5 Cyclists Fight Off a Cougar With Their Bare Hands to Save a Friend

Last month, on February 17, on the Tokul Creek Trail, just northeast of Fall City, Washington, a group of five women cyclists had to fight off a cougar for 45 minutes with nothing but rocks, sticks, and their bare hands. The cyclists, who were all in their 50s and 60s and part of the competitive Recycled Cycles Racing team, were 19 miles into their biking excursion when the attack occurred. The large cat lunged at 60-year-old Keri Bergere, knocking her into a shallow ditch, biting her jaw, and refusing to let go.

From the moment of the attack, the group sprang into action to help their friend. Bergere’s face was pinned to the ground. The group used sticks and rocks to pry the cougar loose, but their efforts did nothing at first. Finally, one of the women found a 25-pound rock and repeatedly dropped it on the cougar’s head. Meanwhile, Bergere tried to force her fingers up the cat’s nostrils and into its eyes.

After 15 minutes, the animal loosened its grip, and Bergere could crawl away. 

The fight wasn’t over, as the group used a $6,000 cycle crossbike to pin the cougar to the ground. The cougar kept fighting, at one point lifting the bike with the women standing on it. They could not attend to Bergere, who they called out to ensure she was okay. She just raised a bloody thumb.

Eventually, the cougar became subdued, and the women could call 911. 30 minutes later, a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officer arrived and shot the creature between the shoulder blades, ending the harrowing ordeal. An autopsy revealed the cougar was a male, roughly one year old and weighing 75 pounds.

In an interview with KUOW, Bergere described the traumatic event.

“I thought my teeth were coming loose, and I was going to swallow my teeth. I could feel the bones crushing, and I could feel it tearing back. I felt like it was suffocating me, and I could taste the blood in my mouth. All these ladies came up with superhuman strength. They’re teeny ladies, and I know that the Fish & Wildlife shot the final shot to kill it, but these ladies killed that cougar with their bare hands and no weapons and I’m eternally grateful to each one of them.”

Cougars, also known as mountain lions or pumas, tend to stay away from humans. In the northwest, sightings are rare, but it is well known the animals are often lurking nearby. Attacks on humans are even more rare, with 20 recorded attacks in Washington state in the last century, with only two fatalities.