(WSVN) - Two Florida bikers embarked on a ride they’ll never forget after they ran over a six-foot-long alligator while traveling in Central Florida.
Cameron was thrown from his bike on Saturday after running into the reptile as it rested in the middle of the road.
“I saw it, like, 10 feet in front of me, and I thought—I knew I was going to hit it. It kind of just happened so quick. I didn’t even have a second to do anything; I couldn’t put on the brakes or anything. I just had to hold on,” said Cameron Gilmore. “I flipped over the handlebars and landed on my head on I-4 and rolled. They said, Somebody said two or three rolls headfirst, and then I start sliding for a long way.”
Behind him, Brandi Gross hit the gator only seconds later. She says she thought it was a tire.
“I just saw something—thought it was a tire. Once I realized what it was, then it was like… oh crap. Then the impact happened, and I flipped right over,” she said.
Paramedics responded to the scene. Cameron walked away with a broken foot and toes. Brandi sustained a concussion and a fractured wrist.
“I must have had an angel watching over me. It could’ve been a lot worse,” said Brandi.
Despite the injuries, both are staying positive and even cracking jokes.
“They’re calling me Gator Gilmore instead of Florida Man,” said Cameron.
“They call me Gator Ninja because I was on a Ninja 650,” said Brandi.
Brandi is a longtime Florida Gators fan. She said she might be switching sides after this.
“I was actually a Gators fan before this, and I was telling my mom, because my family’s always been divided, I said I might end up going Noles,” she said. “I don’t really care for Gators too much now.”
Florida Fish and Wildlife helped with the injured alligator. As for Gilmore, he says he plans to ride again, even if friends and family would prefer he not.
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