Dirt2

I've got my own ideas on this one. I don't have anything against grizzlies, but I personally carry a handgun. I can't see the pepper spray thing.

First, I learned in the military that if I really put my mind to it, I could function pretty well with a faceful of CS gas. It sounds silly, but a couple of us got the bright idea to toss the masks aside and train ourselves to deal with it. Your nose and eyes will run like crazy, but it can be dealt with. If I can learn that, why can't a grizzly? I think they're a lot tougher than me!

Second, you hear things like, "If you're not proficient with a handgun, go with pepper spray." Well I'm sorry, but who the he--is proficient with pepper spray? I've held the cans in a store, and they seem somewhat complex to me. Does anyone buy a dozen cans, then go out and use 11 of them for practice? At$50/can that adds up fast!If you just think about it for a bit, correctly deploying that pepper spray is no sure thing in the stress of a bear attack.

Third, hitting a charging bear with a pistol is only really difficult if you stay upright on your hind legs so you're shooting down on it. This seems so obvious to me that I wonder why no one ever mentions it. One should simply hit the ground as he draws his pistol, then shoot the bear from a sitting position. Doing so brings you right down to the bear's face level, thereby eliminating the problem of lead on a moving target. Effectively, in terms of hitting it in the head, it becomes a stationary target. I drill myself mentally on this idea, trying to make it an automatic reaction to drop to the ground if I ever have the misfortune to get in trouble with a bear.

Fourth, like all new ideas on this website, I'm sure I'll be ridiculed for this post. Oh well, I can handle it.