Most embarrassing/funny moment on a bike

[Lise]

It's funny about me and herps. I like lizards a lot. I was working in semi-rural Jamaica for a couple of months in '01, and lizards are everywhere. The Jamaicans were freaked out by them, but I like them. They're interesting to look at, fun to watch, and they eat bugs. What's not to like? Similarly, I like turtles very much.

Snakes, on the other hand, still give me the willies. Something about the no limbs bothers me. Isn't that silly? But I respect them, and would just try to stay out of their way in their world. I don't go into the snake house at the zoo. Just the words, "snake house"...shiver. Glad you guys are friends to the snakes. They don't have too many of those amongst the humans. L.

[bentforlife]

but I'm not afraid of them either. I grew up in Thomasville, GA, just north of Tallahassee. I went to school at Valdosta State University. My favorite course was Herpetology. We collected lots of different specimens. My mom loved it when I was able to capture the red headed skink that had been plaguing her bird feeder for a while. The coolest thing was making a hognosed snake go through it defense mechanisms. First it looks like a cobra, even to the spread out ribs, then it will act like a rattle snake, finally it will turn over and play dead. Even if you turn it back over it will turn over and show it's white belly. Funny as heck!!

My professor had a highly endangered indigo snake in her office. Picky eater!! Only liked live gerbils and it was fairly mean. Got a few bites from her.

We also saw endandered species like the gopher tortise and bull snake( a 6 footer!). This and the ornithology course were great summer classes I took as a Biology major.

My daughters freak at the sight of a snake or lizard, or the little Mediterranean geckos that have become dominant in N.TX. My cat likes to play with snakes and lizards.

Nanci, guess I would never pick up a coral snake but I have seen a couple in my life time.

Some of y'all would love the Herpetarium at the Fort Worth(TX) Zoo. It's ranked as one of the best in the world. Even have a couple of Kamodo dragons!!

Believe or not, you will pass by about 85% of the reptiles in the forest and never know they are there. Most people get into trouble when they step over logs in the pathways and get struck by a snake on the other side. Always look over the log before you step!!

Well, there's my advice for the day.

BTW, the knee surgery went well and the daughter's eye surgery also went great. It may be a couple more weeks before I can get on the bike but I'm working towards that end.

Donna

[SalsaMTB]

Probably my most embarressing time riding was with my first set of clipless pedals. It was my first time going on a trail and I was conviced to go clipless right from the start. Well, the pedals that came with the bike were terrible!!! The trail my friend introduced me to was very tight twisting single track and I couldn't even keep track of the number of times I fell. The pedals were complete death traps. Two times that ride I and had to remove my shoes to get my feet out of the pedals!!!! That was one long, painful ride. I quickly purchased a used pair of higher end pedals after that ride.

Oh, and also one time I was getting ready for a ride and I had to use the port-o-potty before going out (it's a nervous thing, I always have to pee before I ride). Well, I was wearing a new pair of bike shorts that I purchased from a store online in their clearance dept. Apparently these shorts sat on the shelf for a while because when I pulled them up, my fingers went right through them!!!! They tore like paper. Luckily, the car was near the toilet and I had a pair of regular shorts to toss over them for the ride. I called the manufacturer and they said they hadn't made that style for a few years and something about how the material can break down after a while. The store I purchased them from was nice about it and gave me a refund.

[DrBee]

The coolest thing was making a hognosed snake go through it defense mechanisms. First it looks like a cobra, even to the spread out ribs, then it will act like a rattle snake, finally it will turn over and play dead. Even if you turn it back over it will turn over and show it's white belly. Funny as heck!!

Hognose is one of my favorite snakes - they are so cool!

Once bitten by the herp bug, there's no turning back. I find that I am perpetually curious about what is under [I]that log over there[I] Who was your herp professor?

[Nanci]

If it weren't for Garter snakes, a billion kids (adults, too) wouldn't be snake-lovers. When I was a kid, in Minnesota, what a joy it was to go out collecting plain old Garter snakes for a day, to see how many I could get. And what a wonder to finally find something different, a Redbelly, or a Bullsnake. I always wanted to find a Hognose, but never did.

OOOOHHH!!! I hatched a clutch of Redbellies on my gas stove once. I released them as soon as they hatched, though- they were _so_ small, like worms.

I was also an expert skink/swift catcher as a child, and at one time held the record for the largest Blandings Turtle found in MN.

Herps are so easy compared to cats and dogs.

I found a snake out in my backyard last summer. It was grey and black patterned. After finding Maizey, the Perfect Snake, in my yard only a few months previously, I was excited, and hoped it was a baby Corn. Picked it up, and proceeded to get bit about a million times. Brought it in the house, in a container, and looked it up. Baby Black Racer, known for a vile temperment. Photographed and released. Don't want any pets that don't want to be pets!

Nanci

[bentforlife]

My herp professor was Bette Bechtel. Her husband was the dermatologist in town. They had a whole wing in their house dedicated to studying albinism in corn snakes. They had over 100 snakes in that place, a few exotic species as well. Mrs. Bechtel taught the nursing students Anatomy and Physiology, she was a nurse herself. But Herpetology was her passion. She had several degrees as well as her nursing degree. She was also my advisor. She helped me through some tough times in my college career. She was more than just an advisor.

Since I graduated in '79, alot of things have changed at that school. It is now a university and the Biology department is huge! And they have a football team!!!

That's right about the herp bug...once bitten you can never really give it up. I love going through the herpetatium at the Fort Worth Zoo. They have some of the most unusual amphibians in the world. Like the tomatoe frog and poison dart frogs. I try to go once a year just to see what they've gotten.

Donna

[betagirl]

I had an iguana named Stimpy when I was in college. He grew to be huge! And he was a horny bugger in the summer. He'd chase you around the house and try to bite your toes. Then he'd hump one of my mom's green pillows. I'm not kidding. That'd take some of the energy out of him for a little while at least

As for my funny moment on a bike, it'd have to be before I knew how to blow my nose "properly" while riding. I was doing my first RAGBRAI and a bug flew into my nose. I thought I'd be able to blow it out, so I turned my head and blew it out alright. That and a bunch of snot all over my right sleeve/arm. The guy riding next to me saw it and laughed. Oops.