interesting to see how many people have problems with birds and other flying shit when trail running.

I got tagged by a Barred Owl on two separate occasions in the Fall... First time was one of the scariest events I've ever been through... Dark trail, super early in the morning, headphones in... 30 seconds into my run and out of nowhere I get a whack to the head.

Spooked, I tried to rationalize that I must have hit a branch but before managing to convince myself... Whack, happened again. Now I'm freaked as I still don't know what's happening so I start running for a clearing as fast as I can, twisting the fuck out of my ankle in the process. Just as I reached the clearing, I got hit the third time and I finally saw that it was an owl, who then flew over and landed on a tree nearby, staring in my general direction.

Second time was nowhere near as exciting. Happened about 500 metres from the first incident on a different trail and almost certainly the same bird.

Have since learned that it usually happens in the Fall when the juvenile owls are out on the search for food... Supposedly they're not smart enough to figure out that humans are not suitable prey.