Face to Face w/ Big BEAR
Question:
> All the postings about what to do when you stand face to face > with a bear reminds me about a joke: > Ever heard about the american guy that goes hunting up in Montana. > He sees this huge black bear. He gets the bear in his sights and fires, BANG ! > | Joern Yngve Dahl-Stamnes, Norwegian University of Science and Technology | > | phone : +73 59 44 12, fax: +73 59 14 41 | > | Surfing the net? Try http://www.fysel.unit.no/dahls/dahls.html |
you sure it wasn’t a Norwegian ?
Response:
> > Well, riding INTO a bear worked for me. > My closest encounter with a bear (on a bike) came while grinding > up a steep dirt road behind the Whistler dump. It was hot, I was > suffering and staring (zombie like) about 6 inches infront of my > front wheel. Suddenly a big fluffy BUTT obscured my view of the > road!
I take it the fluffy part was brown and not black. >I stopped (sort of a reflex thing). The bear did not appear > to be in a very good mood. Maybe it was the prospect of a Tioga > Mud Dawg up the butt, maybe because he was climbing the same steep > hill in the same hot weather while wearing a fur coat, maybe both.
The black bear that stopped my bike was not in a very good mood after getting a Fisher Fattrax rammed into his ribcage. > Without breaking stride, the bear looked over his shoulder and gave > me a really dirty look, and continued on his way. I waited until > my heart rate dropped a few hundred bpm before following in a very > alert (and forward looking) manner.
Its mating season currently, what time of the year did you get behind the bear’s butt?!? Maybe it was a female in heat (well, obviously after climbing a hill in a fur coat but…).
Response:
> Well, riding INTO a bear worked for me.
My closest encounter with a bear (on a bike) came while grinding up a steep dirt road behind the Whistler dump. It was hot, I was suffering and staring (zombie like) about 6 inches infront of my front wheel. Suddenly a big fluffy BUTT obscured my view of the road! I stopped (sort of a reflex thing). The bear did not appear to be in a very good mood. Maybe it was the prospect of a Tioga Mud Dawg up the butt, maybe because he was climbing the same steep hill in the same hot weather while wearing a fur coat, maybe both. Without breaking stride, the bear looked over his shoulder and gave me a really dirty look, and continued on his way. I waited until my heart rate dropped a few hundred bpm before following in a very alert (and forward looking) manner. Chris —
Response:
> The bear did give up and walk away and this guy got about 1,000 > stitches to put his scalp back together (I can’t remember the actual > number, but it was a lot). > During the attack, these are the three things he says sticks in his > mind the most: > 1. I’m dead. > 2. The grinding noise of the bear’s teeth on his skull. > 3. The bear’s bad breath.
I thought you were going to say: "4. Next ride, I’m wearing a helmet!" ;^) -Alex Obbard Salt Lake City
Response:
If you are riding in a group, then it is easy. On the count of three tell everybody to point their bikes in the other direction and ride hard. It doesn’t matter if it is uphill or downhill. The bigger the group, the better. Remember, all you have to do is outride one person. There is no prize for being tastest, just game over for being lastest!!! Bartman – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -S.) writes: >What are you supposed to do when you come upon >a BEAR in the woods. Has this ever happend to >anyone ? >Anton
Response:
All the postings about what to do when you stand face to face with a bear reminds me about a joke: Ever heard about the american guy that goes hunting up in Montana. He sees this huge black bear. He gets the bear in his sights and fires, BANG ! When the smoke clears the bear has disappeared. Then someone taps him on the shoulder, he turns around and confronts a very pissed off bear. "I’ll either rip your head off or you take your trousers down and bend over" snarled the bear. The now sweating man quickly pulled his pants down and bent over. The black bear gave him what for – wham wham wham ! The american staggered down the mountain and back to town . Two weeks later when he’d recovered he went to the gun shop and bought a big elephant gun, he went back up the mountain and looked for the big black bear. He finally tracked him down, got the bear in his sights and BANG ! When the smoke cleared – no bear, a tap on the shoulder, "Its your choice" said the bear. The man pulled his pants down and bent over. Three weeks later he bought a cannon and pulled it all the way up the mountain. He waited for the bear – BANG ! The smoke cleared and NO bear ! Tap tap, "You know the score" said the bear – Wham wham wham ! 4 weeks later the american was back up the mountain with a nuclear bazooka. He found the bear – KABOOOOM !! When the smoke had cleared – NO bear ! A tap on the shoulder, the bear smiled and said "You’re not really here for the hunting are you". — | Joern Yngve Dahl-Stamnes, Norwegian University of Science and Technology | | phone : +73 59 44 12, fax: +73 59 14 41 | | Surfing the net? Try http://www.fysel.unit.no/dahls/dahls.html |
Response:
>And if all else fails and the bear gets you, don’t move. Don’t >breathe. Wait. Wait. Wait. I read all the time stories about >people that try to fight bears off and get half killed before >they finally give up and figure the bear will kill them. Instead, >the bear then walks off.
I met a fellow a few years back who had a grizzly encounter. He played dead, and the grizzly chewed on his skull for about five minutes. At one point, his entire head was inside the bears mouth, but like an egg, the bear couldn’t crack into the soft part. The bear did give up and walk away and this guy got about 1,000 stitches to put his scalp back together (I can’t remember the actual number, but it was a lot). During the attack, these are the three things he says sticks in his mind the most: 1. I’m dead. 2. The grinding noise of the bear’s teeth on his skull. 3. The bear’s bad breath. A true story. DANIEL CLEMENTS (Barrie, Ontario CANADA)
Response:
> >What are you supposed to do when you come upon >a BEAR in the woods. > Play dead (Grateful, that is…)
OK. I’ll, um, bite. [DRIFT ON] You may try "Throwing Stones" Otherwise, you’ll cry "I Need A Miracle" Then you’ll go "Hell in Bucket" (although you I bet won’t enjoy the ride) And we’ll all cry … "He’s Gone" [DRIFT OFF] Bill ps For the Undead out there; don’t try this advice; Big BEARs have special deals for Deadhead shredders – they make our last dining experience mercifully quick (but you have to be an authentic Deadhead – ie you must have *actually* seen Jerry live)
Response:
> Excerpts from netnews.rec.bicycles.off-road: 11-Sep-96 Face to Face w/ > What are you supposed to do when you come upon > a BEAR in the woods. > Turn your bike downhill. People reading this might think this is common > sense but there is another reason behind it. Bears are more built upper > body and has shorter front arms, but are really fast, faster than > humans. And they can outrun most people uphill because of this, but > their center of gravity is so high they have trouble going downhill. > Also by making lots of noice will annoy bears away, so get a cow bell on > your bikes. 
Whatever you do, do not make it look as though you are running. Experts in bear behavior will tell you that it is the bear’s sworn duty to chase down something that is running from it. Instead, act disinterested and mosey away from the bear. If you have several people, clump together, wave your arms and make noise. Bears have crappy eyesight and will tend to avoid an animal larger and louder than themselves. And if all else fails and the bear gets you, don’t move. Don’t breathe. Wait. Wait. Wait. I read all the time stories about people that try to fight bears off and get half killed before they finally give up and figure the bear will kill them. Instead, the bear then walks off. — Dave Blake http://www.keck.ucsf.edu/~dblake
Response:
> Ok forget the center of gravity stuff. Bears can run 30km/h any > direction they choose. So you’d better have a nice clear downhill and a > good headstart before you even consider riding away.
Actually its 40km/h but there is a DEFINITE center of gravity issue. The problem isn’t so much how the weight is proportioned on a bear but how strong their bone structure is. Bears have really weak shoulder joints on their front legs and its not unusual to see a bear running down a hill and then trip on smooth ground as its shoulder joints pop out of place. The usual result is either a bear rolling down the hill or digging a furrow into the ground. > advice once you’ve encountered a bear is to make lots of noise and back > slowly away. In the spring check around to make sure you aren’t between > the bear and any cubs this is a certain way to get charged. People have > survived bear attacks by playing dead (turtle) and this is certainly > better advice than trying to fight,
Its better to play dead with grizzlies but to fight black bears (or is that the other way around… hmmm… one species isn’t picky about eating dead animals).
Response:
> What are you supposed to do when you come upon > a BEAR in the woods. Has this ever happend to > anyone ?
Well, riding INTO a bear worked for me. He was surprised, I was surprised. He screamed, I screamed. He ran off into the woods, I bounced down the trail (as soon as gravity took over after I flew over my handlebars). OR you can try these tips… If you meet a bear in the woods, and don’t know what kind it is then climb a tree. If it follows you up its a black bear. If it knocks the tree down its a grizzly. Do not run from Grizzly bears for they will catch you and eat you. Of course you could climb a tree, in which case you’ll get a very good view of the surrounding landscape before the bear knocks the tree down and eats you.
Response:
>What are you supposed to do when you come upon >a BEAR in the woods. Has this ever happend to >anyone ?
Ran into a few bears last month in the North Cascades as a matter of fact, but didn’t have any trouble with them. (Two of them were right down in the Thunder Point camp site on Lake Diablo, probably hoping for clueless campers with good food.) Most bears aren’t going to attack unless they think you are threatening them, so if you spot the bear before it thinks you’re attacking it, you can just calmly turn and move away slowly. — "My other bike is a car." Dura Ace aero toe clips, steel, Medium, USED, $5/pair
Response:
Excerpts from netnews.rec.bicycles.off-road: 11-Sep-96 Face to Face w/ > What are you supposed to do when you come upon > a BEAR in the woods. Has this ever happend to > anyone ? > Anton
Turn your bike downhill. People reading this might think this is common sense but there is another reason behind it. Bears are more built upper body and has shorter front arms, but are really fast, faster than humans. And they can outrun most people uphill because of this, but their center of gravity is so high they have trouble going downhill. Also by making lots of noice will annoy bears away, so get a cow bell on your bikes.
Response:
>What are you supposed to do when you come upon >a BEAR in the woods.
Play dead (Grateful, that is…)
Response:
> > What are you supposed to do when you come upon > a BEAR in the woods. Has this ever happend to > anyone ? > Anton > Turn your bike downhill. People reading this might think this is common > sense but there is another reason behind it. Bears are more built upper > body and has shorter front arms, but are really fast, faster than > humans. And they can outrun most people uphill because of this, but > their center of gravity is so high they have trouble going downhill. > Also by making lots of noice will annoy bears away, so get a cow bell on > your bikes.
Ok forget the center of gravity stuff. Bears can run 30km/h any direction they choose. So you’d better have a nice clear downhill and a good headstart before you even consider riding away. The most common advice once you’ve encountered a bear is to make lots of noise and back slowly away. In the spring check around to make sure you aren’t between the bear and any cubs this is a certain way to get charged. People have survived bear attacks by playing dead (turtle) and this is certainly better advice than trying to fight, duh. As far as avoiding bears in the first place…many people I know do ride with bells on their bikes and ring them regularly when in bear country.
Response:
What are you supposed to do when you come upon a BEAR in the woods. Has this ever happend to anyone ? Anton
