Bird Strike

[Ruralman]

Not sure whether to put this story here or somewhere else - but hey i was riding an adventure bike at the time and most of the guys (non gender specific) I talk with seem to live here...............soooo
Yesterday on my way up to Oldriders place I took the route through from Wainakarua to Oamaru aong the Coast which OR mentioned in our Black and Blue trip write up - what a bloody great ride - and from there through Weston Ngapara to Duntroon through all the Limestone country - another great ride.

Anyway on the way up towards Ngpara I was coming up this straight, probably doing around 110-115 before backing off the power, and there was these 2 Spur Wing Plovers on the road, and on my side. They started taking off and seemed to be going right so I took a line which would have taken me around the left of them when bugger me but one of the birds changes course right in front of me. I collect this daft bird right up its arse, theres a small shower of feathers ( including some very small tickly ones which made it into my helmet) but I look in the mirrors expecting to see this poor animal doing cartwheels along the road but I don't see it anywhere.
I then look down the forks in the gap between the tank and the instruments and fairing and theres this stupid fucking bird jammed between the back of the front mudguard and the radiator. So I pull over to remove it before the smell of roasting plover starts to set in. I have a look (without getting off) down the right hand side and I can see a couple of birds feet so I grab these and give a fairly agricultural sort of a yank - bugger me the bloody thing not only comes straight out but its still flapping!!!!
I let it go and it flys over the road, over a fence and then lands in the paddock with the most bewildered look on its face you can imagine (and no I won't do impressions of its face on the Mt Cook trip get together no matter how much I bloody drink).
Fortunately no damage to the bike and it looked when I left that Mr and Mrs Plover would still be able to continue doing whatever Plovers do when they have just got over a near death experience.
Now please feel free to regail me/us with your best bird strike stories

[Maha]

Dont have any to tell at this stage RM, but what a great story.....
Told so descriptively, one can almost smell/see exactly what occured....
I have however heard of the odd bird strike, and seen pic's but not alot see really as the bikes were doing inxs of 200kph at the time. *Bling* to you mate.

[far queue]

I hit a magpie on Monday at about 90kph - it left it's take off run a bit late and went through the front wheel, I checked the mirror to see a munted heap on the road behind me. I thought about going back to finish it off just in case it was still alive, but didn't bother - I hate magpies.

I had a mate hit a reasonable size bird a few years ago, and the impact ripped out the speedo cable. So if you do have one these incidents, just beware and check that brakes, etc still work.

[McJim]

I knew of a bloke in Scotland ran into a cow on a blind corner some years ago. He spent a long time in hospital - history is strangely quiet about state of the cow.

[boomer]

ahahhah nice;

off topic, but hey!

the cat brought a baby rat in the house the other day; as i'm hoovering i pull out the chest its hiding behind and suck teh fucker up. My first thoughts were i'll suck it onto the end (just the pipe) and throw the fucker to the cat.. but the hoover was too strong and with an almighty snap.. woosh and vrooooom the fucker went all the way through the hoover system ( integrated in the house ) down stairs to rest in teh bag in teh garage. I told the mrs and she was horrified i could be so cruel. Of she goes to rescue it. Unfortunately it was deeeed

i've had a whack on the shoulder from a starling and a few near misses on the bike from sea gulls and hawks/kestrels (close your eyes this is gonna hurt ) but non as funny as your story;

[Al]

Here in the NT there is a lot of roadkill on the Stuart Highway and birds of prey love it!
I have learnt to start tooting the motorsickle horn as I approach, gives them enough time to get away...

Al

[The_Dover]

i hit a kingfisher on sunday on whangarata road, bounced off the headlight with no damage to me but it was a goner. shame, nice little birds.

ha ha, boomer is the house bitch!!!

[motoGP]

I collected a small brown bird coming home from work. I was riding at about 80 – 90 down TeIrirangi, when out of the blue I get whacked with something in the side of the helmet! My vision went from instruments and road, to blue sky! Feathers were everywhere, the vents, the visor edges, and some sneaky ones even got inside the helmet! My ears where ringing like someone had just open-handed slapped you in the ear!

By the time I figured out what was happening the bird had disappeared behind me in a cloud of feathers. It was only when I got home that I saw the real damage. It’s beak ploughed right into my visor leave a nice inch long gouge right where your right eye’s field of vision is, excuse enough for me to buy a tinted visor though.

[Macktheknife]

I got hit by a largish 'brown bird' at about 120km on the motorway last year, came in from the side and caught me in the ribs. The first I knew about it was a blur of movement a split second before impact, then I damn near got lifted off the seat with the impact. PAIN!!!! one hand pulled off bars with impact.
I got off at the next offramp and checked myself out, wiped off the blood and guts of the remains of bird and removed my jacket to find a fast developing bruise appearing. A guy pulled over behind me and he was still laughing, he related the view from his angle behind me as a huge cloud of feathers and a guy who looked like he was about to part company with the bike.
All I can say is thank god it didn't hit my helmet, bastard would have just about killed me! I don't know what kind of bird it was but the remains were kind of dark brownish, maybe a large thrush?

[The_Dover]

I collected a small brown bird coming home from work.

did you charge her for the ride?

I got hit by a largish 'brown bird' at about 120km on the motorway last year

was she driving a rangi old holden or one of those "dpb mobile's" with 8 seats for her litter?

[boomer]

i hit a kingfisher on sunday on whangarata road, bounced off the headlight with no damage to me but it was a goner. shame, nice little birds.

ha ha, boomer is the house bitch!!!

consequences of being semi-retired

[The_Dover]

consequences of being semi-retarded

sorry, I didn't realise.

[boomer]

it may pay to be more careful then in future, i'm quite sensitive about my retardedness

[scumdog]

it may pay to be more careful then in future, i'm quite sensitive about my retardedness

So you like being tarded so much you decided to get re-tarded??

So what's tarded in the first place and why were you so??

[McJim]

So you like being tarded so much you decided to get re-tarded??

So what's tarded in the first place and why were you so??

Tar - ded....it's a yorkshire thing. Sort of a precursor to being feather - ed. Dover tells me boomer is into the 'hot wax bondage' thing so they tar and feather each other for thrills.

sometimes Dover uses shearing off-cuts instead of feathers - reminds him of the wee islands he grew up on and flossie, his first love.

(edit) I mentioned feathers 3 times so it's not (quite) off topic...