The Kids Appreciate It

A real estate tycoon who owns a nature preserve tried to show off for visitors by jumping on an alligator's back for a ride, but the reptile bit his hand and dragged him into 15 feet of water. The 8-foot alligator let go of Ronald Bergeron after witnesses pulled its tail. Bergeron, 62, suffered a shattered pinky, a broken ring finger and puncture wounds in his palm. The multimillionaire developer tried the stunt Sunday while giving a tour of his 5,000-plus-acre preserve to weekend guests who had made large donations to the Boys & Girls Club. "I always tell them I'm going to wrestle an alligator," Bergeron said. "It's part of my Florida cracker culture. My grandfather was a game warden in the Everglades, and I grew up around alligators." He said he usually rides the alligator for a minute before letting it go. This time "he was rolling and I couldn't keep control of his mouth."