She sure sounded serious . . .
In any case, if she was joking, she did a good job
The voice answering the caller sounded like Michael Berry to me. A Houston TX based talk show host. I don’t know but there’s a good chance that the caller was intentionally being facetious.
Like the other day, some people were talking about how they like their steaks done, I said “30 minutes in a pressure cooker is perfect…you don’t want the flavor of the meat to overpower the taste of the catsup.”
Some more anecdotal–albeit unscientific–evidence that deer whistles may work:
A couple of hours ago, I was driving along one of our rural roads, and in the distance I spotted two very young deer (still in their spotted phase) grazing on the grass.
They seemed oblivious to the constant stream of traffic in both directions.
However, when I got ~6 car lengths away from them, they both simultaneously lifted their heads and looked in the direction of my car.
Hmmmm…
Yeah, VDC, but did they move? A deer whistle is no good if it just alerts the deer, but doesn’t cause them to run away.
Most car deer collisions aren’t the result of deer failing to get out of the way, but from jumping in front cars at the last second, often in a panicked attempt to get away.
Be especially careful when a deer is trapped between the roadway you are driving on and a tall fence, forcing them to run in front of your car in a panicked attempt to escape.
“A deer whistle is no good if it just alerts the deer, but doesn’t cause them to run away.”
I consider it to be a victory–in the short term, at least–if they just stay where they are, without leaping into the roadway, and that is what happened.
“Be especially careful when a deer is trapped between the roadway you are driving on and a tall fence, forcing them to run in front of your car in a panicked attempt to escape.”
+1
More and more recently, I have seen dead deer on highway overpasses and other sections of an expressway, where there is no ready escape route for the deer who have wandered onto the expressway. I have no doubt that what you described is what happened in the expressway situations that I have observed recently.
I believe it was a hoax. If memory serves me it was a North Dakota radio show. Fun though.
On the interstate one night (daylight), two deer ran across the north bound lanes as cars slowed to accommodate them. Then ran up and down the median a little, one chasing the other, then back again over the north bound lane like follow the leader. We weren’t sure if they were done yet but evidently chickened out when having to pass over the south bound lanes too.
Another night on a two lane approach to the freeway marked with deer crossing, I stopped for two or three (don’t remember) as they started to cross the road, then skidded and turned around, then skidded and turned around again, and finally got off the road. You just gotta wonder what’s going through their heads.
I’ve never hit a deer… But came close a couple times. We have many roads here in NH where the side of road is less then 2 feet from the woods. Deer just pop out of the woods on the road.
That’s very true. And I’ve seen plenty of deer on or about the roads up here.
But, while deer are unpredictable, I still believe that most deer strikes could have been avoided with better attention to driving, good headlights, and reasonable speed. Definitely not all, but most.
It’s not just deer. Recent news:
Two hurt after motorcycle crashes into bear.
New Hampton (NH) police said the man was driving with his daughter westbound on Route 104 Sunday afternoon when they crashed into the animal. The bear left the scene.
TSM - I agree completely. That’s why when I drive down those roads I drop my speed significantly. Especially at night.
Me too. I drive 25 MPH through my neighborhood, and often only 20 on the way to work before dawn. I always use my bright lights, too. After I get on the main road, I stay at the speed limit (40) until I turn onto the highway. I see lots of dead deer on the main road.
Me too. At 25 mph it’s easier to text…
Sorry. Couldn’t resist. A young lady on the road home this afternoon reminded me of how dangerous texting is. Fortunately, I was paying attention and she didn’t manage to cause a wreck… with me in it! 
No, the Mirage isn’t totaled. The damage was less than half the value of the car and nothing major structurally was bent so that is what matters. State Farm did insist on using a top grade used door but everything else besides this is new. I assume there are a lot of these as parts cars since their low value makes them easy to total. I guess the window glass will also be used. None of the airbags went off but I guess if that happens, the car is basically a total loss too. One of my friends said you don’t want the airbag to go off unless needed as I guess they beat you up pretty bad. The car does have side airbags but they didn’t blow. I guess the senor isn’t where the deer hit.
I suspect something spooked this one. It was right at noon so not night when they really come out. It just ran out at a dead sprint and basically ran into the side of the car. Had I been a fraction of a second slower, it would have been a full frontal impact. This was a two lane road with limited sight distance. There was really no time to react once it came out of the woods. I reviewed the dash cam footage and there was really no other option but to hit this one. I need to put it on Youtube.
Yeah, going 40 on a 55mph road isn’t really a good option. You will just piss people off and rightfully so. This doesn’t stop the idiots from texting and swerving all over and varying their speed quite a bit. The most dangerous time for me out driving is about 2:30 PM as this is when all the real idiots are out. These are the people without jobs, on drugs, etc. They are first class idiots and are the main reason for the dash cam, not deer. Sometimes the texters just stop at a stop sign and don’t resume or even stop on a travel lane to text. You just have to drive around them on the wrong side of the road.
No can say they don’t work but everyone can say they don’t work all the time. I have inspected many vehicles that plowed a deer that had deer whistles installed. It was kind of ironic that the deer whistles were clogged with deer hair.
Nobody wants to hit a deer but if worse comes to worse then always hit the deer instead of swerving.
- It is safer to hit a deer than swerving and hitting a tree, ditch or another driver. While I have inspected deer hits that killed the driver it is not the norm.
- Hitting a deer is typically cheaper for you. It is considered comprehensive versus swerving and taking a ditch which is now collision.
State Farm considers deer and animal hits, acts of God and no deductible, no hassle, and no record. While I agree that it is better to hit a deer than swerve and hit a tree, I have swerved successfully many times and never hit anything or lost control. Usually I get deer hair on the rub strip but no dents. You just have to know your limits and keep your cool. If you are going to panic, then yeah, just hit the deer. Driving 25 though on a freeway or highway is just not practical and can create dangerous situations while the long line of cars behind you attempt to go around.
I’d actually be upset if the insurance company insisted on a used door on the car
That’s BS in my book
After all, you just bought it new a few months ago