The radio crackled to life at 7:32 p.m. on a quiet evening in Klein Karoo, South Africa. A call came in: “Possible drunk driver heading down the old dirt road—swerving badly.”
Officer Jacob, new to the rural post, expected the usual—a beat-up pickup, maybe a farmer’s bakkie gone rogue. What he didn’t expect was what he saw next:
A man, shirtless under denim overalls, straw hat tilted back, riding a full-grown ostrich at a trot.
The bird wobbled along the road like it was doing its best impression of a drunk driver itself. Dust flew, feathers puffed, and the rider—beer bottle in hand—was laughing, completely oblivious to the flashing blue lights approaching behind him.
“We’ve Got Our Man… And He’s on an Ostrich.”
Officer Jacob slowed the cruiser, blinked twice, and radioed in:
“Uh, Control… I think we’ve got our suspect. And, uh… he’s on an ostrich.”
Silence. Then, static-filled laughter from dispatch.
The officer stepped out of the vehicle, trying to suppress a smile. The man turned, swayed slightly in the saddle, and greeted him like an old friend.
“Evening, officer,” he slurred. “Beautiful night for a ride, eh?”
Jacob blinked. “Sir, have you been drinking?”
The man raised his brown bottle proudly. “Relax, it’s only my second one!”
The ostrich let out a low hiss, shifting uneasily. Jacob wasn’t sure which was less stable—the rider or the bird.
The Arrest Nobody Saw Coming
When asked to dismount, the man swung a leg over and nearly fell flat. The ostrich, apparently relieved, strutted off a few meters and began pecking at the grass, as if to distance itself from the situation.
Jacob guided the man toward the patrol car. “Sir, you’re under arrest for drinking and driving.”
The man frowned. “Driving? Officer, that’s not a car. That’s a bird.”
Jacob sighed. “You were operating a vehicle while intoxicated. The law’s the law.”
The man squinted. “Vehicle? She’s my girlfriend.”
That quote alone would later circulate through local WhatsApp groups for weeks.
“Last Week, He Was Riding a Bull.”
Neighbors weren’t surprised when they heard the story. One local shopkeeper told reporters, “Oh, that’s him again. Last week he came through town riding a bull. Week before that, it was a goat. We’ve stopped asking questions.”
In Klein Karoo, eccentricity is almost a sport—and this man was the reigning champion.
The Officer’s Laughing Lesson
Later, Officer Jacob admitted it was hard to keep a straight face during the arrest. “You don’t learn this kind of thing in training,” he said. “They teach you how to handle traffic stops, not… ostrich DUIs.”
Still, paperwork had to be done, and a charge was filed—“operating a non-motorized vehicle under the influence.”
The man spent the night sobering up in a holding cell, humming folk songs about freedom and flight. When asked if he’d learned his lesson, he smiled and said, “Next time, I’ll take the camel.”
Only in Klein Karoo
By morning, the story had spread across town. Farmers chuckled over coffee, kids imitated ostrich riders on bicycles, and memes began circulating faster than police reports.
As for the ostrich? It was returned safely to its owner, reportedly “unharmed but unimpressed.”
Officer Jacob became something of a local celebrity—forever known as the man who made the strangest DUI arrest in South African history.
🦩 Not all drunk drivers ride cars—some ride legends.
If this made you laugh, share it. Because only in South Africa can a traffic stop turn into a rodeo.