Really? Or am I missing the joke? Cows only have teeth on their lower jaw and won’t/can’t bite.
In the UK most people seriously injured or killed are farm workers but about a quarter are walkers - usually by being trampled. We forget that they are very heavy animals and although usually docile can be very dangerous when motivated. I always try to give them a wide berth if they have calves when walking my dog near them.
I’ve had sheep bite through my antenna wire on Ingleborough G/NP-005 and try to do the same on Whernside G/NP-004. Fortunately there don’t seem to be cattle on many summits around here.
Trespass is only a civil matter and the landowner would have to prove you’d caused damage so I think you would be ok. And that’s even without considering the reasonable nature of the diversion.
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Yes. There was a meaningless joke thread on forum for football supporters (maybe Sunderland) back in 2003 that went viral due to the comments. Most were posted by people having a laugh (possibly when not sober) but there were also posts from the deranged and lunatic element. The whole thing got into a positive feedback loop with those having a laugh winding up the deranged. It was painfully funny if you were aware it was a joke. ( “I could take a cow down with a swift punch to its nose followed by a kick to its udders” type of comment. Followed by many “no you couldn’t… yes I can” replies.)
Surprisingly after 20 years it seems to have succumbed to bit rot and vanished.
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Thanks for that Andy. I obviously missed the joke as it involved football - having never ever watched a football match in my life.
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News to me, Andy, I thought it was a sexist but amusing reference to how females fight, since cows are female!
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Apologies for the poor joke. I wasn’t aware of the football thread, just indulged in a bit of poor humour.
Having a nice ride around the IoW, currently having lunch at the needles. Time left for an ice cream on the way back to the ferry.
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Well, in Switzerland the cows often wear a bell.
"Your report is ´bim, bam´ and the reference ´ding, dong´.
So you see that you keep the distance anyway…
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AHHH, Yes! As any U.S. G.I. or anyone with field phone experience will attest, cows positively LOVE WD2 field phone wire; steel and copper tinned strands with plastic, then Nylon insulation; very strong, and VERY chewy!
Ken
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But do treat male sheep (rams) with the utmost respect. My sister-in-law beef farmer (who also keeps sheep on and off) warned me that rams, if threatened enough, will, as their name suggests, ram you in the knees until your knee caps break and then they will trample you to death. This would be very, very rare but if ever you are confronted by a ram then just withdraw gracefully to show it that you are no threat.
Some time ago, I activated G/WB-023 and numerous sheep gathered on the other side of the fence. My biggest concern was whether or not it was lawful for unlicensed sheep to project their voices over amateur radio frequencies!
It all adds to the fun and variety of transmitting from a SOTA summit - enjoy yourself and keep safe!
73s, Alastair
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Sheep can, as you say, attack people. A number of, mainly elderly, farmers have been killed by rams. They are rammed from behind, which knocks the farmer to the ground and rammed whilst on the ground.
I’ve been ‘attacked’ twice by sheep, once in the UK and once in Eire
Regarding the OP, I’d never set up in a field with sheep or cattle, not because I’d be worried about being ‘attacked’, but both cattle and sheep can become very inquisitive and of course they aren’t very careful with your property.
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That’s a bit difficult here in G/NP (and probably most other UK regions) as there are potentially sheep on every summit.
I was referring to a ‘field’ rather than open hillside. Sheep on open hillsides/moorland don’t normally bother you as they don’t have lambs in tow.
The OP - G7SAT, Dave set up in a field.
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Kind of off-topic: If a true multi-tool is considered too much weight, I can wholeheartedly recommend the Leatherman PS4 - tiny, yet very versatile:
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Not quite true. St Boniface Down (G/SE-008) is, as the name suggests, a Down;
DOWNS Definition & Usage Examples | Dictionary.com
Many Downs in the UK are public land, with grazing rights for local livestock.
I set up just next to the car park, which the cows can and do, judging by the cow pats, venture into too as there are no fences. There is a ditch along the road with posts planted to prevent people from taking vehicles on the down; Google Maps and Google Maps
In hindsight, the water trough just near the car park (visible from both the satellite image and the street view) should have told me that there might be livestock. There were none around when I set up, and I suspect I just got unlucky they turned up when I did. As the summit is relatively flat, I could have walked maybe 100 metres or more away from the trough and still have easily been in the activation zone and would also have avoided bovine attention.
Dave.
G7SAT
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I bought this exact model about 15 years ago whilst camping near Whitby, and it is still serving me well today, although some of the colouring has rubbed off. A very versatile tool, which has some bloody good pliers and wire cutters on them, for their size. The blade is very sharp, and holds the edge very well. I’ve only had to sharpen it a couple of times in all those years.
…however, it is attached to my car keys, not my motorbike keys.
I also own a Gerber Dime, which is very similar but is generally cheaper (and the Dime lives in my Campervan, so still no help on this particular occasion).
I have ordered another one to go in SOTA kit 
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Sorry to hear of your encounter but glad everything is now repaired. We read of your experience after returning from our recent GM-ES land tour when our shortest activation was GM/ES-085 Hill of Garvoch where the notice, on the gate we had to climb, warned of cattle and a bull. As we walked up the grassy field we could see a large herd some distance away but hoped we could set up as soon as we were in the AZ and they would ignore us. Rod sat with his back to them (
) while I preferred to monitor the situation. Unfortunately we were not on the ridge and the only conatct I could make was with MM0HRI Iain in Arbroath on 2m (not even on 70cm) and the few further calls I made were unanswered before I looked up…
they were definitely getting closer and bringing their calves with them. The big white bull had been called over for a look but had decided to ignore us. However others were not so sure…
and wanted a closer look. I decided to suggest he turned round and … there was no time to video the lowering of the mast, stowing of the gear and retreating to the gate unscathed. The only time we’ve done it faster was when caught in a thunderstorm on GW/NW-055 Foel Offwrm above the Mawddach estuary.
I know we will be told they were only being nosey but they are heavier than me and with big feet and I didn’t want an argument. With horses I am more relaxed -
recently on May Hill G/WB-019 whilst activating and
looking for a bench to have lunch.(but we decided to go elswhere away from his halo of flies!). The belted Galloway cattle were, more sensibly, ignoring us and sheltering in the summit trees. Better luck next time!
Viki
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