Two men smashed the windows of a minivan with a hockey stick, then pulled the female driver out of the vehicle and beat her in front of her child in a bizarre road rage incident, Calgary police say.

The attack occurred on Wednesday after 5 p.m. near the Mount Pleasant Sportsplex.

"It's quite rare where when we see road rage manifest itself into something physical," said Insp. Darren Leggatt. "In my 27 years of policing, this is probably one of the more [cowardly] acts I've seen relative to a road rage incident.

"It's a deplorable, random act of violence for — at the end of the day — a very petty reason."

The 28-year-old mother, Karalie Red Old Man, told police a BMW had tried to pass her vehicle as she travelled on 4th Street N.W. south toward the Mount Pleasant neighbourhood.

Karalie Red Old Man shows her injuries after an unprovoked attack that police are calling road rage. (Submitted by Karalie Red Old Man)

At one point, the BMW rear-ended her Dodge Caravan minivan and continued to aggressively tailgate her.

The BMW followed her to the arena, where her vehicle was boxed in.

After demanding she come out of her car to "fight them," she said the men broke windows on the minivan and assaulted her, at times using a hockey stick as a weapon.

She was taken to hospital in an ambulance with injuries to her face, jaw, lips and teeth.

Red Old Man had a child in her minivan at the time, who witnessed the beating.

Police describe the two attackers as being in their early 20s, with dark brown or black hair and medium builds.

One was wearing light grey or white clothing on his upper body.

They are also looking for a silver, two-door BMW with an Alberta licence plate.

The car would likely have extensive damage to the front passenger side and possibly the front bumper, police said.