A cyclist in Australia is recovering after getting absolutely obliterated by a leaping kangaroo during a recent ride.
The unwitting rider, identified by The Courier-Mail only as Rebecca, was riding at about 18 mph along a road in Queensland on Jan. 26 when a kangaroo jumps out of the bush from the right side, instantly knocking her off the bike. The woman was riding with six friends, one of whom caught the surprise encounter on video.
“Two of us also saw kangaroos on both sides of the road,” another rider identified only as Helen told the newspaper. “The ones on the left hopped away, the one on the right waited to join its mob.”
The injured cyclist was released from a hospital later that day after getting stitches in her knee and injuries to her arm and shoulder.
“Within a day she was having a rueful laugh about it all and worrying about the work days she will miss,” Helen told the newspaper.
The accident was the violent latest run-between cyclists and kangaroos in Australia. The Associated Press reported in May 2016 that a woman and a friend were injured when they were pounced on by a kangaroo while riding in the Clare Valley in South Australia.
Sharon Heinrich, 45, said she and Helen Salter, 47, were cycling side by side along a popular tourist route when a large kangaroo jumped across the trail, landing with his long hind legs first on Heinrich’s torso and then on Salter’s back. The animal knocked both women off their bikes before hopping away, apparently unharmed, Heinrich said.
“I’ve gone to ride past, I thought: ‘He’s cute,’ and he’s just jumped me and taken out the side of me,” Heinrich told the Associated Press. “As I’m falling, I felt him push off me and then he’s flown to Helen and taken her out.”
Heinrich said she broke three ribs and needed surgery to replace ruptured breast implants.
“He looked peaceful,” she said. “He didn’t look angry.”