Running News Daily

Four times runners encountered unexpected wildlife

Last week, a 43-year-old Maine woman was ambushed by a cow while trail running, sparking this list of animals interrupting a run.

On Friday, surprisingly in Farmington, Maine, a 43-year-old woman was injured when she was ambushed by a cow while jogging on a trail. According to a report, the woman suffered lacerations requiring stitches, but she was not transported to hospital. The cow had reportedly escaped from a nearby farm and was wrangled by animal control when they arrive on the scene.

Many Farmington residents were surprised to hear about the farm animal on the local trail, which brings us to our list of four times runners encountered animals on a run.

1.- What the elk?

In 2015 in Evergreen Lake, Colo., an elk decided to join in for a little run with a man and his dog. The elk was having a drink of water in the lake when the man and his dog jogged by. The elk thought it would be nice to get a few clicks in with his new run club. Luckily, the man and his pet got away safely.

2.- Oh, deer!

During an NCAA Division III cross-country race in 2016, Gwynedd Mercy University senior Justin DeLuzio was cranked by a crossing deer in the middle of the race. Even though DeLuzio was knocked off his feet, he was able to get up and finish the race.

3.- Watch out for local cougars

In 2020, a Utah man was out for a jog on a hiking trail when he stopped and pulled out his phone to take a video of what he thought were wild kittens. It turned out that a mama cougar was close by, stalking and threatening the runner for nearly six minutes as he slowly backed away from the incident.

A cougar or bear would be the last animal you’d want to see on the trails.

4.- Man vs. lion

On Feb. 4, 2019, Colorado runner Travis Kauffman went viral when he fought off and killed a mountain lion that attacked him during a run. Kauffman defended himself and ultimately killed the predator by suffocating it.

Stoked on fear and adrenaline, Kauffman ran three miles down the mountain, meeting three other runners, one of whom drove him to the hospital while the other two went to retrieve his truck, parked about 6.5 miles (10.4K) away.