Suddenly… I’m sure this guy wished he was riding around in a bigger, safer mode of transportation.
There’s nothing like getting out in the great outdoors. Whether it be by car, bicycle, boat or foot, surrounding yourself with the wonders of nature can be incredibly beneficial for one’s mental health. That’s as long as you don’t cross paths with a massive, aggressive moose who wants to do all it can to knock you off the trail.
A German motorcycle rider by the name Henri Kretschmer has been traveling the world by motorcycle and was riding around in the woods of Canada when he came to a fork in the road. Rather, the avid cyclist saw a moose up ahead, and he wanted to do all he could to avoid a run in with the sizable creature.
Moose are the largest of the deer family, and males can stand higher than 6 feet tall at their shoulders. Females (cows) tend to be a little smaller, but they are still big in their own right. On this fateful day, Kretschmer got into an accidental scuffle with a respectfully sized male moose… and an angry one at that.
The motorcyclist was just riding along, and when he came up behind the moose who was also heading the same direction on the trail (just a little bit farther up), he figured the wild animal would dive into the woods after hearing the revving motor coming up on it. In other words, Kretschmer was counting on the creature’s flight response.
Unfortunately, the moose’s fight instinct kicked in instead.°
As you might imagine, there’s not a whole lot you can do to avoid a moose attack once it’s right up on you. It seems as though the sound of the motorcycle – and the bike itself – was what triggered the moose to attack. It lowered its antlers and crashed itself right into Henri Kretschmer, who was staying stationary on the trail. He’s lucky he wasn’t injured on the initial charge, but that wasn’t the last of it.
The animal knocked the motorcyclist to the ground, and he frantically sought refuge in the nearby tree line. The moose kept coming after him, and Kretschmer did all he could to put as much space (and trees) between him and the antlered creature. Once he thought the coast was clear, he returned to his bike to try and ride off… but the moose wasn’t letting that happen easily. The moose was evidently “King of the Road” that day, and once the motorcyclist tried to return his bike to the upright position and get it started again, the animal charged once more.
Eventually, after waiting out the moose for quite a long time, Henri Kretschmer was able to get his bike back up, get it running and speed off… surprisingly with no injuries (it sure sounded like the motorcycle took a hit though). This was Kretschmer’s first ever moose sighting… and as you’ll hear him say in the video below, he hopes he never sees one out in the wild again:
“I learned a lesson that day. That moose was running in front of me and I followed slowly, thinking it would go into the bushes to the left or right. Instead this happened… so next time I will do my best to just get away in the other direction!”
Welcome to North America, Henri.°
P.S. – Props to Henri Kretschmer for dropping the “he was not very a-moose-d by me” pun in the voiceover. I’m always here for a good, well-placed pun.
