Bear protection, who carries what?

[roy]

Following on from the story about the woman killed by the bear, who carries any form of protection incase they come accross a bear, for example, bear bells, bear spray, knifes (not that thats going to do much), gun, etc.

[BareFootMeshback]

Just a bear bell.

[trail worker]

bear bells won't do anything for ya, sorry. Bears have bad hearing and often can hardly hear the bell. When and if they do, they usually come over to see what the sound is since their hearing is so bad they can't really distinguish what it is, and they get curious. I'd advise against carrying bear spray as well--the chance of falling on a can of bear spray and temporarily macing yourself and your buddies is alot greater than running into an angry bear. Ive caught a whiff of bear spray after we unloaded a can once, and it's ugly stuff--your throat and eyes close right up. If you were to fall on a can and puncture it, you'd be up sh*t creek for a good while, you'd have a hard time making it out of the bush on your own.
Bottom line, just make noise when your riding, talk loudly and let out the odd shout as your ripping down to be on the safe side.

[Danksi]

....talk loudly and let out the odd shout as your ripping down to be on the safe side.

Lots of 'WAAAHOOOOOOO' :)

[Heathen]

This is what I carry in my bag. I have not had to use it yet.
http://www.olegvolk.net/olegv/newsite/gungames/mac10girl_s.jpg

[trail worker]

Lots of 'WAAAHOOOOOOO' :)
exactly!! :D

[Knnn]

I just ride with someone slower than me, that's my protection!

Do not trust that a dog will make you safer. The opposite may be true. In some instances the dog will go "oh look, what fun, something to chase and bark at! The dog will then end up running back to you with bear in tow when it finds out it's a big mistake to chase a bear.

[drummer_dil]

not me, but then again i could take a bear down

[Wayne P]

Following on from the story about the woman killed by the bear, who carries any form of protection incase they come accross a bear, for example, bear bells, bear spray, knifes (not that thats going to do much), gun, etc.

A knife is actually quite effective. You still might get mauled, but it could mean the difference in surviving or not. I have heard of stories of people in the bush fending off bears and cougars with knives.

Bear spray is a great idea to carry. Stow it so its protected but somewhat easy to get at.

Bear bells = dinner bell.

[KenN]

I carry my common sense. It's with me at all times.

Kn.

[TheGiggler]

i'll carry bear bangers in areas where i think there's a strong chance of running into one. just shoot them up, not at the bear ;)

otherwise as I think KenN was getting at, just try to stay aware of your surroundings at all times when out there ...

[Rat]

I just make sure I ride with Korean guys, those bears love those Koreans, I think it has something to do with the kimchi.

[skifreak]

A knife is actually quite effective. You still might get mauled, but it could mean the difference in surviving or not. I have heard of stories of people in the bush fending off bears and cougars with knives.

Bear spray is a great idea to carry. Stow it so its protected but somewhat easy to get at.

Bear bells = dinner bell.

bear spray is quite ineffective.

It's only going to spray 10-15 feet at most - it's not going to work if the wind is in front of you, the bear will then be pissed off and keep running in the same direction to where it last saw you.

Best protection of course is a gun, or bangers, making loud noises and common sense.

[Lady Gravity]

bear spray is quite ineffective.

It's only going to spray 10-15 feet at most - it's not going to work if the wind is in front of you, the bear will then be pissed off and keep running in the same direction to where it last saw you.

Best protection of course is a gun, or bangers, making loud noises and common sense.


you should ask davem about how effective bear spray is :lol: i think he'd say "highly effective".

i have a large bell on my bike (it's pretty loud and annoying) and i yodel. i'm going to pick up a knife and some bear spray this week.

[heckler]

This is what I carry in my bag. I have not had to use it yet.
http://www.olegvolk.net/olegv/newsite/gungames/mac10girl_s.jpg


she's cute!

[heckler]

You can tell the difference between black bear and grizzly shit --

Black bears shit has berries and smells like poo.

Grizzly shit has bells in it and smells like pepper.

[Wayne P]

bear spray is quite ineffective.

It's only going to spray 10-15 feet at most - it's not going to work if the wind is in front of you, the bear will then be pissed off and keep running in the same direction to where it last saw you.


I have heard otherwise from reputable sources, but whatever. You've gotta use close up anyway, so....

[TheGiggler]

no doubt. the only real issue i've ever heard about the bear spray is trying to use it against the wind. otherwise, if you're close enough to a bear to think about spraying it, i'm sure you'll be quite glad you had it on hand ... i've never heard of sprayed bears pursuing people.

[Wayne P]

Plus, if spray helps you surivive an attack vs you becoming a bear's lunch, then I think that would be quite successful. If you are close enough to use spray then that bear might be on top of you regardless.

[trail worker]

bear spray definately works, just it can work well on you, too..if you do carry it, be careful as to how you store it, as falling on it would be a world of pain.

[shonky]

Given how potentially dangerous black bears can be it's surprising how we've gotten used to seeing them around Whistler Bike Park. I mean you rarely get a day in the park without seeing a bear. And carrying a knife or a gun around in Whistler doesn't seem appropriate somehow.

Or do you think we get "safety in numbers" up there?

[eknomf]

I saw a guy riding at whistler with his bear spray attached to the front of his pack right on the chest strap. The nozzle was less than 1 foot from his face. That is a great example of how not to carry your bear spray and end up macing yourself instead.

As far as bear protection the best thing to have is correct knowledge of what to do in the situation. After that, I think if you are planning on riding in the forest bear spray is the best option. The wind is typically low, you probably won't see the bear until it's close and if you fire a bear banger over your head it will probably bounce off a branch and send the bear somewhere you don't want it to go. I think a gun is basically the worst idea because few people are good enough to actually stop a bear, the chances of needing a gun to get out of a situation are incredibly low unless you are being careless around bears and riding with a loaded gun could be quite dangerous in itself.

[the flying moose]

i'll carry bear bangers in areas where i think there's a strong chance of running into one. just shoot them up, not at the bear ;)


i was working in the bush and one of the doofuses i was working with saw a bear and fired a bear banger. however he fired it in a nice arc over the bears head and sent him running towards us. we had to fire a couple of shots from the shotgun into the air to scare him away.

[Kossinnd]

If it is not encouraged to carry a bear bell because the strange sound may make the bear curious, wouldn't yelling and yelping do the same thing and cause the bear to come and see as well? or is it the steady, same sound of the bell that doesn't scare them, but the random yelling and noises that does?

[Niggz]

Bells are similar to birds and such. I was taught the most effective thing is to clap your hands loudly as it is not a natural sound for a bear to hear. Be sure to check the effective distance on your bear spray can along with how long it will spary for (usually only 20 seconds or so). 10 feet is pretty close. If you have a knife, go for the eyes and nose.

[siliconmunky]

she's cute!

but you can only see her from behind........oooooh....I seee, hahah

[~mike*bodnaruk~]

This is what I carry in my bag. I have not had to use it yet.
http://www.olegvolk.net/olegv/newsite/gungames/mac10girl_s.jpg


Please tell me thats not a mac...

[kalisto]

no doubt. the only real issue i've ever heard about the bear spray is trying to use it against the wind. otherwise, if you're close enough to a bear to think about spraying it, i'm sure you'll be quite glad you had it on hand ... i've never heard of sprayed bears pursuing people.

How windy does it get in a dense forest? I'd like to think people are aware enough not to run into bears in the alpine...

[gooch]

Please tell me thats not a mac...

definately looks like an Ingram

Running joke when I was logging:

How can you tell a bear by it's poop?

Black bears-full of berry seeds and smells of grass

Grizzly Bears-full of bear bells and smells like pepper spray

[freakonaleash]

definately looks like an Ingram

Running joke when I was logging:

How can you tell a bear by it's poop?

Black bears-full of berry seeds and smells of grass

Grizzly Bears-full of bear bells and smells like pepper spray

Heckler posted that already n00b

[roy]

i was working in the bush and one of the doofuses i was working with saw a bear and fired a bear banger. however he fired it in a nice arc over the bears head and sent him running towards us. we had to fire a couple of shots from the shotgun into the air to scare him away.

That guy's a prime candidate for a darwin award.

All good information though. Useful thread.

[Heathen]

Please tell me thats not a mac...

You are correct sir.

That is my gat yo.

[HIBuLlitT]

I mean you rarely get a day in the park without seeing a bear.

Funny, the only bears I've seen at WBP were while on the lift. I have seen a couple
coyotes though (almost gapped one coming out of CIU, I stopped, it looked at me
then turned and ate a chipmunk). I do go in the late summer though when I go.

[derwood]

what do I carry?

A box of condoms........big condoms.

[CraigH]

Posted this to Yahoo mtn bike group, but figured it is applicable here too.


Hi:

Bear Safety page from BC Parks:
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/misc/bears/bearsaf.html

Cougar Safety page from BC Parks:
http://wlapwww.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/cougsf.htm

Personally, I'm more worried about cougars than bears. There was a cougar up in Whistler a few weeks ago that started chasing cyclists and golfers around the town, but was taken out by conservation officers.
http://www.whistlerquestion.com/madison%5CWQuestion.nsf/0/658A51A069291468882573160071FB18?OpenDocument

[dudski]

bears you can usually see/hear coming....but a cougar. now that's why you don't ride alone in the woods.

[Loopie]

Spray...even if it doses you both...better than nothin...$8
A knife in your hand...if you keep your senses and use it...better than nothin...$20

A consumer public that is unnecessarily afraid of bear encounters...Priceless.

[2bit]

Flares, not the loud bangers but the red hot, glowing chunks of fire. Shoot that directly at the bear and it will run away really fast.

[kalisto]

Spray...even if it doses you both...better than nothin...$8
A knife in your hand...if you keep your senses and use it...better than nothin...$20

A consumer public that is unnecessarily afraid of bear encounters...Priceless.


This is true... I've ran into quite a few bear that just chill out and eat their berries... Just don't disturb them, and they shouldn't disturb you.

[shirk]

who carries any form of protection incase they come accross a bear

Have you seen the 2008 Dianese?

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/eppp-archive/100/201/300/cm/html/2001/v08n02/vol4/no20/suit.jpg

Q3CzYw5-qdA

My bike usually makes enough noise to scare away all woodland animals.

[mzx]

This is what I carry in my bag. I have not had to use it yet.
http://www.olegvolk.net/olegv/newsite/gungames/mac10girl_s.jpg


And she fits in your bag??? Doesn't it get too heavy to ride with?

[Random Hero]

Bottom line, just make noise when your riding, talk loudly and let out the odd shout as your ripping down to be on the safe side.


That and common sense is key.

If you come across a bear just stand there and admire him, most cases he will just mosey on without a care, in extreme cases they might charge you but I have only had that happen once. Too bad a bikes faster than a bear. I've seen hundreds of bears and only been rushed once.

[patrolskid]

did you just say a bike is faster than a bear ?

you might be able to pass through a certain , given area faster than a bear can react to your presence , but if it came down to a flat out pursuit , you wouldn't have a chance .

fortunately , bears will tolerate our presence to a large degree , and you would have to either pose a great threat to either the bear or her cubs , or interrupt one over a kill or food source , to provoke an attack .

for the most part , if you don't bug them , they won't bug you .

[Desloc]

Phased Plasma rifle in 40 watt range...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJRLoGYtkEM

Des

[evanius]

... i've never heard of sprayed bears pursuing people.

I have...... when I worked in forestry the company put out a policy that if people carry bear spray they must carry 2 cans, as there had been several incidents where eng crews had been threatened by a bear that had just been sprayed; they were finding that aggressive bears would sometimes follow people and approach again as the workers tried to leave the area.

Everyone carried bear bangers too but they also had problems. Shooting over the bear was one; the other is that if the bear does not associate pain with the noise it will lose its effect. Often it will scare the bear away but if not, its useless.

Likewise, carrying a gun is just a noisemaker unless you actually shoot the bear. Some unlucky bastard found out the hard way that a shotgun carried over your shoulder is useless when you;'re knocked on your back, so most people I work with got handgun permits and bought 44 magnums. Even that would be hard to take down a bear with, I never heard of it attempted. You'd never be able to get a handgun permit except for work.

I came across bears myself frequently and never used any of these things, nor have I ever been charged. The best defence is to not put yourself in risky positions and know how to behave if you do meet a bear. Bears - while curious- will normally leave the area when they know you're there, which is why it helps to make noise, and stay aware in or away from areas where bears are active.

[HIBuLlitT]

There's a huge Kodiak stuffed at the Coast Guard air station (or it was 20 years
ago when I was there last). The story they told me was some CG guys were
out fishing when they were charged so he shot and shot when the bear was
close to point blank it dropped, almost on the guy shooting, a 44mag.

Don't bears have like a really thick and broad breast bone? I was told it was pure
luck he was able to drop it head on.

It's the cougars that give me the heebee jeebees. Silent, fast, I hate giving
my cat a bath, I couldn't imagine dealing with one thats 150lbs more.:S

[cerealkilla']

If you really want to know what to do when you encounter a bear, check the Get Bear Smart Society in Whistler. I've had dozens of encounters with bears, including many close ones, and a 20 foot encounter with a 350 pound Grizz this spring in Squamish.
You need to think of two main things when evaluating the situation

Is the animal acting defensive or aggressive?

Is it a Grizzly or a Black?

SOme people say that the difference between Grizz and Blacks doesn't matter, but consider this - Grizz evolved in the open plains and developed an instinctive reaction to attack in defense due to the lack of hiding spots in open ground. Blacks evolved in the boreal forest, and have developed the instinct to climb when frightened. THere are alwasy exception to the rules, but these generalizations tend to ring true.

If a bear is defensive, guarding cubs, or food (like a carcass or berry bushes). Back away slowly, talk calmly, and ready any deterrent you may have (ie, stick or spray or uzi). If it charges, it is most likely a bluff charge. A bear bluff charging will have its ears UP, as it is still unsure about you. THe best option during a charge is to hold you ground, look big, and try not to crap yourself. They will usually pull up or veer off about 10-20 feet short of you. After a bluhh charge, just keep backing out of the area slowly, the bear does not want you there and is trying to tell you to screw off.
However, if the ears are down, bluff time is over. However, a defensive bear will seldom carry through to attack unless it sees no other option. Defensive posturing often includes the bear turning sideways to show you how big it is, or standing up to get a better look at you.

Truth is most people won't look at the ears, but wahtever you do, don't run. If you run, you are prey. Stand your ground, and prepare to fight. If you have to fight with a stick or something, don't swing wildly, Make short jabbing motions towards the eyes. Any swing will open you up, those suckers are fast!

If a bear is aggressive, if it seems to be trying to creep up on you or following you, do not act calm and back awway slowly. Make yourself look big, make loud angry noises and let it know you are not food! If the bear thinks there is a risk of getting hurt, it will not attack usually. Keep your bike in front of you, hold something over your head. You can even try banging metal on rock - they hate the sound. If ANY bear does attack you in aggression, fight back! Even if it is a grizzly, fight back with anything you have. The ONLY TIME TO PLAY DEAD is if it is a grizzly defending its young or its feeding area. A defensive grizzly will only attack long enough to neutralize the threat. Stories you hear of people playing dead after being hunted down in aggression are the exception to the norm, usually if they hunt you they will kill you and eat you (guts first).

Remember bears behave in predictable ways as most animals do, but give them room to be unpredictable. If one blocks you trail, find another route, go back, or wait for it to clear.

Bear spray on a bike, if you have time to use it and don't paln on falling down, is probably okay. I hear people say it doesn't work, but have these people actually seen it not work. I've seen it work, and it works pretty darned good by my books. However, it does also work on people a little too well, and I;ve been burned myself. My buddy slipped while hiking and knocked the top of his and it blistered his back up fiercely, and I got gacked just from being within 10 feet.

As for knives, you don't want to be close enough to use a knife. A good strong stick that can be used as a spear is your best bet, jab for the eyes!

For better info, seriously check the GTet BEar SMart people, Government sources seem to be outdated sometimes.

Peace to our ursine cousins.

[trail worker]

I have...... when I worked in forestry the company put out a policy that if people carry bear spray they must carry 2 cans, as there had been several incidents where eng crews had been threatened by a bear that had just been sprayed; they were finding that aggressive bears would sometimes follow people and approach again as the workers tried to leave the area.

Everyone carried bear bangers too but they also had problems. Shooting over the bear was one; the other is that if the bear does not associate pain with the noise it will lose its effect. Often it will scare the bear away but if not, its useless.

Likewise, carrying a gun is just a noisemaker unless you actually shoot the bear. Some unlucky bastard found out the hard way that a shotgun carried over your shoulder is useless when you;'re knocked on your back, so most people I work with got handgun permits and bought 44 magnums. Even that would be hard to take down a bear with, I never heard of it attempted. You'd never be able to get a handgun permit except for work.

I came across bears myself frequently and never used any of these things, nor have I ever been charged. The best defence is to not put yourself in risky positions and know how to behave if you do meet a bear. Bears - while curious- will normally leave the area when they know you're there, which is why it helps to make noise, and stay aware in or away from areas where bears are active.

Enter the defender:
http://www.maverickarms.com/pages/images/guns/31046big.gif

we keep one of these around camp if we're in bear country, and it has had to be used. A few years ago a couple guy's I worked with had to take down a 400-500lb black from within 5 meters since it had been ransacking camp for 3 days while they were at work. Nothing like coming back to camp to find that a bears ransacked your food cache, tent and shat all over the place. One guy had a cheap 12g. which jammed when the bear was within that 5m critical distance. Luckily there were 2 guns in camp, and the other guy had to empty all 5 rounds (alternating buckshot/slugs) from the aforementioned defender to stop the bear. After they had killed it, they checked the damage. You could barely see where the buckshot had hit the bear, and it *barely* penetrated past 1/4" or so of flesh. The slugs, on the other hand are what stopped the bear dead in it's tracks.
Ive shot said defender with a pistol grip, and it's freaking sweet. I don't carry a gun in the bush when I'm working though, but it IS nice to have around camp when your working in the middle of nowhere. The last camp I worked in was in a slide chute on the backside of a mountain called "grizzly mountain". Luckily I didn't need to find out why it was named that.

[trail worker]

There's a huge Kodiak stuffed at the Coast Guard air station (or it was 20 years
the kodiak is an american myth, there's not really such a thing. A kodiak is just a grizzly with a glorified name, just to clear up any misconceptions.

[Knnn]

There's a huge Kodiak stuffed at the Coast Guard air station (or it was 20 years
ago when I was there last). The story they told me was some CG guys were
out fishing when they were charged so he shot and shot when the bear was
close to point blank it dropped, almost on the guy shooting, a 44mag.

Don't bears have like a really thick and broad breast bone? I was told it was pure
luck he was able to drop it head on.

It's the cougars that give me the heebee jeebees. Silent, fast, I hate giving
my cat a bath, I couldn't imagine dealing with one thats 150lbs more.:S

Some chopper pilot I've flown with in Northern BC carry 44's and they swear by them. They have a lot of stopping power and do a lot of damage, especially with a small cross cut in the nose of the bullet. Their argument was that rifles are to long for close in and tend to punch holes through the target, where as the 44 slug does not and transfers all it's energy into the target. A shotty with a single solid slug also does the same thing.

[HIBuLlitT]

the kodiak is an american myth, there's not really such a thing. A kodiak is just a grizzly with a glorified name, just to clear up any misconceptions.

Duh, but it was on Kodiak so they call it a Kodiak. It's only a Kodiak on Kodiak.
I know it's a brown bear or Grizzly or Kodiak. That was not the point of my post.
Although they do have thier own latin name Ursus arctos middendorffi, Grizzly is
Ursus arctos horribilis, but yes they are still Ursus arctos (brown bear). It is mostly
just a ecotype difference as opossed to being a different species and they do
trend larger than their mainland cousins.

Thanks for playing...

[trail worker]

Thanks for playing...
:???:
Alot of people think that kodiak's are a completely different type of bear, just wanted to clear it up for anyone interested. Guess ya took it a little personally, no big deal.

[HIBuLlitT]

:???:

Sorry, had a reaaaal long day yesterday...:beer:

[gooch]

My neighbour when I worked on a ranch as a kid was a texas ranger, and was always strapped when working, .357 mag revolver, he took down a grizz when it reared on him, when they do that they expose their heart and he put a round right through it, they is sometimes a patch of slightly different coloured fur around where their heart is

Bullets matter as much as the gun, while I'd rather be shooting .44 than .357 if a bear is coming at you, the load and type of bullet will matter quite a bit, scoring the bullet with a criss cross is stuff you see in movies, just shoot hollowpoints, there is some truth to rifle rounds going through, but as much as that, if you are going to have to shoot a bear defensively, it is most likely going to be very close, and rifles are not great for that

The shot gun with alternate buck and sabot loads is a good choice, if it has a pistol grip it is pretty easy to shoot at close range, the reason for the buck would be to hopefully hit it in the face and blind it on as charge, you really can't expect to kill a big griz with anything less than deer slug though

All that being said, the bears around here are beautiful, and so far to my experience very non-threatening and able to coexist with us, I would hope that people will take better care of their trash so as to stop attracting them, ultimately causing their deaths, the little cub that got put down the other day was a tragedy. While we may get very used to seeing bears around as we are biking all the time (or just sitting in your backyard) it's nice to remember that that is a priviledge many people would be very jealous of

[kalisto]

Some good info going on in here. Thanks all.

[cerealkilla']

Bears do NOT rear up when they are attacking. Standing on the hind legs is a way of identifying what is in front of them by smelling or gaining sight lines. Only due to mythological garbage like Grizzly Adams, and other hollywood mis-portrayals have people come to think that a bear rears up to attack. Think about it, if the bear is trained for the camera, it has not been trained to attack, they get them to stand up because it is not an agressive behaviour and something they can safely do for the camera, then they add in the silly vicious sound effects later. People need to seperate fact from fiction so they can understand animals better.


Chances are your Texas friend either told a long yarn, or shot a bear that was simply curious. When a bear attacks it comes in headfirst swatting with short poweful motins, or seizing things in the jaws.

Needless to say, seeing that bikers are not going to start carrying guns, its beside the point.






My neighbour when I worked on a ranch as a kid was a texas ranger, and was always strapped when working, .357 mag revolver, he took down a grizz when it reared on him, when they do that they expose their heart and he put a round right through it, they is sometimes a patch of slightly different coloured fur around where their heart is

Bullets matter as much as the gun, while I'd rather be shooting .44 than .357 if a bear is coming at you, the load and type of bullet will matter quite a bit, scoring the bullet with a criss cross is stuff you see in movies, just shoot hollowpoints, there is some truth to rifle rounds going through, but as much as that, if you are going to have to shoot a bear defensively, it is most likely going to be very close, and rifles are not great for that

The shot gun with alternate buck and sabot loads is a good choice, if it has a pistol grip it is pretty easy to shoot at close range, the reason for the buck would be to hopefully hit it in the face and blind it on as charge, you really can't expect to kill a big griz with anything less than deer slug though

All that being said, the bears around here are beautiful, and so far to my experience very non-threatening and able to coexist with us, I would hope that people will take better care of their trash so as to stop attracting them, ultimately causing their deaths, the little cub that got put down the other day was a tragedy. While we may get very used to seeing bears around as we are biking all the time (or just sitting in your backyard) it's nice to remember that that is a priviledge many people would be very jealous of

[HIBuLlitT]

Needless to say, seeing that bikers are not going to start carrying guns, its beside the point.

Considering the frequency of my crashes, carrying a gun would be very dangerous
indeed...:S

[gooch]

Bears do NOT rear up when they are attacking. Standing on the hind legs is a way of identifying what is in front of them by smelling or gaining sight lines. Only due to mythological garbage like Grizzly Adams, and other hollywood mis-portrayals have people come to think that a bear rears up to attack. Think about it, if the bear is trained for the camera, it has not been trained to attack, they get them to stand up because it is not an agressive behaviour and something they can safely do for the camera, then they add in the silly vicious sound effects later. People need to seperate fact from fiction so they can understand animals better.


Chances are your Texas friend either told a long yarn, or shot a bear that was simply curious. When a bear attacks it comes in headfirst swatting with short poweful motins, or seizing things in the jaws.

Needless to say, seeing that bikers are not going to start carrying guns, its beside the point.

I know the party line, however, it was quite common to have bears come and take away newborns during calving season, thta's where he came upon the bear, whatever the reason for it rearing, it was close enough that he wasn't going to wait and see what it's intentions were, from rear to charge 40-50 feet away is a mere amount of seconds with a bear that size.

PS, this didn't happen in texas, it was BC, if it was texas the bear would have been 40 feet tall cause as we know, everything is bigger in texas

[Dropsonde]

carry an M-80 or something mad loud

they used it at Whistler a few times when the bears ran into the skatepark

[Battlecat]

My 2 fists, and I am ready to bring the lighting and the thunder!

[gooch]

My 2 fists, and I am ready to bring the lighting and the thunder!

ShgXC62a09o

[Cooper]

bear protection? I live in whistler and never had to actually defend myself biking from a bear. I had to defend myself from a bear when I wasnt biking, but that's a whole 'nother story.

I always ride trails in groups and we try to make a lot of noise and stuff like that. I'm not too worried about bears. Maybe in the future, bears will become trained to attack who knows.

But all im worried about are them cougars...

[Farmer]

maybe its because I do the majority of my riding on burke, and all the bears are in the blueberry fields at minnehkada (if you ever want to see proof that bear, deer and humans can co-exist, do down there one evening and take a walk around) anyways, I've never seen a bear while biking. seen em while hiking, and they have never seemed to give a damn that I was there, mostly just take a look and then walk off. I dont plan on carrying anything to protect myself from bears anytime soon.

[aShogunNamedMarcus]

Flares, not the loud bangers but the red hot, glowing chunks of fire. Shoot that directly at the bear and it will run away really fast.

And possibly cause a forest fire.

[CraigH]

We ran into a bear on Comfortably Numb on Saturday, just after the bench with a view.

We had just stopped to regroup, the first guy (006_007 for those of you who know him) rolled about 20 feet around the corner and found himself within 10 feet of a big male black eatting huckle berries. He starts talking to the bear, bear headed off the trail about 20 feet, but that was about all the bear could do as he was up against a rock face. The 4 of us moved down the trail as a group keeping an eye on him.

Nice looking big male with a collar (radio as it had a box under his chin?). As he had a collar we figured the bear was probably used to being around people.

He probably went back to eating berries after we passed.

A short time later a father and son passed us, they hadn't seen the bear. The bear was probably within 20 feet of them and they didn't even notice it.

[Wayne P]

I dont plan on carrying anything to protect myself from bears anytime soon.

Sounds a lot like:
- "Why wear a seatbelt when the chances of me getting into an accident are so low?"
- "I don't understand why my pit bull took a bite out of your leg? He's not like that."

;)

[chupacabra]

Whoever said that bears cannot hear well should update their big book of bear facts. Bears can hear much better than people, particularily at higher frequencies, so they can hear that bell just fine. Whether or not that scares them is another story. Packing spray or a gun or whatever wouldn't help either because whenever I stop and get my camera or phone out of my pack it takes so long that a bear would have my legs ripped off by then. It seems like bears attacking bikers is pretty rare occurance. Should we prepare for terrorist attacks on the trail too? I agree with the guy that said pack common sense and if you are going to worry about something it should be those damn sneaky cougars, but that is pretty rare too (and not the kind you find at the Longhorn!).

Chupacabra...

[Aeropusher]

what do I carry?

A box of condoms........big condoms.

............not into bearbacking?? (sp).......





...come on...you had to expect someone to say it....

[Lady Gravity]

maybe its because I do the majority of my riding on burke, and all the bears are in the blueberry fields at minnehkada (if you ever want to see proof that bear, deer and humans can co-exist, do down there one evening and take a walk around) anyways, I've never seen a bear while biking. seen em while hiking, and they have never seemed to give a damn that I was there, mostly just take a look and then walk off. I dont plan on carrying anything to protect myself from bears anytime soon.

just a heads up...i ride burke quite a bit, usually in the late evening after work, and saw one a week ago on the gravel road on the hike up. so no, they're not always in the berry fields at minnehkada :)

[brent_14]

im honestly not willing to carry a multi-tool so im pretty sure bear protection is out of the question

[Hack On Wheels]

im honestly not willing to carry a multi-tool so im pretty sure bear protection is out of the question

:lol:



Well, I carry around a fairly full pack usually, but I have never carried any bear protection. I guess my protection is always riding in a group.

[roy]

Some bear chat in the woods.........

"Any you guys carry any form of protection incase you come accross those annoying humans, do you pretend you never seen them, tried eating one once but didn't like the taste, just rear up and try and scare them a bit, give them a bit of a chase, want a shot on their sweet bike, prefer eating berries. Any advice, Cheers, Gentle Ben"