[RodeoRanch]

So coming home last night after seeing "Inglourious Basterds" at the theater. It's about 1:30AM and I'm not really paying too much attention to the road. Suddenly I catch sight of an absolutely massive porcupine ahead on the road. Biggest porcupine I've ever seen. Like a pony-sized porcupine. This thing could have taken down a bear if it wanted to.

Having very little desire to smear porcupine all over my truck, I instinctively swerved to the right, onto the shoulder of the road. I didn't even think about it as my wheels skirted the dirt in the ditch.

Woke me up pretty damn fast. As I regained control of the truck and saw the porcupine amble onto the other side of the highway, I began laughing. Hysterically laughing. Don't know why but the sight of that magnificent bastard had me almost in tears from laughing so hard.

I'm glad I didn't hit him. He may have been the King of Porcupines in Western Canada. I don't need his angry heirs seeking vengeance for the murder of their father.

[bubba]

He looks like a prick to me.......

[D'rek]

I've seen a few bigger ones around the Timmins area in Ontario... one of them got into a fight with my dog once too!

This post has been edited by D'rek: 07 September 2009 - 12:04 AM

[AlanH]

I live in Scotland, so the chances of me hitting a porcupine are slim...

However the day after passing my test (that would be around 4 months ago) I was driving along a two lane ordinary A road, taking my dogs out for their night walk, with fields left and right, went round a blind left hand corner, and there was a fucking sheep. Long story short, I believe that I have pretty good reaction times, but around 25 metres is not enough even for me. It was quite late, and the road was deserted so I had the cruise control set to 63mph (yes that is slightly over the speed limit, also it was my dads car, that is why there was cruise control on it), so I reckon I hit it doing between 35 and 40mph. Honest to fucking god I've never been so scared in all my life. The sheep went flying of to the side dead, and the car bumper was buggered, so I obviously had to tell someone. Small community so I knew the farmer, told him what had happened, he said that he knew about the hole in the fence and hadn't got round to mending it, so I didn't need to pay for the sheep and he covered the costs for the car.

Now every time I go round that corner I slow down (confusing drivers behind me) even though I know that there was bugger all I could have done about the sheep, but hell that scared the hell out of me. I saw the state of the sheep after I hit it, and it convinced me never to speed knowing that it could easily be a human the next time.

Anyway, porcupines... Very good.

Also, how's the film? I'm thinking about seeing it.

[HoosierDaddy]

Mere prudence, Rodeo. Don't want one of its giant quills puncturing a tire and leaving you helpless in the middle of the night, surrounded by woodland creatures....

[AlanH]

 HoosierDaddy, on 07 September 2009 - 12:40 AM, said:

Mere prudence, Rodeo. Don't want one of its giant quills puncturing a tire and leaving you helpless in the middle of the night, surrounded by woodland creatures....

And we all no what sort of animals use woods as toilets...

[Mezla PigDog]

I thought porcupines lived in places more exotic than Canada. You learn something new every day.

[Aptorian]

 Bubba, on 06 September 2009 - 11:56 PM, said:

He looks like a prick to me.......

Nooo....Action failed: You have reached your quota of positive votes for the day

Like Mezla I was a bit surprised. Does that mean those giant hedgehogs are indigenous to North America only? For some reason I thought those things lived in Africa or Australia or something.

[Bhurnae]

That was obviously his "First Showing"..........now he will be stepping up his Fear campaign. You will begin to notice him out of the corner of your eye as you go to park up in the mall......when you go to use an ATM....disappearing over the hill driving your truck....

[Tremolo]

Good thing that you didn't run it over! Porcupines can grow quite big and quite vindictive as you can see!