Tuesday, October 5, 2010

My first near run-in with a skunk!

...of all places, Downtown Burlington! I was commuting to the shop this morning on my usual route and when I got downtown to the intersection of N. Winooski Ave. and Cherry St. I decided to turn right and add a little time to my ride. It got light out and I thought what the hey. I rode Cherry to the end and then hopped up on the sidewalk and rode it downhill south on Battery St. I passed the hotels and was coming up to Main St. when I saw this adolescent skunk waddling along on the sidewalk that I was on. He was sniffing up by some steps to some shops when I realized I was getting dangerously close to him and that there would be no way that I could just ride by without him noticing.

I started to brake hard and my front brakes started to chatter. That scared him (or at least got his attention), he hopped up on the first step and must have felt trapped so he threw up his tail. Mind you that this all happened in about 5 seconds.

I instantly thought that I am going to get sprayed. Thankfully it was early in the morning with no traffic on the road. (In hindsight that is where I should have been) I bailed right, dropping off the curb and far to the other side of the road and continued downhill to the end of Battery.

Man, what a close call. That would have made my day!