Sudden Bear Encounter While Mountain Biking

[Irelander]

Glad to hear you made it home safe that day. I'd have to change my soiled biking shorts after that encounter.

I'd rethink the bear bell. We used them on our packs when we went hiking in the Rockies years ago. Near the end of our trip we ran into a park ranger who advised us not to use bear bells. Seems the pleasant ringing sound intrigues bear to investigate the sound. She said studies showed they were not as good of an idea as was originally thought. That was in Glacier NP in 2014. I don't know if the studies tell a different story nowadays. Something to think about.

[KneeShot]

PIG shooting gloves might add some dexterity and still protect your hands.

I’d also recommend Bear spray on your person, or at least mounted to the frame of your bike for quick draw access.

Another bear w/ out cubs might be more curious. Some bear spray up the nose might be enough of a deterrent, before the firearm.

I live in Anchorage, Alaska. We get black bears (and crazies) on our public use trails. Biking Around town it’s bearspray and a g26. Biking in the real woods it’s bear spray, a .44 mag or 45 Super….and bear bells.

Thanks for sharing your encounter!

[Shawn Dodson]

Good work, but just practice shooting with your gloves on. Trust me.

I'll give it a try. The gloves I was wearing have impact protection on the backs of the fingers and padded palms, which increases bulk. I wear them primarily to keep my fingers from being beaten up by branches and vines while I ride, and from being scraped up when I take a spill. I assumed I'd have time to take them off as a threatening situation developed but this one unfolded much more quickly than I'd anticipated. I ripped them off so I could acquire a familiar grip that would give me confidence in my ability to shoot accurately.

[Shawn Dodson]

Upgrade to a Glock 10mm?

I like having 16 rounds of 9mm that allows me to make quick and accurate follow-up shots. I've taken many courses and shot thousands of rounds through this gen 3 Glock 19; I'm very proficient and confident with it.

I wasn't apprehensive about the caliber I was carrying, I was apprehensive about my ability to land good hits if the sow charged at me. The only training I had that would be similar to this situation would be the Tueller Drill against a knife attack.

My pistol is loaded with Federal 147gr HST. Will it penetrate the cranium of a charging bear if I should happen to achieve such a hit? The only gauge I have is the FBI's windshield glass test.

If I make any change it might be to 9mm Underwood Extreme Penetrator for mountain biking.

[Shawn Dodson]

Glad to hear you made it home safe that day. I'd have to change my soiled biking shorts after that encounter.

I'd rethink the bear bell. We used them on our packs when we went hiking in the Rockies years ago. Near the end of our trip we ran into a park ranger who advised us not to use bear bells. Seems the pleasant ringing sound intrigues bear to investigate the sound. She said studies showed they were not as good of an idea as was originally thought. That was in Glacier NP in 2014. I don't know if the studies tell a different story nowadays. Something to think about.

Yeah, the bear bell was a suggestion from a friend, plus it would seem to let hikers know I'm approaching them from behind or I'm just around a blind curve. In the area where I encountered the bear I'm also going to use the referee whistle periodically as I pass through.

I'm hoping this was just a one in a million encounter and not a regular thing. If not, then hopefully the bear will become familiar with me just passing though when it hears my whistle. I don't know if it'll will hibernate or not, given the mild winters we have here in Western Washington on the Kitsap Peninsula.

[GJM]

Congratulations for experiencing the wonder of bears. Sounds like you were recreating in the same spot a bear was going about her business.

A few years back, a forest service employee was riding his mountain bike near Kalispell, collided with a grizzly, and was fatally mauled. Some noise that alerts bears to your arrival might help avoid surprising them.

Unlike hunting bears with heavy caliber rifles, bear defense with a service pistol is a finesse game, where the goal is for you and the bear to be unscathed. I would be thinking about a series of progressive actions, where shooting the brar's brain is way down the continuum.

[Flamingo]

Yeah, the bear bell was a suggestion from a friend, plus it would seem to let hikers know I'm approaching them from behind or I'm just around a blind curve. In the area where I encountered the bear I'm also going to use the referee whistle periodically as I pass through.

I'm hoping this was just a one in a million encounter and not a regular thing. If not, then hopefully the bear will become familiar with me just passing though when it hears my whistle. I don't know if it'll will hibernate or not, given the mild winters we have here in Western Washington on the Kitsap Peninsula.

I am just south of you and I had this momma bear and her cub in the yard.



Here are some visuals of their trespass.



ETA: Here is another yard bear. I usually just yell at them and they run away. I was slightly concerned with MB and the cub, but I did have my G19.

[CraigS]

I like having 16 rounds of 9mm that allows me to make quick and accurate follow-up shots. I've taken many courses and shot thousands of rounds through this gen 3 Glock 19; I'm very proficient and confident with it.

I wasn't apprehensive about the caliber I was carrying, I was apprehensive about my ability to land good hits if the sow charged at me. The only training I had that would be similar to this situation would be the Tueller Drill against a knife attack.

My pistol is loaded with Federal 147gr HST. Will it penetrate the cranium of a charging bear if I should happen to achieve such a hit? The only gauge I have is the FBI's windshield glass test.

If I make any change it might be to 9mm Underwood Extreme Penetrator for mountain biking.

Shawn looks to me like you have a lot of experience and have given a lot of thought to this. I had no idea of any of that when I made my post. My SIL, who is way more knowledgeable than I, got a Glock 10mm for exactly that contingency when he is out w/ his son or family. He carries it in a chest pack which seems to work really well. I will risk one more thought. I have read of people loading their mag w/ alternating ammo types. HST alternating w/ Penetrator.

[Shotgun]

I would have liked the original post twice if I could have. Good story, if not a good experience. Just curious, Shawn, did you happen to be wearing a watch that monitors heart rate? It would be interesting to know if your heart rate spiked significantly during the encounter.

[MickAK]

My pistol is loaded with Federal 147gr HST. Will it penetrate the cranium of a charging bear if I should happen to achieve such a hit? The only gauge I have is the FBI's windshield glass test.

If I make any change it might be to 9mm Underwood Extreme Penetrator for mountain biking.

Probably. If you're enough on your game that you're making skull hits you're probably going to be fine anyways. I think you're much more likely to encounter a people problem in that area than a bear problem.

She probably chased the cub up the tree when you were pulling up then decided you weren't a problem and told the cub to vamoose. If I see a cub coming down a tree I'm pretty calm about it because if momma was stressed it wouldn't be going in that direction. If I see one going up I'm pretty keyed up looking for the other one that didn't listen as good.