Ultramarathon runner who claimed he was injured by a coyote, actually hurt himself in a fall
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An ultramarathon runner who claims to have been savagely attacked and injured in the face by a coyote on a 150-mile run in California near the Golden Gate Bridge actually hurt himself in a fall, park rangers confirmed.
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) tweeted the update on Wednesday, shedding light on how exactly Dean Karanzes suffered facial injuries on Saturday night in the Marin Headlands Endurance race.
The National Park Service claims officers had spoken to the 59-year-old hours after the alleged attack and even opened an investigation into the 3 a.m. incident.
‘While we appreciate the coverage on this, we want to emphasize that the injuries shown were caused by a fall,’ the GGNRA tweeted. ‘The coyote did not bite the individual involved in this encounter.’
‘To be clear, the fall, rather than the coyote itself, was the source of Karnazes’ injuries,’ National Park Service spokesperson Julian Espinoza also told the SFGATE. ‘It wouldn’t be accurate to refer to the encounter as an attack.’
Karanzes gave a bizarre interview to SFGate which initially deflected questions about what had happened, before admitting that the incident had caused him to pee himself.
Park rangers at the Golden Gate National Recreation area said in a tweet on Wednesday that Ultramarathon runner Dean Karnazes, 59, had suffered injuries to his face from a fall, shedding light on the runner’s account of what exactly happened on a 150-mile race on Saturday night
Dean Karnazes (left), 59, took to Instagram to document being attacked by a coyote on the 150-mile long Marin Headlands Endurance race at around 3a.m. on Saturday
Karnazes, who also claims to have the ‘endurance gene’ from not producing lactic acid – an organic acid produced when muscles are making energy anaerobically, is well known in the long-distance running world and is the author of ‘Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner.’
He has also completed 50 marathons in as many states and days in 2008.
On Saturday night, Karnazes, also known as ‘Ultramarathon Man,’ posted a video to Instagram and discussed the attack to his over 100,000 followers with blood dripping from his upper and lower lip.
The caption to the video reads: ‘I’ve been attacked by a shark, and now a coyote.’
After being knocked to the ground, Karnazes believes the animal was going after the energy bar he was preparing to eat, he told NBC.
‘I was running and I heard some footsteps behind me,’ he said. ‘I thought it was a big dog on the trail and I turned to look and it was a coyote.’
‘Honestly, I think it didn’t know what to do,’ he added.
‘He was looking at me. I was looking at him. He was going for the bar.’
After grabbing hold of the poles he brought with him for support, he was able to fend off the coyote. He then continued to run.
‘Not sure what I’m going to do, but I guess I got to keep going or else it will probably come back to me,’ he concluded.
Dean Karnazes (left), 59, took to Instagram to document being attacked by a coyote on his 150-mile run – his second encounter with a wildlife animal after previously being attacked by a shark
Karnazes attributes his ability to do ultramarathons and other 100-plus-mile runs because of his body’s ability to rapidly flush lactic acid from his system.
On Monday, Karnazes shared another Instagram post of a ‘Do not feed the coyotes’ sign, writing as a captionL ‘As I’ve witnessed firsthand, people (mostly tourists) have been feeding wild coyotes in the Marin Headlands area of California. This has go to stop.’
‘If you see someone feeding a coyote, please say something. The local Rangers are doing the best they can, but we trail runners are out in these areas more than anyone.’
‘Thank you. It’s best for everyone, coyotes includes. #letwildlifebewild #runhappy #runwisely #runtrails.’
Following the incident, Karnazes responded to his own post and told his viewers ‘if you see someone feeding a coyote, please say something.’ He says he believes he was attacked for his energy bar
Named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2007, Karnazes has also run across Death Valley in Eastern California’s Mojave Desert and a marathon to the South Pole in below-zero temperatures.
The 150-mile trek was not foreign to Karnazes, who has recorded 10 separate 200-mile races.
He attributes his ability to do these runs because of his body’s ability to rapidly flush lactic acid from his system.
Typically, as we exercise, the body converts glucose to energy, which produces lactic acid as a byproduct. As that builds up in the muscles, it begins causing cramps and fatigue as a signal to stop.
Karnazes never receives those signals. As a result, he is able to keep on running without stopping and competes in some of the toughest endurance races in the world.
‘At a certain level of intensity, I do feel like I can go a long way without tiring,’ he told the Guardian previously.
‘No matter how hard I push, my muscles never seize up. That’s kind of a nice thing if I plan to run a long way.’
‘No matter how hard I push, my muscles never seize up,’ Karnazes said of his running abilities. ‘That’s kind of a nice thing if I plan to run a long way’