Not the actual rabid raccoon that attacked Cas Overton.
Cas Overton, a 75 year old t'ai chi master who has been teaching the martial art for 40 years, strangled with her bare hands a rabid raccoon that was trying to attack her.
As I was reading the newspaper article about how badass her slick, raccoon-killing move was, I realized something shocking: I studied t'ai chi with her when I was a high school student in Richmond, VA, in the 1980s! She is totally cool! I am not making this up!
Here's a snip from the Washington Post account of what happened to her on a recent bird-watching walk at Richmond's lovely Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, where she volunteers.
Raccoons in Virginia do not mess around.
She had to think fast. She said she figured she could physically throw the raccoon off of her, but feared that if she did it would chase and "shred" her.
So Overton, who meditates and has practiced and taught Tai Chi for more than 40 years, pinned the raccoon to the ground and strangled it. It took about five minutes for the raccoon to stop moving.
"I am a strong person, I work out every day, I am really fit. I am sure that had implications, but it was the mental acuity to know that this had to be be taken care of right now," she said Monday, about two weeks after the March 7 attack. "I stayed with it and did the deadly thing."She suddenly noticed what appeared to be a rabid raccoon in front of her. It lunged at the inside of her left leg, puncturing her skin and latching onto her pants.
Not the actual battle.
The raccoon did test positive for rabies, so she has been receiving medical treatment to avoid contracting the illness.
Ms. Overton, you have always been and remain a badass. I bow in your general direction.
"Woman unharmed after strangling a rabid raccoon that was attacking her" [Washington Post]
"Henrico woman, 75, strangles rabid raccoon at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden" [Richmond Times-Dispatch]
