Biking with bears

Photo: Lido Vizzutti

CredLido Vizzutti for The New York Times

From the NY Times:

The death of a ranger, Brad Treat, in 2016 was a wake-up call for grizzly bear biologists.

Mr. Treat, an avid mountain biker, was zipping along [on his bike] at about 25 miles an hour through dense forest near Glacier National Park in the middle of a summer afternoon when he collided with a large male grizzly bear.

Apparently startled, the bear reacted defensively and quickly killed him. A witness couldn’t see what happened but could hear it. “I heard a thud and an ‘argh,’” the unnamed witness told investigators. 

Then the bear made a noise “like it was hurt.” The bear disappeared before emergency responders arrived.

Dr. Christopher Servheen, who led the committee that investigated Mr. Treat’s death, said the accident prompted him to speak out publicly against recreational sports in the areas where grizzlies live...

See also Keep bikes off our wilderness trails and  Severe street and mountain bicycling injuries in adults.

Rob Rogers