T. J. could hear someone bellowing in pain, "Help me! Help! I'm being mauled by a bear!" He'd never heard any sound quite like the agonized cries he was listening to—then realized, 'That's me.' He was shaken violently and flipped over as the pack was ripped upwards from his body. Horrible pain set in as the sow bit into his side. After several more painful bites T. J. was flung downhill and landed with his back arched over a fallen tree. His head was hanging low, facing the bear. Through a red blur, he saw her blood-soaked muzzle approaching and desperately placed his right hand against her throat—she stopped. He thought he heard other animals near¬by, perhaps the cubs bawling, then suddenly the sow turned and ran off. It was finally over. (For about 45 brutal seconds the sow had her way with T. J. A section of the skull above his right eye was broken loose, and most of the facial bones were crushed. He had deep lacerations across his forehead, the top of his head, and on the side of his torso. The top of his right hipbone had been broken off. Still, he was fortunate because during the biting process the sow had not pulled back; most of the tissue was still there, much of it hanging loose, but connected.) ____________ Craig screamed, "Bear," as he fumbled for the pepper spray. Grant yelled, "What?" This caused the animal to stop in its tracks 20 feet from Craig, as it now became aware of Grant and turned its stare towards him. The bear was brown on the sides and looked shaggy. Its ears were up, but there were no aggressive signals—it had approached silently, except for the noise of its feet hitting the ground. Craig had the spray in his hand as Grant moved up beside him with the shotgun ready for action. The bear was just standing there, staring intently at the two men. Craig yelled, "Fire a warning shot." A split second later the slug whizzed a foot over the bear's head. The bear didn't flinch or react in any way. About 30 seconds later it turned away and started circling downhill, out of sight. ____________ The foregoing is a preview of what's to come. Good writing must be interesting as well as entertaining, and equally important, it should be educational. Before we explore bear attack accounts and myths about bears, I ask the reader to carefully study the first part of this book. If you do, I believe you'll be rewarded with a clearer understanding of what follows.
