Crap myself moment!
 

I was driving back from the gym tonight, along the A316 doing a steady 50mph when something happened that made me crap myself!

A bit of pre-requisite info: I need to wear glasses when I'm reading or using a VDU and I just can't see things that are right in my face.

So, I'm driving along and what should happen but a bloody spider dropped down in front of my face - an inch from my nose dangling on it's web :o It was only one of those daddy long legs (not sure if you call them that here but essentially a large but very skinny spider with a small abdomen, light brown in colour and essentially harmless). I remind you that it was so close to my face that it was really a bit of a blur so all I could make out was that it was a spider!! Having grown up in Oz reflexes tend to kick in when it comes to this sort of thing! We have a few nasty ones and I've had a few run-ins with them as a kid!

So - be careful out there!

:lol:

When you're in the Army you have to wear a hat of some description when you're on parade. We were called for knock off parade one day after we'd gotten back from being out bush so I grabbed my bush hat off the table in the bays to go out to parade. The bays we worked in were just big tin sheds really - in Brisbane too, it got stinking hot in there!

So we're walking up to parade when they call it off, so we turn around and start heading back when one of the blokes lunges at me and knocks my hat out of my hand. There was a redback climbing out of it! :o No word of a lie!!

And one night we were going into an ambush position out in the bush in the middle of nowhere in the dark and I walked into a monster spider web - really sticky! Could hardly see a thing - I was crapping big stylie!

Just for you tony..... :frog:

Errr .. thanks Nick.

We have to get our houses fumigated once a year to take care of those bad boys - they're everywhere! Pot plants especially.

Do you think I could get a job with the Ozzie tourism board? :frog:

Saw a program once about strange accidents, woman in Auz had a similar experience to you only it was a wolf spider that dropped into her lap from the sun visor.............she swerved so hard she rolled the car!
For those who don't know-wolf spiders are basically HUGE but harmless, but you wouldn't take the chance if you didn't know.

John

Monty

Do you mean the Huntsman??

I am absolutely petrified of spiders and spent most of my time in Oz walking around as if i had blinkers on, just so I didn't see any!!

I don't know about swerving and crashing the car if one dropped down, i would probably just die of fright :(

Wolf spider, hunstman ... both HOOGE big brown barstewards enough to make you crap yourself, even though you know they are relatively harmless.

wolf and huntsman aren't dangerous, just a little annoying!

With about 80,000 known species of spiders about it's best to avoid all the little f***ers!!!
for example, which one of these would you prefer NOT to have in your wellies:

:o:o I just idly thought this was a bike type thing!:o

Then I saw those ....ttttthings you posted pics of, Nick - very scarey stuff:o

Please can somebody put a warning in the title if there is terrifying messages with piccys in the thread?

Off to have a ciggy to calm my nerves now.........

C:(

Be careful outside on ciggy break ck, check them cracks in the wall before you lean on it! :devil:

Nick, I'd prefer to have none of them in my wellies!

To all those scared of spiders you have the right to be
Getting bitten by a black widow is VERY painful for about 2 weeks(feels like you have run over by a bus, I would not wish it on my worst enemy.

You're far too nice, i think it would be great for worst enemies:lol::lol::lol::lol:

It aint the Redback u need to worry about really although they are prolific in OZ mainly around water outles taps etc..its the Funnel web that is the killer luckily only found in certain parts of OZ.......

Huntsman and wolf spiders are big enough to carry you...a bit like a quad.......

I wouldn't say that Phil!! Redbacks will make you a very sick boy and you need to watch out for them because they are bloody everywhere!! They can kill a small child if not treated quickly enough, and I have small children and I found redbacks all round my place in Brisbane, we get it fumigated annually.

You're right about the funnel webs though, much nastier venom but fortunately not as widespread. Although brown snakes are ... all over the place where I grew up around the Gold Coast and in Brisbane.

I lived brisbane for 7 years dude ( ascot )...........i was looking at it from a male dsc perspective..u r absolutely right a redback biting a child or elderly person is deadly....

every other weekend in the glasshouse mountains on the cr500...surfing at noosa point .........mmmmmm

Phil

Death by redback is rare, and nearly all the males are just too small to get their jaws into human flesh. The females, while bigger than the males, are also mostly too small to get a good enough grip on flesh.
The effects of a bite are pretty much determined by the amount of venom they manage to inject - If the little critter manages to properly penetrate then you're going to need antivenom to survive, but most bites are only effective enough to cause a shed load of pain and sickness.

End of lesson... were you paying attention charlotte?!!!

Oh dear, I think I've been watching too much steve irwin!

[Edited on 24-11-2004 by NBs996]

"but most bites are only effective enough to cause a shed load of pain and sickness."
On the other hand if you are surfing in the 'Territories and a salty takes a fancy to you that could spoil your whole day.............:lol:
Basically I think Auz is one of gods little jokes-you create an island paradise, only make it nice and large for variety-then fill it with all manner of 'crawling nasties', oh, and just for good measure surround it with, in no particular order, great whites, Tiger sharks, hammerheads, salties, and lets not forget, Box jellyfish-and we wonder why most Auzzies can't wait to move to Earls Court..........:lol::lol::lol:

John

Too true monty...
...which is probably why we shipped all our crims out there.
Only problem is, they keep coming back and finding refuge in twickenham!

I'll be having strong words with you tomorrow night Nick!

So I guess these comments kind of confirm what I was saying about redbacks - do worry about them, they will make you sick! A child or an elderly person could be killed without antivenom. Funnel webs are indeed nastier however. Along with crocs, sharks etc. But, the only thing that will actively look to make you a meal would be a croc. A shark wouldn't - unless it was injured or you inadvertently triggered a defense mechanism in it. And snakes and spiders will do a runner when they 'feel' you coming. Unless you back them into a corner or make them feel threatened they generally go about their business.

The thing about all our nasties in Oz is that it helps make you good at sport - better reflexes, ovservation skills etc

:D ;)

Thats more to do with the exchange rate ;)

Is the exchange rate better in Earls court then Twickenham:puzzled::lol:

Yep, you exchange your rent for a 2 bedroom house and then load it with 40 backpacking Aussies.

In Twickenham we've only got 6 people in our 4 bedroom house.

:D :frog:

[Edited on 24-11-2004 by tp-996]

Dave W had a spider living down behind the clocks in one of his bikes... it was quite a cutie ( I like spiders ) and he never got around to evicting it, well not until the day it decided to pop its head out from the clocks one day ( at around 80 mph ) and go for a wander around the bike.... it then got unceremoniously blown off ...:(:(:(:( poor little thing !

I like spiders too...and slugs and snails, and moths etc etc
I watched my mate kill one yesterday....:sniff:
It was awful, poor little thing
:(

I generally like spiders as well though I react automatically to one getting near my face. However, my buddy was allergic to bee stings and he had a bee get under his helmet and sting him in the face at about 60 mph. He swelled up almost immediately and they almost had to radial saw the helmet off. They ended up prying it off, but it was a shed load of pain! I think he drove about 30 miles in this condition before getting to the infirmary. Huge cajones, that guy:devil:

"Huge cajones, that guy"

I thought you said it stung him on the face..............:lol:

John