Starving Bear Attack

[Tombo]

Under high stress, short term memory is altered, due to hormone releases I believe. ( I read an article about this once some time ago.) What really happened is probably much different than what he reported. Gaps in memory (caused by the stress hormones) are usually just filled in. The spin from the journalist adding his preconceived thoughts finished the story. IMO

[DEDWUF]

F & G provided so much overwhelming info, how it squared, age, tooth condition, aprox weight etc, Ha. Almost a half page of info/data.....

I think this would have been a prime specimen to autopsy, look for 'raw tooth nerves', festered porcupine quills in mouth or body, old bullet wounds, poorly healed broken bones , etc. Looks like F&g could have trucked the entire carcass easily.

Bring in TV's Doctor D?, medical examiner, .....

This is the kind of info I'd like to know, esp. when its obvious the bear was in 'poor' condition. And 18 yrs. old is not exceptionally old. I've seen numerous 20-25-28+ bears that were in great condition, yes, obvious worn/broken teeth, healed bones, sometimes quills in the fore legs/mouth/face , etc.
If any of you know if F&G did any further examination of this bear, it would be interesting to hear about any 'other' conditions this bear had.

And to those with similar or near similar experiences, you know how a millisecond charge of adrenaline can 'fix' your 'reaction' time.

In ending thought, the dog knew he had it made, owner behind him, and 4 fast legs to propel himself. And as most Alaskan bear hunters know, it can be beneficial to bring along a 'companion' somewhat slower than you.

[Sollybug]

This is the third bear attack on that road in two years. The houses down that road report bears all the time now. If that would have been any of the kids who live down that road they would be dead. And I dont think its due to people building houses in bear habitat as there never were bears in that area in the past. I think there are just a lot more bears around now as even moose hunters and black bear baiters are having a lot more brown bear encounters on the Kenai. I think the woman attacked in the paved parking lot of the Princess Lodge pretty much exemplifies this. The permit hunting seasons are a joke and need to be greatly increased to keep bear populations to a more reasonable level....

[travelers]

The gun jam would most likely be a bullet jumping the crimp in a .454.

[phorwath]

The bullet did jump the crimp. Any double action revolver jams when the cylinder can no longer rotate because the bullet in any of the remaining unfired rounds is protruding out the front of the cylinder.

Humorous reading the Monday night quarterbacking from the armchair experts carry on about this incident.

I've worked in a position that interacts with the press for the past 25 years. If they get it right 50% of the time they're doing pretty darn good, on average. For those that believe it because it's in writing, it's time to shake the sap out of your heads and get real.

I've heard the first hand account from a sport fishing guide that was dall sheep hunting with a Remington pump action 30-06. A full curl plus ram ran at him and then cut broadside about 70 yds away across the bare hillside. He said he emptied his gun and couldn't believe he could have missed the ram. I also talked to his hunting buddy who leaked the rest of the story. When he walked over the fishing guide was sitting down with wobbling knees. He couldn't stand and could hardly even explain what had happened - simply due to buck fever. This ram wasn't even charging him. After his partner got the story from the guide, he walked over to where the guide said he was standing when he shot. The partner found nothing but live rounds pumped out on the ground. I'm telling you I talked to both of these guys and that's the way it happened, believe it or not. The fishing guide has no recollection of how he managed to eject the live rounds. He was completely certain he'd fired each round and emtied his rifle until all he found on the ground were live cartridges.

Now, you're expecting Greg Bush to have meticulous recall of the events of a close range death-charge from an big boar brown bear? If you had received and read his initial e-mail shortly after the incident occurred, describing the event, you'd know that he was on the verge of puking for a good hour after the incident. Nothing but tangled web of nerves. Probably suffering from shock.

Anyhow, I'll step aside so some more of you experts can sound in and set the record straight. Anymore arrogant experts out there that can't wait to judge the character and credibility of Mr. Bush on a public forum?

[fishnngrinn]

Quote: "I've heard the first hand account from a sport fishing guide that was dall sheep hunting with a Remington pump action 30-06. A full curl plus ram ran at him and then cut broadside about 70 yds away across the bare hillside. He said he emptied his gun and couldn't believe he could have missed the ram. I also talked to his hunting buddy who leaked the rest of the story. When he walked over the fishing guide was sitting down with wobbling knees. He couldn't stand and could hardly even explain what had happened - simply due to buck fever. This ram wasn't even charging him. After his partner got the story from the guide, he walked over to where the guide said he was standing when he shot. The partner found nothing but live rounds pumped out on the ground. I'm telling you I talked to both of these guys and that's the way it happened, believe it or not. The fishing guide has no recollection of how he managed to eject the live rounds. He was completely certain he'd fired each round and emtied his rifle until all he found on the ground were live cartridges."

I have seen this happen also, in Oregon. As a youth, hunting deer with my dad and two of his friends. We were sitting in the back seat of a 2 door coup. Big buck ran in front of the vehicle. The hunter in passenger seat opened the door, stood in the door way and ejected 5 live rounds on the ground. As I recall he never even got the rifle to his shoulder. We were amused at the worst case of "buck fever" we ever saw.

[yukon254]

Sayak good story and regardless of some of the posts on here it is entirely believable. Rockskipper brush said the bears in his area had lost their fear of humans, that is very common in populated areas, so not sure why you think its a crock??? 2 shots or 5 doubt he was counting, who cares! he is obviously a seasoned hand and doubt he got rich off the story! I have seen bear act the same way and the only solution is a quick accurate shot. Look at the stats, bears are far more aggressive in the late fall than any other time.