83 Year-Old Man on Bike Chased by a Moose in Norway

by Christina 123 | August 23, 2008 at 12:52 pm

1949 views | 4 Recommendations | 34 comments

If you think Norawy is a country where nothing ever happens, then think again. An 83 year old cyclist had to race for his life as he was chased downhill by a ...moose!

Asbjørn Larsen was out riding his bicycle in the forest northwest of Oslo when he suddenly was confronted by an angry moose that started chasing him.

A moose started chasing 83-year-old Asbjørn Larsen in the forest on Oslo's northwest side.

PHOTO: SVEIN ERIK FURULUND

IF YOU MEET A MOOSE Keep your distance Moose are generally shy but can occasionally be aggressive. Never go nearer if you meet a moose (called elg in Norway). Even 50 meters can be too close. If the moose looks at you with a raised head and ears standing up, if hasn't decided whether to stand still or flee. Calmly back away.

Back off quickly if the moose holds its head low and has pulled back its ears. Those are signs the moose is ready to attack. Experts warn that it's nearly impossible for a human to outrun a moose.

Be especially careful if you meet a moose with calves. They can be defensive and aggressive as they try to protect their offspring. Never go between a moose and her calves. That will antagonize the moose and lead to a dangerous situation.

Call wildlife authorities viltforvaltningen if you spot a moose in residential or urban areas.

"I don't dare think of what would have happened if I'd had to cycle uphill," Larsen told newspaper Aften. "I probably wouldn't have been able to have enough speed."

The drama began when the active 83-year-old was cycling on one of the gravel roads leading into the forest beyond Skansebakken in Sørkedalen. Skansebakken is the last stop on an Oslo bus line and a popular starting point for skiing in the winter and cycling or hiking in the summer.

Larsen had heard some mysterious grunting noises from behind trees along the road but only later realized it must have been a moose cow irritated by his cycling. Female moose with calves are highly defensive at this time of year, because offspring born in May or June aren't yet able to fend for themselves.

"Suddenly the moose was standing before me on the road, demonstratively, as if she'd decided that she wasn't going to let me ride by," Larsen said.

Larsen, closing in fast on the moose, tried to scare her off by yelling "go back to the woods," but that only made the moose more angry.

"I shouldn't have done that, because the moose snorted, tramped her foot on the ground and started coming at me," Larsen said. He quickly turned around "and just started cycling for my life."

He said he kept cycling as fast as he could for around 10 minutes before he dared to look behind him. Then the moose was gone.

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rpshen

at 10:32 on August 26th, 2008

poor man. i can't imagine being chased by a moose! i always thought those creatures were friendly.

Christina 123

at 12:29 on August 26th, 2008

I think, like a lot of animals with very young fleglings, they can be very aggressive in their maternal instinct to protect their young. Oh well, the exercise would have been good for hm!

juliehoaas

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 12:45 on August 26th, 2008

Always fun to read about the good elg stories ;) I've personally never seen a moose up close and personal, luckily, but my father once saw one in the backyard here.

And just a little thing, you misspelled Norway in the beginning there ;) Just a typo though!

Christina 123

at 09:10 on August 27th, 2008

Hi juliehoaas, thanks for the flag and the comment. I like the story because a neighbour of my elderly mother is 87 and still cycles; my mother would too, except she has had three hip replacement operations (one wore out) and the doctor has forbidden her. She is always on the look out for the field deer ("peura"; there are quite a lot in her part of Finland) but I don't think elks (as we call moose in England) have been seen for a while although my farmer grandfather used to hunt them for sport (aaahhhh!).

I spotted the typo straight away but no matter what I do- inluding deleting the word and typing it again and even just now typing NORWAY in capitals next to it, for some reason it keeps updating as "Norawy" : - could a moderator explain why?

JustJoeOnline

at 00:39 on August 27th, 2008

It happens when you get between a Cow and the Calf

JustJoeOnline has contributed a photo to this story.

JustJoeOnline

at 00:43 on August 27th, 2008

Living in Anchorage Alaska you see them everyday. In your Yard, your door. drinking from the sprinklers. Walking downtown. in the middle of the road.

www.flicker.com/justjoeonline

TearsRain15

at 02:33 on August 27th, 2008

Moose had been scarce there for a while in the summer even and even in the winter months of 2007 and 2008 due to housing being built so now that all the commotion has settled down they have come back. This was a very lucky shot I was in the car driving near our home in Anchorage when mommy and baby decided to walk crossed the street. They were coming from the housing side of the street. mommy was very attentive to us but seemed to pay no mind.

TearsRain15 has contributed a photo to this story.

robchinn

at 03:30 on August 27th, 2008

Moose are wonderful creatures to watch in their natural habitat.
http://www.robchinn.com (redesign coming soon)

robchinn has contributed a photo to this story.

EddysMom07

at 03:54 on August 27th, 2008

I snapped this picture on a recent trip to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where moose were transplanted many years ago in remote wetlands in western upper michigan. My friends all knew of my plans to seek out the "great moose" but I never succeeded...so snapped this great picture of a moose on top of a general store in the village of Big Bay on Lake Superior. In trying to pass it off as an actual "moose sighting" ....I fooled no one....I tried....sigh...

EddysMom07 has contributed a photo to this story.

raydumas1

at 04:50 on August 27th, 2008

This image was taken at Isle Royale National Park Michigan, USA. Canon 5D with 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lense.

raydumas1 has contributed a photo to this story.

rbguinn1

at 05:33 on August 27th, 2008

This moose was in a wet land area on the west side of Rock Mountain National Park close to the roadway August 2008. Many people stopped to take photos.

rbguinn@swbell.net has contributed a photo to this story.

barry_steam

at 06:43 on August 27th, 2008

barry_steam has contributed a photo to this story.

barry_steam

at 06:44 on August 27th, 2008

We photographed this Moose high in the Rocky mountains. We were surprised it was snowing in the middle of August, but it was at 10,000 feet!

raydumas1

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 06:54 on August 27th, 2008

Christina 123, I like this story. It's good stuff. As I have often walked up on a moose (a few times as close as 30 feet) I consider myself lucky none of them ever charged me. Although I will say I was always prepared for it if it did. I am honored that you would want to include my photo in your article.

Christina 123

at 15:15 on September 3rd, 2008

Thanks, raydumas 1 - I love the moose photos, they are such funny-looking animals.

James N. Evanko

at 07:07 on August 27th, 2008

Hmm, they've always been very shy during our travels, ready to run away at an instant unless feeding in a place they are used to visiting. We are usually close to our vehicle whenever we spot one, though. They tend to hang around the roadside quite frequently around Moosehead Lake in Maine. The two pictures contributed are of the same moose. We discovered him while driving near Greenville Junction sometime in June. I was excited when I reviewed the second image where it looks like he is smiling. We took video as well and clearly the moose is just licking his lip. I'm not sure if he was clearing away some fresh grass or had a taste of the salt they tend to lick off the roads. The shots were taken with a Canon EOS 20D using a Canon 75-300mm zoom lens with image stabilizer. We have tons of moose pics from that area. Maybe I'll post some more one of these days...

mickyd1963

at 07:18 on August 27th, 2008

Moose calf at Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, August, 2008.
Copyright, Michelle Derusseau - Through My Eyes

mickyd1963 has contributed a photo to this story.

jwhee0615

at 10:35 on August 27th, 2008

While driving along Moose-Wilson Road in Teton National Park Wyoming, I came across a moose cow and her calf feeding in a small pond. We along with others were able to get quite close and observe for quite a while and this did not seem to bother them in the least. Quite an experience.

jwhee0615 has contributed a photo to this story.

Randy Love

at 12:32 on August 27th, 2008

My shot was taken in the Teton Park as well. We had just passed one on the road, and then spotted one drinking in a small pond. It stopped and watched the people snapping pictures, but seemed interested in only getting a drink. During that day we had spotted bears, bison, elk, and a fox.

dboissonault

at 12:26 on August 27th, 2008

I was driving through the hillside in Homer, Alaska in the summer of 2007, when I looked to house off to my left and saw this moose eating a shrub on their frontlawn. Stopped the car, took a few quick snaps, and here ya go.

dboissonault has contributed a photo to this story.

NandYBledsoe

at 12:38 on August 27th, 2008

The ponds near Moose-Wilson Rd.(Moose, Wy.) in the Grand Tetons National Park are a great place to spot moose. This moose was having a leisurely lunch. Two more - a yearling and a calf were in a neighboring pond.

NandYBledsoe has contributed a photo to this story.

alexbsmith

at 13:23 on August 27th, 2008

Hope this helps the story!

I generally allow use with my permission and attribution. This permission to use this photo extends to this story only with no modification of the content. Feel free to contact me through flickr for any other requested uses of my photos. Thanks!

alexbsmith has contributed a photo to this story.

jmordo1

at 14:12 on August 27th, 2008

Photo taken on tour of Denali National Park, Alaska, USA. August 10, 2008

jmordo1 has contributed a photo to this story.

donnatwogood

at 15:33 on August 27th, 2008

This is a cow moose with her first year calf running away from the neighborhood after eating all of the neighbor's garden.

donnatwogood has contributed a photo to this story.

Jack1962

at 16:23 on August 27th, 2008

This photo was taken at Killarney Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada in August, 2008, along a remote park road. Unfortunately, it was already getting dark and the moose was not cooperating with my trying to take a good photo of him... despite my shouts and waving hands, it turned his back on me and went about his business, i.e., eating leaves. That's why it's not a good photo--but since it's the first time I encountered a moose, so far that's the best moose photo I've ever taken!

Jack1962 has contributed a photo to this story.

Rich pick

at 21:26 on August 27th, 2008

Lofoten Ilands 1995

Rich pick has contributed a photo to this story.

akfoto

at 12:42 on August 28th, 2008

Moose visit our yard often in the spring and fall, and occasionally in the summer and winter. They usually arrive in late evening, when the light is low. I have a difficult time getting a good photo because of the long shutter time required, but I have been producing some acceptable shots. I have a few others that I will post on FLICKR after I do some adjustments in Photoshop.

Thank you for requesting the photo(s).

akfoto has contributed a photo to this story.

lime32952

at 20:33 on August 31st, 2008

Moose eating in Alaska

lime32952 has contributed a photo to this story.

master_jim2008

at 20:47 on August 31st, 2008

At my old house in Mt. Shasta, California, we had all kinds of wild life, everything from bear to deer, and the bears would overturn the dumpster. HUGE dumpsters they were too.

Well we got smart, and went to this one website and bought a bottle of Dave's Insanity Hot Sauce. ONE drop in a gallon of water, put it in a spray bottle and spray the dumpster with it, and no animal will ever come near it again for a good month or more, then spray it again in a month.