“Don’t run in a straight line. Run like this,” Trump said, as he moved his hand in a zigzag motion. “And you know what? Your chances go up about 1%.”There's nothing like News You Can Use from Parker and Mazzotti. I'll file that away the next time a 'gator is pursuing me.But whether the president was making a flippant joke or not, wildlife experts say that’s the wrong advice: You should run in the opposite direction as fast as you can, and in straight a line as possible. “An alligator won’t chase you very far,” said Frank Mazzotti, professor of wildlife ecology at University of Florida.
Alligator experts suggest it is better to dash in one direction in the rare situation when the reptile gives chase, according to a website run by the University of Florida. “Trying to zigzag is a distraction that you don’t need at that moment,” said Daniel Parker director of media for the reptile advocacy group, United States Association of Reptile Keepers, Florida, and a former biologist at the University of Central Florida and the Ashton Biodiversity Research and Preservation Institute.
And, instead of getting yourself farther away from the gator, you’re actually spending more time in front of it, Mazzotti said. “You want to get out of range the fastest you can,” he said.
Now, do these guys have advice regarding catamounts, grizz, and moose? That is info I could use up here in the northern mountains.
No, I can't, and makes me wonder why I am doing so. LOL
“You should run in the opposite direction as fast as you can, and in straight a line as possible.”
Opposite of what . . . opposite of the direction of travel of the gator?
Wouldn’t this put you running in a straight line toward the gator?