CANADIAN BLACK BEARS

Saved by Pepper Spray

EDITOR'S NOTE: Ryan Hack of Stony Mountain, Manitoba, Canada, guides for white-tailed deer and black bear for both archers and gun hunters each season.

QUESTION: Do you know what kind of bows your hunters were shooting?
ANSWER: Doug Otte shot a Black Widow. I'm not sure of the model, but it was a longbow. Ken Broman makes his own bows, and they are true pieces of art. He shot his own arrows that he'd made himself as well. He and the rest of the group really were traditional archers. I enjoy seeing guys like them come up to Canada to hunt.

QUESTION: What kind of broadheads were they using?
ANSWER: Although I can't confirm it, I believe they were using Bear archery broadheads with a double blade. Ken Broman's bear, after he shot it off the other bear's carcass, ran about 18 yards before he fell.

QUESTION: What did Ken say when you stepped in front of him and his son?
ANSWER: Ken said he thought the worst, and he just panicked until he saw the pepper spray come out. The pepper spray put him at ease a bit, but you never know with large bears like that. Anything could happen.

QUESTION: How long have you been carrying pepper spray?
ANSWER: I've been carrying pepper spray bear hunting with me since 1996.

QUESTION: And when did this incident with Ken Broman's bear occur?
ANSWER: This bear encounter took place in June 1998. Ken Broman custom made a bow for me to commemorate the event. The bow has artwork of a black bear and an inscription that reads, "Custom built by Ken Broman 08/13/00; To Ryan Hack, the guide in memory of the bear."

For more information about hunting deer or bear in Manitoba, call Ryan Hack at (204)-467-2164.

TOMORROW: STILL GUDING FOR BEARS