When they run directly in front of you, there's not a lot you can do, but of course the faster you're going, the better the odds that you won't be able to stop, or that they won't see/hear you coming.
I was a little surprised at the stats in the back of the 'Death in Yosemite' book, near the end. In a place with raging rivers, thousand(s) foot drops, no-escape waterfalls, rockfalls, places to get lost in snow, wild animals, people climbing straight up faces like El Cap and Half Dome, and a 35mph speed limit in most areas, what is the biggest cause of deaths?
Motor vehicle accidents. At 35, you'd practically have to do a head-on, or drive over a cliff to cause death, but 159 deaths 1851-2006 from motor vehicle accidents (and I really doubt there were a whole lot before 1900 8^)
Drowning is next with 144, then hiking and scrambling with 122, followed by big wall climbing at 104. Those all make sense, over 150+ years, but why are people getting in fatal traffic accidents at 35mph? (or maybe 45 on Tioga, I forget). Or, why are so many bears killed? The answer can usually be found in your rear view mirror, if you try to keep anywhere near the speed limit.
Gary
Yosemite Photo Galleries: http://www.pbase.com/roberthouse/yo
