Life moves pretty fast… particularly when there’s a cheetah chasing you.
Most of us won’t ever be in a position like the impalas in this video are, or at least you have to hope that you are never running for your life with a cheetah on your heels. If you do find yourself in a situation like that, it’s best to follow these steps:
– Stop running and move your legs to slightly outside shoulder length
– Bend forward and put your head in between your legs
– Kiss your butt goodbye
Not much else you can do in a situation like, but as for impalas? They have a fighting chance in a race for survival against a cheetah. It’s really one of those situations where the impalas don’t have to outrun the fast big cat, they just have to outrun the slowest impala.
Impalas can top out at around 55 miles per hour. That’s nothing to sneeze at, but it doesn’t put them in a comfortable speed rage comparative to a cheetah, which is often referred to as the fastest land mammal on Earth. They can run upwards of 70 miles per hour, so you do the math on who would win between an impala and the quickest cat on the planet.
However, the weird attribute that gives impalas a jumpin’ chance is their ability to leap high up in the air, and over great distances. That’s on full display in this video, where a herd of impalas fled from a cheetah and did so by literally flying over a roadway. The footage is almost hard to believe, but it does perfectly display the patented mindset of impalas: When in doubt, try and jump over it.
Check it out:
̶Z̶e̶b̶r̶a̶ ̶c̶r̶o̶s̶s̶i̶n̶g̶ ✘
Impala / cheetah crossing ✔ pic.twitter.com/xvq5hOh3Y0— Nature is Amazing ☘️ (@AMAZlNGNATURE) May 22, 2024
That’s wild.
Now we don’t know how the chase down ended, though it would probably be a safe bet that the cheetah eventually got its paws on one of the flying impalas (would be a great name for a minor league baseball team).
Those on social media that viewed the video were mesmerized by the herd opting to leap over the roadway, and left these replies below the crazy clip:
Brings new meaning to the phrase ‘fright or flight’…
— A Luxury Travel Blog (@luxurytravel) May 22, 2024
Amazing how high up they get.
— ⚓ Truth Will Prevail . . . Magna Est Veritas 🇺🇸 (@barbiebrox) May 22, 2024
They are literally flying away from the cheetah….
— Victor Van Bie’uk (@VictorVanBieuk) May 22, 2024
Fast food… 🙄
— RIP IRS (@RIP_IRS) May 22, 2024
Oh, reindeer are flying across the road.
— Alex Tran (@QuangNghaTrn2) May 22, 2024
