Ultramarathon runner Dean Karnazes recounts frightening encounter with coyote near Golden Gate Bridge

SAN FRANCISCO - A famous ultramarathon runner recounted a frightening encounter with a coyote while on a 150-mile trek near the Golden Gate Bridge that left him bloodied and bruised.

Dean Karnazes, 59, detailed the terrifying experience in an Instagram video early Saturday morning, just moments after the incident. It shows him with blood trickling from his mouth and onto his running attire. 

Karnazes said he was 40 miles into his trail run through the Marin Headlands when a coyote jumped on him, trying to get his snack.

He said he had just pulled out an energy bar and began to take a bite when it happened.

"I’m out on a 150-mile trail run, and I got attacked by a coyote. That was a first. It knocked me over," Karnazes said in the video with blood and gashes on his face. "Thankfully I’m running with a pole and I whacked it and it ran away. Kind of brutal. I’m not sure what I’m going to do, but I guess I gotta keep going unless it'll probably come back for me."

Karnazes said he heard footsteps behind him and thought it was someone walking their dog.

"I turned and right when I did that the coyote just barreled into my back. I think it was going for my bar and when I turned this way, it either miscalculated or whatever. But it just knocked me to the ground," he recalled.

The encounter left Karnazes visibly shaken.

This isn't the first time the well-known runner has had a close encounter with wildlife. He said he also previously survived a shark attack.

SEE ALSO: 2 dogs killed by coyotes in a week in San Francisco park

He said running in the natural beauty of the Bay Area he frequently sees coyotes, deer, rabbits, even bobcats.

"I want to emphasize that it was isolated. I run out on these trails all the time. I've seen hundreds of coyotes, never had one issue. So, I think it was just a ransom occurrence, and I think it's on account of people feeding coyotes," he said.

In an Instagram post on Monday, he urged people, specifically tourists, to stop feeding the wild coyotes in the Marin Headlands.

"This has got to stop," he said. "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."

The National Park Service said it's not characterizing the incident as an attack because Karnazes' injuries were caused by the fall, not a bite.