Momma Bear

Now I kinda wish I had waited to do that little commute photo essay until today.

Just before reaching the I-93 overpass this morning I rounded a slight corner to see a Black Bear with her two cubs crossing the road maybe 20ft in front of me. Momma was about the size of a quad ATV and the cubs were Wylee sized. They were about 1/2 way across the road when the mom noticed me. I was basically stopped, she eye'd me for a few seconds and continued to cross with the cubs. I wanted to stay moving so I could jet if need be so I continued to roll by. They were on the other side of the road starting to climb up a small embankment as I was passing them. As I was rolling by the mom pivoted around to face me and that is when I uncorked a sprint like I never have before.

I got up to speed and gave it full gas for 50 yds or so before I snuck a peek and lucky for me momma didnt feel like pursuing. Not sure if I could have outrun her or not...bears are pretty fast, I think my top speed would have been a bit faster than hers but my commute bike is fairly heavy and hard to keep at max speed for very long. I guess I'll just have to hope that my body's preservation instincts will kick in some extra adrenaline if needed, glad I didnt have to find out today.