So Dean K. was not attacked by a coyote but he just fell? This is not good.

99% of people would have said they encountered a coyote.

I won't even Google this jackass, but didn't he cry for adulation for running a bunch of marathons at like a 4 hour pace? Including some uncalibrated treadmills? Shalane would stomp his whimpy little guts out.

Are you ok? You went from cancer to coyotes and back and managed to miss the point the entire time.

The link you posted just underscores that most coyote attacks are opportunistic or they are protecting pups. There is no general consensus on what constitutes an ‘attack’ as the Wikipedia ::snort::, erm article contains such gems as:

”On August 1, 2017, a coyote chased a woman who was riding a bicycle at Holmes Lake in Lincoln, Nebraska”

as an attack.

When I ride in a certain location, it is not uncommon for a fox to run along side my bicycle for a few minutes. Does that constitute an ‘attack?’

Because the description of the ‘attack’ by Dean makes no sense AND the VAST majority of problematic interactions between coyotes and adult humans occur when we are protecting livestock, pets, and children, I don’t find his account credible. Furthermore, attacks on adults typically occur by sick animals or through pack hunting. I could believe that he saw some glowing eyes in the dark, tripped, and busted his lip open.

Also, although that Wikipedia page seems to have a long list of ‘attacks,’ understanding just how common coyotes/coy -dogs and -wolves are underscores the fact that bites are rare and when they do occur, it is usually to an extremity.

Finally, every single person that had contact with an unknown coyote was treated for rabies exposure. When did this occur?

While trail running, hiking or mounting biking I’ve had numerous close encounters from everything from squirrels to black bears. I can absolutely believe a trail runner could happen upon a coyote and have it act unexpectedly. Where I start to doubt his story is when he says he heard the coyote coming up behind him. Coyotes survive on stealth and move pretty quietly. Hard to believe he would hear a coyote behind him on the trail given the sound of his own breathing and his footsteps.

Same.

I was running up a steep hill on a trail once and encountered a black bear shredding a rotten log. I nearly sh!t myself on the downslope, but the bear was pretty intent on what it was doing and didn’t care about me. That was pretty lucky.

By far, the most problematic animal I’ve encountered are white-tailed bucks. I’ve been attacked twice thumping along in the forest.

I ran into a herd of elk in Banff once. That was also terrifying.

I’d venture to guess that ungulate attacks are far more common than coyote. Maybe Dean should have said that he ran into a rogue moose.

You’re much more likely to be injured by a mountain bike rider on the trails than a wild animal.

Two big wild turkeys have been hanging around at the end of my street. They are about 6 feet away when I run past them. They leave me alone. Runners encountering wild animals usually does not result in a dramatic incident. Dean K. is 59. Sounds like he has not learned much in all that time.

And you're much more likely to trip and injure yourself than you are to be injured by a mountain biker.

I live in San Diego and coyotes are extremely common in my suburban neighborhood. We are surrounded by canyons and mountains. We see them on a regular basis when we go running around 5-7 AM. They trot down the middle of the street. Whether I am solo or with a small group, they always run away.... look back, run, look back, run. They are very wary of us humans. It has never occurred to me to be afraid of them.

Their poop is all over sidewalks and trails... I almost stepped in some this morning.

Sometimes they are even in the middle of the street when my son is walking to school around 7:45AM. I'm was a bit more concerned about that because he is a small kid and was walking alone.

And our neighborhood Facebook and NextDoor pages are full of stories about attacks on small dogs left alone in yards. The craziest story was that a coyote apparently entered a woman's ground floor bedroom through a wide open patio door to snatch her tiny dog.

Anyway, I also call BS on Dean's story. I believe the ranger version... he was spooked by a coyote (probably not even very close to him) and he tripped and fell. Agree that if a coyote attacked a human, you would have to get rabies shots because that is NOT normal coyote behavior.

Which kind of moose isn't a rogue moose? Aren't they beyond anyone's control wherever they are?

Maybe you can fence them in on a moose farm

What’s up with guys with big chins being POS? First Jay Leno, with Conan, now this

Moose during rutting season in Quebec's Gaspe was the most terrifying for me. I stood behind a tree and prayed it wouldn't charge. It didn't, thank god.

I agree it is very very possible he was attacked by a coyote. Douchey move if he wasn’t but it’s been happening everywhere lately. Even in north Dallas there have been some coyote attacks in the last couple years. Even footage captured of a coyote stalking a runner before a police officer stopped it in the Plano. I have seen more coyote and bobcat here in North Texas than I ever did in California.

most of Dean's stories are cringe-worthy, continues to embarrassment our community

So if I understand this correctly:

Most people that come across an animal are mildly nervous, but try to avoid a confrontation and respect the animal.

Dean saw an animal, got scared and ran like a little b!tch and fell during the process.

I only take issue with the word “cowardly.” It’s Something critters learn if they’re gonna survive: pick your fights, avoid fights that look like lost causes or that will result in serious injury that could be avoided.

Most trail runners have probably had many uneventful coyote encounters - many responders to this thread included who see them all the time. If he's like me, Karnazes has also had many, maybe even dozens of coyote encounters in his life before this one. Why would you think he's lying when he talks about the oddball encounter that was eventful? That would be the whole reason for talking about it - that it was not the usual coyote sighting.

The coyote experts in that article seemed more concerned about his usage of the word "attack", as if they would only use that word only if teeth were involved. Karnazes statement is clear - he was knocked over by the coyote and had injuries from the resulting fall. I have no reason to not believe that. Also, that would be the reason not to get rabies shots. There would be no point getting rabies shots for scrapes or whatever from the rock he fell on if the coyote didn't break skin.

I see bears all the time, both black and brown bears. All of the encounters have been uneventful, though some more exciting and potentially threatening than others. I'm not going to deny that just because all my encounters worked out fine, that eventful encounters are fake.

I feel like I’ve seen the following story numerous time: juvenile moose wreaks havoc on small town and everybody shelters in place until he ambles off back into the woods with someone’s fence decorating his antlers. I could be imagining it, but it seems to happen a lot. That’s a rogue moose.

sfgate.com

Coyote experts question viral Bay Area attack on celeb runner

Dennis Young

Coyote experts say elements of Karnazes' story appear unlikely.

Open link

I guess you didn’t read the article with actual animal experts who said that his description was highly improbable and not at all typical of the way coyotes behave. Given that it would be atypical behavior, if he was indeed attacked by a coyote, an abundance of caution would necessitate getting treatment for rabies.

Cuts and abrasions were incurred in this apparent ‘attack.’ Dean spoke of the animal going after an energy bar. Saliva contact with mucus membranes or broken skin can pass along rabies.

If it happened the way he said it did, he’s be getting treatment for rabies.

Also, the San Francisco Chronicle notes:

“In an email exchange, Karnazes answered questions from SFGATE about the incident. At first, he deflected.“