert and his
experience with the deer that he considered very cool. I can also imagine some non Druid types Air
Zounding the deer to keep from slowing down and messing up their average speed. It's all a matter
of perspective I think.

skip

I ride along the American River bike trail in Sacramento. One day while repairing a flat I looked up
into a large dead tree a few hundred feet away. There were about six turkey vultures sitting in the
tree staring at me. They come in during the fall salmon run to feed on rotten salmon---yccccchhhh.

I shook my tire pump at them and shouted "I AM NOT DEAD YET. I JUST HAVE A FLAT TIRE." That is the
fastest I have ever fixed a flat.

The trail is a wonderful green belt that is full of wildlife. I have numerous, though less
memorable, stories: almost running over rattle snakes on several occasions; male turkeys standing
in the middle of the trail to guard the hen they were courting; stags with large racks in velvet
running down the trail toward me, in a game of chicken, until they took to the brush; crossing a
high bridge just a few feet under a flock of geese that had been flying low following the river
and raised up just enough to clear the top of the bridge; and one of my favorites---stopping to
watch a large hawk in a tree do battle with a large snake it had caught and carried to the
tree--the hawk won but it took a while and was quite dramatic with the snake trying to turn around
and bite the hawk. Don

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

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can also imagine some non Druid types Air Zounding the deer to keep from slowing down and messing
up their average speed. It's all a matter of perspective I think.

Deer can and do travel at velocities exceeding 20 mph. And for some reason flee in a path that
parallels the roadway. Deer also are less apt to detect the presence of a human on a rolling bicycle
wheel. The readily detect the gentlest of footsteps hundreds of feet away.

FWIW Barn swallows fly along the Bayou H&B trail in the early hours of the morning feeding on small
insects. They have been clocked at 21 mph just 4' in front of the bike at eye level.

--

Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -

"Cletus Lee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

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Deer can and do travel at velocities exceeding 20 mph. And for some reason

flee in a path that

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parallels the roadway. Deer also are less apt to detect the presence of a

human on a rolling

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bicycle wheel. The readily detect the gentlest of footsteps hundreds of

feet away.

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A couple of years ago I lived in farm land area where the deer were almost tame. Six or so would
graze in my back yard about 100 feet away and I could drive up, get out of my car, go in back door
of the house and never disturb them. Hunters tell me they aren't like that during hunting season. I
would have thought they could run much faster than 20 mph in a flight situation.

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FWIW Barn swallows fly along the Bayou H&B trail in the early hours of the

morning feeding on

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small insects. They have been clocked at 21 mph just 4' in front of the

bike at eye level.

You do wear goggles when you ride the H&B don't you? FWIW I wasted a good portion of my youth trying
to shoot feeding barn swallows with a BB gun. I'm glad to say I never hit one.

skip

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

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FWIW Barn swallows fly along the Bayou H&B trail in the early hours of the

morning feeding on

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small insects. They have been clocked at 21 mph just 4' in front of the

bike at eye level.

You do wear goggles when you ride the H&B don't you?

Clear riding lenses at night and sunglass lenses during the day.

The birds are not the worry, it is what they are feeding on that presents a problem.
--
Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -

[email hidden] (Kytmakr) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

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Have any of you had any "close encounters" while touring around? Please share with the rest of us!

I ride in the District of Columbia, and almost every night I see deer within the city limits. But
last night I had a new experience. It was quite buggy in the evening, and I kept running into clouds
of bugs. I was going about 17mph when I had a head-on collision with a bat. He grabbed onto my
shoulder and rode on me for a few hundred yards. I'm not sure which of us was more surprised. He
flew away so I figured he was OK.